Senior Software Engineer - Craft Education

Western Governors University•Nashville, TN

About The Position

Craft Education is seeking a passionate Senior Software Engineer to join their mission of solving skilled labor shortages by powering work-based learning pathways. Craft Education is revolutionizing the apprenticeship degree by combining on-the-job learning with accredited instruction. Their flagship product, Craft Connect, helps organizations administer apprentice degree programs and manage data and reporting needs, while also transforming how on-the-job learning converts into academic credits. The company provides technical assistance to organizations launching and managing apprenticeship degree programs and is working to accelerate the expansion of these programs and their data infrastructure. This role offers the opportunity to solve complex problems in a high-growth startup environment and make a significant impact on the future of education and workforce development. The ideal candidate will be an innovative, collaborative, and mission-oriented professional.

Requirements

Understanding of the processes associated with software development, including Planning, Measurement, Coding, Testing, Reuse, Tools, Abstraction, Algorithms and Complexity, Security, and basic system understanding.
Ability to employ the tools and techniques related to an engineering discipline, such as database management, user interface development, inter-process communications, etc.
Ability to create designs that can be realized in code that achieve functional and non-functional requirements for an application or at the system level.
Appropriately uses design patterns, system decomposition, security, and fault tolerance.
A demonstrated capability in one or more design methodologies, such as Object-oriented design, Function-oriented design, data centered design and the notations appropriate for each.
Ability to understand differences, strengths and weaknesses of various Software Development Life Cycle models, and practical considerations of options.
Understands implications of Software as a Service in the creation of software systems.
Thinks of and designs for scale, reliability, and cost in a public cloud environment.
Uses data and metrics to analyze Key Performance Indicators.
Ability to explain the basic value of a system and subsystems to users and how the various subsystems inter-operate to provide features.
Able to act as a partner with Operations in solving problems at a system level.
Knows what the system can and cannot do.
Ability to demonstrate a sense of urgency when looking for solutions to problems.
Understands the general higher education landscape, particularly with on-line higher education, including competitive landscape, opportunities, and feature gaps.
Ability to identify innovative ideas or technologies that represent opportunities to advance the capabilities of the university education platform, our efficiencies in improving our platform, or both.
Can leverage change management processes to drive adoption.
Ability to make the team stronger and more cohesive.
Strong communication skills with the ability to engage others at the right level at the right time.
Communicates effectively in group settings by knowing audience, listening effectively, and being responsive.
Presents solutions not just problems and effectively manages expectations.
Ability to identify, mitigate, or avoid risks and works closely with leads or managers to make sure that such risks and dependencies are understood, accounted, and planned for through an appropriate strategy.
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field
6 years of experience in software development; pioneering new approaches and technologies in engineering
Hands-on experience developing web applications and services including database integration and third-party system interoperability.
Strong background in modern full-stack development using TypeScript/Node.js, Next.js/React, GraphQL, PostgreSQL, and AWS—particularly ECS Fargate, Cognito, and TypeScript CDK—along with Hono, Auth0, and Casbin for authentication and authorization.
Equivalent relevant experience performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is the discretion of the hiring manager.

Nice To Haves

Master's Degree or PhD in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field
Experience with Agile/Scrum Project Development
Experience with Application Integration with legacy systems
Experience with Cloud-Native Development, and/or Porting/Refactoring of On-Site to Cloud (preferably AWS)
Technical Certifications

Responsibilities

Research, design, develop, analyze, test, and implement software operating or application systems.
Communicate project information to clients, project managers, or other design personnel.
Maintain good working relationships with clients and staff.
Write and maintain complete documentation.
Support team members and ensure established goals and deadlines are met.
Keep management informed of status and significant problems.
Act as an expert in assigned areas of software engineering.
Mentor other, more junior engineers to be more effective in their role.
Maintain accountability for the quality of services in their assigned area and success of assigned projects for on-time, on-budget, and on-scope delivery.
Contribute as a lead or consultant for at least one team.
Be a ‘go-to’ person in a particular sub-discipline or application area.
Contribute formally and informally to the effectiveness of the team through mentoring and direction during team meetings and problem-solving.
Communicate effectively and regularly with other disciplines to identify and resolve problems and contribute to organizational success.
Lead teams or cross-functional groups in identifying and transferring knowledge through formal and informal means.
Act as a planning consultant for the team or portfolio when identifying technical risks and dependencies.
Identify potential problems and solutions far in advance and mentor other engineers in risk management.
Speak authoritatively and accurately with respect to questions related to their area of ownership or the platform as a whole.
Contribute directly, and lead others, in rapid identification of system problems minimizing time to restoration of services.
Assist engineering management in identifying opportunities for improvement within the team, including training, technical feedback, emerging problems, etc.
Apply strategies and tools to plan and execute testing strategies to find the ‘sweet spot’ that maximizes quality while minimizing costs.
Demonstrate the ‘good enough’ principle that balances quality and time to implement.
Interpret functional, non-functional, and implied requirements into designs and code that meet those specifications.
Identify gaps, risks, and deficiencies in requirements and propose solutions.
Guide more junior engineers on how to plan and execute on requirements delivery.
Perform other job-related duties as assigned.