Applications Engineer

FBL Financial Group • West Des Moines, IA

47d • Hybrid

About The Position

Applications Engineer The Application Engineer is responsible for technical direction to the business community and the IT department for an application or series of applications through the development and support of systems, applications solutions, and procedures. Informal leadership is required in this role by serving as an approachable mentor who guides others through task leadership and technical reviews and encourages collaboration across domain practices. If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, apply today! Who We Are: At Farm Bureau Financial Services, we make insurance simple so our client/members can feel confident knowing their family, home, cars, and other property are protected. We value a culture where integrity, teamwork, passion, service, leadership, and accountability are at the heart of every decision we make and every action we take. We're proud of our more than 80-year commitment to protecting the livelihoods and futures of our client/members and creating an atmosphere where our employees thrive. What You'll Do: As an Applications Engineer, you will oversee the software development life cycle, including analysis, technical requirements, design, coding, unit testing, implementation, and maintenance of application software. Additional responsibilities will include: Provide technical leadership for projects and initiatives, including acting as IT Lead in project proposals, justification, design, development, testing and delivery phases. Perform engineering functions at many levels from developing strategic artifacts to direct contributions to critical projects across the organization. Participate in governance activities associated with ensuring compliance with established principles, security standards, patterns, assumptions and strategies, and the integrity of components. Serve as the key liaison between technical and business areas to analyze and resolve complex business problems. Analyze financial services industry and technology trends to determine potential impacts to our business and proactively partner with application and infrastructure teams to create roadmaps which consider near term and long-term health of systems and technical currency. Recommend technology direction and/or adjustments to incorporate in business plans. Coach IT staff on technology, processes, and career development.

Requirements

• College degree or equivalent plus seven years of relevant experience required.
• Experience with .NET, JAVA and in multiple data integration patterns (messaging, web services, etc.), SDLC, API integrations and, cloud platforms (Azure).
• Must be able to work in a fast-paced environment, be results oriented, and adjust to changing priorities while maintaining a calm, professional demeanor.
• Customer focused mindset with strong analytical, problem solving, and system design skills sets.
• Mature interpersonal skills that foster the ability to work well with others and understand the importance of negotiation and compromise.
• Ability to understand insurance systems and the data sources behind them.
• Strong communication skills both oral and written in both technical and non-technical settings.
• Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.

Nice To Haves

• Four years of experience in insurance industry processing preferred.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the software development life cycle, including analysis, technical requirements, design, coding, unit testing, implementation, and maintenance of application software.
• Provide technical leadership for projects and initiatives, including acting as IT Lead in project proposals, justification, design, development, testing and delivery phases.
• Perform engineering functions at many levels from developing strategic artifacts to direct contributions to critical projects across the organization.
• Participate in governance activities associated with ensuring compliance with established principles, security standards, patterns, assumptions and strategies, and the integrity of components.
• Serve as the key liaison between technical and business areas to analyze and resolve complex business problems.
• Analyze financial services industry and technology trends to determine potential impacts to our business and proactively partner with application and infrastructure teams to create roadmaps which consider near term and long-term health of systems and technical currency.
• Recommend technology direction and/or adjustments to incorporate in business plans.
• Coach IT staff on technology, processes, and career development.

Benefits

• You'll hear about career development and educational opportunities.
• We offer an enhanced 401K with a match, low-cost health, dental, and vision benefits, and life and disability insurance options.
• We also offer paid time off, including holidays and volunteer time, and teams who know how to have fun.
• Add to that an onsite wellness facility with fitness classes and programs, a daycare center, a cafeteria, and for many positions, even consideration for a hybrid work arrangement.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level