Lead Software Engineer - Technical Support

Derq•Detroit, MI

About The Position

Derq is an MIT spinoff building AI-powered traffic safety and smart infrastructure. We’re a team of passionate innovators, leveraging the latest in AI and technology to transform the future of mobility. Our platform enhances road safety and traffic management by turning real-time data into actionable insights for cities and road operators. Our patented technology collects and analyzes data from connected sensors like cameras, radar, and traffic signal controllers to help predict and prevent road incidents. We deploy edge and cloud solutions that make intersections and highways safer and smarter. Role Overview We’re looking for a Lead Software Engineer to lead and scale our Technical Support organization. The team operates in three squads, and you’ll run the function through them. You’ll own function-level performance, delivery quality, and team growth, working closely with the Squad Leads to coach, unblock, and continuously improve how support operates. This role blends leadership and execution. You’ll spend roughly 70% of your time leading through Squad Leads and 30% as a hands-on engineer. As the team scales from 9 to 15 engineers, you’ll stay close to the technical core: configuration, deployments, QA, monitoring, troubleshooting, and building automation that improves reliability and speed. You will work closely with Project Management, Engineering, and Product teams to ensure customer sites are correctly deployed, optimized for performance, and monitored 24/7 for reliability. You will also collaborate with engineering teams to improve tooling, automation, and monitoring to support global scale. This role is ideal for a technically strong leader who enjoys solving real-world system challenges and wants to grow and mature a high-performing technical support organization.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, IT, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
8–10 years of experience in Software Technical Support / Systems Support Engineering.
4–8 years of experience leading technical teams, ideally via team leads or supervisors.
Strong Linux server administration and troubleshooting skills.
Solid networking fundamentals: TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, NAT, routing, VLANs, port forwarding.
Hands-on scripting with Python and Shell for automation.
Familiarity with GitHub workflows (commits, PRs, version control).
Strong leadership, team mentoring, and escalation management.
Excellent communication with customers and internal teams.
Highly organized, proactive, and strong problem‑solver.

Nice To Haves

Experience with traffic systems, smart infrastructure, video analytics, or IoT deployments is a strong plus (but not mandatory).
Understanding of SPaT/MAP and ITS protocols (preferred).

Responsibilities

System Deployment & Configuration
Use the Derq Deployment Manager to configure and calibrate sensors and define intersection layouts for accurate event detection.
Plan and execute deployments tailored to each intersection or highway’s unique characteristics.
Configure and maintain traffic light controller integrations and V2X connectivity.
Deploy and maintain edge Linux servers, routers, and network infrastructure.
Provide support for Derq’s Demo setups to clients and partners.
Stage hardware for projects or proof of concepts when quick turnaround is needed.
QA
Oversee the QA squad and ensure consistent validation of events, configurations, and end-to-end application behavior.
Own release quality gates: make sure deployments meet reliability, performance, and support-readiness standards before and after go-live.
Partner with Product and Engineering to coordinate validation of fixes and new features in production-like environments, and ensure issues are tracked, prioritized, and closed with clear acceptance criteria.
Maintenance & Support
Monitor live systems for uptime, performance, and sensor health.
Troubleshoot and resolve Level 1 and Level 2 issues (networking, configuration, software).
Escalate Level 3 issues to Engineering, track until resolution, and update stakeholders.
Continuously improve incident response processes for faster resolution.
Team Leadership
Manage and mentor 3 Squad Leads and their Support Engineer teams.
Lead and coach configuration, QA, and support engineers.
Set priorities and ensure SLA compliance for configurations, updates, and fixes.
Align timelines with Project Managers for customer deployments.
Strengthen team skills in monitoring, troubleshooting, and proactive issue resolution.
Support recruitment and onboarding as the organization grows.
Engineering Collaboration & Process Improvement
Participate in engineering sprints to represent deployment and support needs.
Contribute to GitHub repositories (configs, automation scripts, monitoring tools, minor fixes).
Provide structured feedback on systemic issues to Product and Engineering.
Identify repetitive tasks and implement automation and tooling.
Enhance monitoring dashboards, alerting, and system health checks.
Maintain clear documentation, runbooks, and playbooks.