Associate Software Engineer, Credit Tech

Morningstar•Chicago, IL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

This role focuses on leveraging cutting-edge AI techniques and backend development to enhance Morningstar DBRS Content's visibility and usability. The Associate Software Engineer will work on ensuring content is indexed by AI assistants, developing backend services for data processing and publication, and modernizing existing applications on AWS. Collaboration with senior engineers, product teams, and DevOps/SRE partners is key, along with adhering to modern engineering practices and continuous learning in AWS and AI-assisted development.

Requirements

Ability to analyze technical challenges, propose solutions, and deliver reliable results with guidance.
Familiarity with Agile/Scrum practices and modern software development methodologies.
Basic understanding of secure service design, API security concepts, and AWS security best practices.
Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field, or equivalent practical experience.
0–2 years of professional software development experience, with exposure to backend development and cloud-based systems.
Experience building or consuming REST APIs; familiarity with event-driven patterns is a plus.
Hands-on exposure to AWS services such as Bedrock, Lambda, SQS, SNS, API Gateway, S3, and RDS; basic understanding of serverless patterns is preferred.
Interest or basic experience with AI-assisted development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot), prompt engineering, or integrating simple AI APIs.
Analytical thinking to break down complex tasks into clear instructions.
Understanding of AI model strengths, limitations, and context windows.
Experimentation with prompt phrasing for improved results.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with event-driven patterns is a plus.
Basic understanding of serverless patterns is preferred.
Experience with SQL/NoSQL databases and basic data workflows (plus).
Scripting experience with Python for automation, small data tasks, or AI experimentation (plus).
Frontend exposure to Vue.js or other modern JavaScript frameworks (plus).
Understanding how AI can support automation, testing, or data workflows is a strong plus.

Responsibilities

Leverage GEO engineering best practices to help ensure Morningstar DBRS Content is indexed by top AI assistants such that people use popular AI assistants like ChatGPT/Gemini etc. and search for credit ratings related content or data, these tools should surface Morningstar DBRS content and refer users to dbrs.morningstar.com website.
Use latest AI techniques and tools like computer use to drive to power accelerated Insights, Discovery and Action.
Support the design and development of backend services to handle data processing, publication, and delivery to downstream applications.
Assist in developing APIs and cloud-native components using AWS services.
Help maintain, refactor, and migrate existing applications and services to modern, scalable AWS-based architectures.
Work closely with senior engineers, product teams, data engineers, and DevOps/SRE partners to align backend and cloud solutions with business needs.
Write clean, maintainable, and testable code.
Participate in code reviews and adhere to modern engineering standards.
Stay up to date on AWS cloud technologies and AI-assisted development tools.
Demonstrate curiosity about applying AI and automation to improve engineering productivity and system efficiency.

Benefits

100% 401k match up to 6% of salary
Stock Ownership Potential
Company provided life insurance - 1x salary + commission
Comprehensive health benefits (medical/dental/vision) including potential premium discounts and company-provided HSA contributions (up to $500-$2,000 annually) for specific plans and coverages
Additional medical Wellness Incentives - up to $300-$600 annual
Company-provided long- and short-term disability insurance
Trust-Based Time Off
6-week Paid Sabbatical Program
6-Week Paid Family Caregiving Leave
Competitive 8-24 Week Paid Parental Leave
Adoption Assistance
Leadership Coaching & Formal Mentorship Opportunities
Annual Flex Stipend - $1000 annually to cover personal education & well-being expenses
Tuition Reimbursement
Charitable Matching Gifts program
Dollars for Doers volunteer program
Paid volunteering days
15+ Employee Resource & Affinity Groups