About the position
Are you interested in playing in the gray space of Research and Development and the delivery of secure and scalable production-quality reusable software? If so, we are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Principal Software Engineer with a strong background in production software delivery and formal methods, including formal modeling, verification, specification, and analysis. The ideal candidate will play a critical role in improving the quality, cybersecurity, and resiliency of software delivered into critical mission systems across the Leidos portfolio.
Responsibilities
- Drive the transition and adoption of cutting-edge software verification technologies into large scale industrial use.
- Identify opportunities where formal verification can better meet customer needs and develop practical verification approaches.
- Lead the design, development, and deployment of secure and resilient software systems in a reusable and scalable way for the Leidos enterprise.
- Apply formal methods to specify, verify, and analyze software to ensure correctness and security.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to opportunistically integrate formal verification techniques into the software development lifecycle.
- Partner with Cyber experts to conduct threat modeling, security assessments, and vulnerability analysis to identify and mitigate risks, and to prove formally the security of delivered software.
- Develop and maintain documentation for reusable software capabilities including specifications, verification plans, security protocols, and usage and basic training prerequisites.
- Mentor and provide technical guidance to junior engineers on formal methods and cybersecurity best practices.
- Stay current with industry trends, emerging technologies, and best practices in formal methods and cybersecurity.
- Conduct analysis of alternatives and SWOT-style evaluations of emerging and new technologies to quickly identify potential value.
- Collaborate to help identify, down-select, and vet potential external technologies partners by performing quick-turn proofs of concept and capability integrations.
Requirements
- Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field and 15+ years relevant experience.
- Bachelor's degree and additional years experience may be used in lieu of a degree.
- Minimum of 8 years of experience in production software delivery.
- Proven expertise in formal methods, including formal verification, specification, and analysis.
- Strong understanding of cybersecurity principles, threat modeling, and vulnerability assessment.
- Proficiency in programming languages such as C, C++, Java, or Python.
- Experience with formal verification tools and techniques (e.g., model checking, theorem proving).
- Excellent problem-solving skills and attention to detail.
- Strong communication and collaboration skills.
- Ability to obtain a Secret security clearance.
- US Citizenship is required for this position.
Nice-to-haves
- Experience with formal methods tools such as Lean and Isabelle/HO SPIN, TLA+, Rocq, or Z3.
- Additional memory-safe software language experience a plus (Rust, Go, etc.).
- Knowledge of secure coding practices and standards.
- Familiarity with software development methodologies such as Agile or DevOps.
- Certifications in cybersecurity (e.g., CISSP, CEH) are a plus.
Benefits
- Competitive compensation
- Health and Wellness programs
- Income Protection
- Paid Leave
- Retirement
