Lead Software Developer

Keypath Education • Schaumburg, IL

11d • $125,000 - $146,000 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Lead Software Developer plays a critical role in advancing technology solutions that support Keypath’s mission of unlocking greatness in higher education. This position provides architectural and engineering leadership for Keypath’s technology platforms and helps deliver scalable, secure, and data-driven solutions for students, faculty, and administrators. The role combines hands-on development expertise with team leadership, guiding agile scrum teams, and overseeing CI/CD and DevOps practices through Azure DevOps. It places a strong emphasis on modern capabilities, including AI, machine learning, and Microsoft Copilot, to improve engineering efficiency, velocity, and generate insights that enhance outcomes across the development lifecycle. The Lead Software Developer collaborates closely with product, data, and business stakeholders while managing multiple initiatives simultaneously. This role is ideal for a leader who thrives at the intersection of technology innovation, delivery excellence, and the unique needs of the higher education environment.

Requirements

• Senior-level experience architecting, developing, and delivering enterprise solutions on Microsoft Azure and Power Platform.
• Strong hands-on experience with Azure DevOps, including project, team, process, and board configuration.
• Deep expertise in Azure DevOps CI/CD, deployment automation, and infrastructure as code.
• Practical experience delivering AI and machine learning solutions in Microsoft Azure, including Microsoft Copilot, Azure AI Foundry, and Azure AI Services.
• Proven success leading agile and scrum teams and driving iterative delivery.
• Ability to lead multiple initiatives at once while balancing technical depth, delivery excellence, and stakeholder expectations.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and leadership skills, with the ability to influence technical and business stakeholders.
• Bachelor’s Degree or higher, preferably in a Computer Science, Technology, Mathematics or Statistics related discipline
• 7+ years of software engineering experience delivering enterprise solutions, with a proven history of leading successful cloud and platform initiatives that improve outcomes for business and technical stakeholders.
• 5+ years of experience designing and implementing cloud-based applications, integrations, automation, and platform capabilities using Microsoft Azure, Power Platform, and related Microsoft technologies.
• 5+ years of experience leading software engineering teams and technical projects, including mentoring engineers, guiding delivery practices, and driving execution across multiple workstreams.
• Experience applying engineering and solution design practices, including requirements analysis, technical planning, architecture evaluation, troubleshooting, root cause analysis, and development of actionable implementation recommendations.
• Strong problem-solving and technical leadership skills, with the ability to evaluate complex systems, make sound engineering decisions, and quickly learn and apply new tools, platforms, and development practices.
• Experience delivering AI, machine learning, and intelligent automation solutions, with hands-on familiarity using Microsoft Copilot, Azure AI Foundry, Azure AI Services, or equivalent modern AI development tools.
• Experience establishing and maintaining security, governance, compliance, and risk management standards within cloud platforms, CI/CD pipelines, and engineered application architectures.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to translate engineering concepts, architectural decisions, delivery risks, and technical tradeoffs for both technical and business audiences.
• Deep knowledge of enterprise application development and cloud engineering technologies, including Microsoft Azure, App Services, Azure Functions, Logic Apps, API integrations, Azure Storage, SQL Server, and Azure SQL.
• Strong experience with Microsoft Azure DevOps, including boards, repos, pipelines, test plans, release workflows, team configuration, and agile project delivery practices.
• Hands-on experience with CI/CD and deployment automation technologies, including Azure Pipelines, YAML-based pipeline configuration, Git version control, pull request workflows, and infrastructure as code using tools such as Bicep, ARM templates, or Terraform.
• Experience with Microsoft Power Platform technologies, including Power Apps, Power Automate, Dataverse, Power BI, Fabric, custom connectors, and environment governance and deployment practices.
• Experience with Microsoft Azure security, identity, and governance capabilities, including Key Vault, Managed Identity, Microsoft Entra ID, role-based access control, policy management, secrets management, and compliance-oriented design practices.
• Experience and proficiency in building software solutions with languages and frameworks such as C#, .NET, Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, REST APIs, and modern service integration patterns.
• Experience with AI, machine learning, and intelligent automation platforms and tools such as Azure AI Foundry, Azure AI Services, Azure Machine Learning, Microsoft Copilot, prompt engineering practices, and agent-based solution design.
• Think logically and be able to articulate thoughts in a clear, concise manner.
• Comfortably work both individually and as part of a group.
• Take ownership of assignments and see them through completion.
• Quickly learn and adapt when dealing with unfamiliar systems and applications.
• Be able to communicate clearly and effectively with Directors and co-workers.
• Meet deadlines and complete work in a timely manner.
• Be willing to go the extra mile to get the job done, including occasional overtime.
• Display exceptional follow-through, personal drive and the desire to make a difference.
• Contribute to and participate in an open environment with a team that likes to have fun at work.

Nice To Haves

• An understanding of the Higher Education and Post-Secondary Education sector

Responsibilities

• Lead the architecture, implementation, and operation of scalable, secure, highly available solutions across Microsoft Azure, Power Platform, and related Microsoft technologies.
• Perform hands-on codebase development for software applications and solutions across the technology and services catalog.
• Provide leadership to the Product Development team, including daily standups that maintain alignment, momentum, and productivity.
• Lead the design and implementation of CI/CD pipelines in Azure DevOps to support reliable, repeatable, automated deployments.
• Provide hands-on prototyping, code review, and mentorship to software engineers across one or more development teams.
• Champion the adoption and responsible use of Github Copilot and AI-assisted development practices, including agentic designs and processes.
• Collaborate with product owners and team leads to plan, prioritize, and deliver work across multiple concurrent projects.
• Ensure security, compliance, performance, and quality standards are met throughout the software development lifecycle.
• Support the implementation and continuous improvement of automated quality control processes.

Benefits

• Competitive array of Medical, Vision and Dental
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Partner Degree Program - earn a free degree from one of our partner institutions
• 401 (k) Retirement Matching Contributions
• Paid Leave Policies
• Paid Holiday Week Shutdown in December
• Family Flex Program
• 2 Mental Health Days per year
• Volunteer Time Off
• Professional Development Programs
• Remote/Flexible Work Options

What This Job Offers

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