Critical Infrastructure / Physical Security Subject Matter Expert

Critical Infrastructure / Physical Security Subject Matter Expert

Position Type: Full-time
Location: Washington, DC Metro preferred; travel required for stakeholder exercises
Clearance / Suitability: Secret preferred; ability to obtain and maintain Secret and DHS suitability required
Travel: Required as directed

Position Summary

The Critical Infrastructure / Physical Security SME provides subject matter expertise for infrastructure security, soft targets and crowded places, physical security, threat-based scenarios, vulnerability and consequence considerations, sector-specific risk, and protective measures. The SME ensures CISA exercises are realistic, sector-informed, operationally relevant, and aligned to the needs of public and private critical infrastructure partners.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Advise exercise teams on physical security, critical infrastructure risk, soft targets and crowded places, protective measures, threat pathways, sector dependencies, and operational impacts.
• Support scenario development for active threats, natural hazards, terrorism, hostile events, facility disruption, infrastructure failure, cyber/physical convergence, and cascading consequences.
• Develop realistic injects, discussion questions, scenario artifacts, incident reports, evaluation criteria, and capability-focused observations.
• Participate in planning meetings, stakeholder interviews, technical coordination meetings, exercise execution, hotwashes, and AAMs.
• Coordinate with CISA representatives, SLTT partners, law enforcement, emergency management, facility operators, and private-sector owners/operators.
• Support development and update of CTEP materials and sector-specific exercise packages.
• Review exercise products for technical accuracy, risk relevance, operational realism, and appropriate terminology.
• Support evaluation by identifying best practices, capability gaps, risk reduction opportunities, and corrective actions.
• Contribute to fact sheets, briefing papers, analytical products, AARs, CAPs, and program-level trend analysis.
• Maintain awareness of emerging threats and hazards affecting critical infrastructure and public gathering locations.

Required Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in critical infrastructure protection, physical security, law enforcement, antiterrorism, emergency management, risk management, protective security, or public safety.
• Knowledge of critical infrastructure sectors, public/private-sector coordination, vulnerability reduction, protective measures, and consequence management.
• Experience supporting exercises, training, assessments, operational planning, emergency response planning, or infrastructure security programs.
• Ability to communicate technical security concepts to executive, operational, and non-technical audiences.
• Strong writing, facilitation, and stakeholder coordination skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Prior CISA Protective Security Advisor, DHS, FEMA, state homeland security, law enforcement, or private-sector infrastructure security experience.
• Experience with soft targets and crowded places security.
• Familiarity with PCII, CVI, or sensitive infrastructure information handling requirements.

Primary Deliverables / Work Products Supported

• Scenario and inject technical inputs
• Critical infrastructure risk and physical security review comments
• Exercise artifact development
• AAR/CAP findings and corrective action inputs
• CTEP and sector package inputs
• Briefing paper and fact sheet inputs

Applied Training Solutions, LLC is a leading simulations company providing innovative systems, products, and solutions to government and commercial customers.

Applied Training Solutions, LLC is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. U.S. Citizenship is required for most positions.