Software Developer

Leidos•Reston, VA

22h•Hybrid

About The Position

Leidos Intelligence Sector is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to act as both a lead engineer and technical innovator, driving the design and delivery of AI-enabled, agentic, and intelligent software platforms. This role is crucial for accelerating modernization and mission outcomes for defense and intelligence customers, equipping them with advanced technology and mission software to stay ahead of evolving global threats. The engineer will operate across the full spectrum, from shaping technical strategy and evaluating emerging technologies to prototyping and delivering production-grade solutions. The position requires a builder who moves with urgency, thinks boldly, and executes with discipline within a highly collaborative environment. The ideal candidate will develop scalable, high-quality software, influence the direction of next-generation capabilities, and bring strong object-oriented design fundamentals, deep backend engineering experience, and a passion for solving complex problems at scale. Responsibilities include contributing across the full software lifecycle while continuously improving performance, reliability, and user experience.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree and 12+ years experience in software engineering, including significant experience at the senior/architect level. Additional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
Expertise in designing and building distributed systems, developer tools, or platform engineering products.
Hands-on experience implementing AI/ML systems or integrating large language models into production workflows.
Strong knowledge of agentic frameworks, orchestration tools, RAG, vector databases, API design, and microservices.
Deep understanding of software design patterns, CI/CD, DevSecOps, and cloud-native architectures (AWS/Azure/GCP).
Strong coding proficiency in at least two modern languages (Python, Go, Java, C#, etc.).
Experience supporting full software development lifecycle (SDLC) from design through deployment and sustainment.
Proven ability to work independently and lead within Agile/Scrum teams. Experience mentoring junior engineers and guiding best practices. Strong communication skills to translate complex technical concepts to stakeholders.
Must be authorized to work in the U.S.
Must live in the National Capital Region area and be able to commute to the Leidos GHQ office. Flexible to work remote with the ability to commute to the corporate office as needed
Must have active TS clearance with ability to obtain and maintain a TS/SCI security clearance

Nice To Haves

Experience leading or contributing to enterprise-wide code reuse, standardization, and modernization initiatives
Familiarity with developer experience (DevEx) improvements, including tooling, workflows, and platform engineering concepts
Hands-on experience with static analysis, code quality, and security scanning tools (e.g., SonarQube, Fortify, Checkmarx)
Experience working in cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP), including hands-on experience with AWS services such as EC2 and S3, and deploying applications in containerized architectures (Docker, Kubernetes)
Working knowledge of multiple programming languages and the ability to operate across diverse technology stacks
Experience establishing and managing software baselines, inventories, and asset catalogs
Familiarity with open-source frameworks and approaches for evaluating and adopting emerging technologies
Experience developing and visualizing engineering metrics and performance dashboards
Background supporting federal, intelligence, or homeland security missions
TS /SCI with poly clearance

Responsibilities

Design, build, and scale distributed, cloud-native and on-premise systems, including developer platforms and mission-critical applications.
Develop and deploy AI-enabled applications, including integration of large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and agentic workflows into production environments.
Architect and implement solutions using modern AI/ML frameworks, orchestration tools, vector databases, and microservices-based architectures.
Write high-quality, maintainable code in multiple programming languages (e.g., Python, Java, C++, Go), leveraging AI-assisted development tools to accelerate delivery and improve productivity.
Leverage AI to analyze, modernize, and refactor large, complex codebases (e.g., Java, .NET, COBOL, C++).
Design and optimize end-to-end AI workflows, including prompt engineering, model evaluation, fine-tuning, and continuous improvement of model performance.
Develop and maintain CI/CD pipelines and automated testing frameworks to support rapid, reliable software delivery across environments (on-prem, AWS, Azure).
Apply DevSecOps principles to ensure secure, resilient, and compliant software solutions, particularly in government or mission-focused environments.
Lead and contribute to technical architecture decisions, ensuring alignment with best practices in scalability, performance, and maintainability.
Identify, assess, and mitigate technical risks proactively, ensuring system reliability and mission success.
Collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to translate requirements into technical solutions, clearly communicating complex concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
Support software lifecycle management, including version control, release management, and deployment across development, test, QA, and production environments.
Contribute to improving developer experience (DevX) through tooling, automation, and workflow enhancements.
Operate effectively within an Agile development environment, participating in sprint planning, daily stand-ups, and regular demonstrations of working software.