Senior Software Engineer

Caterpillar Inc.•Chicago, IL

2d•$112,710 - $183,140

About The Position

The Cat Central team within CAT Digital builds and operates a mobile-first platform, delivering genuine Cat parts to Caterpillar customers and dealers through a fast, reliable digital experience. As a Senior Software Engineer on the Cat Central backend services team, you will help design, build, and maintain the service layer that powers our React Native mobile app, orchestrating data across enterprise systems including eCommerce, Helios, Salesforce, B2C, and payment processors. As a member of the team, you will contribute to the services that act as the critical integration and performance layer between the mobile client and Caterpillar's enterprise systems. Working in a Node.js environment, you will implement API endpoints, multi-tier Redis caching strategies, and secure authentication flows that ensure a responsive, seamless experience for users on iOS and Android.

Requirements

Knowledge of software development life cycle; ability to use a structured methodology for delivering and managing new or enhanced software products to the marketplace.
Knowledge of software integration processes and functions; ability to design, develop and maintain interfaces and linkage to alternative platforms and software packages.
Understanding of effective communication concepts, tools and techniques; ability to effectively transmit, receive, and accurately interpret ideas, information, and needs through the application of appropriate communication behaviors.
Knowledge of the decision-making process and associated tools and techniques; ability to accurately analyze situations and reach productive decisions based on informed judgment.
Strong proficiency in JavaScript/Node.js, with experience building production API and integration services.
Experience with API design and OpenAPI/REST, request/response validation, and service-to-service integration.
Solid understanding of caching strategies (Redis), authentication/authorization patterns, and secure token handling.
Experience with cloud-native deployment on AWS (Lambda, ECS/Fargate) and infrastructure-as-code tooling such as the Serverless Framework.
Familiarity with type-safe JavaScript development (JSDoc + TypeScript checking) and automated testing frameworks (Vitest or equivalent).
Ability to work effectively in a multi-repo environment supporting a React Native mobile client and to collaborate across mobile, backend, and architecture teams.
Experience with agile development methodologies and tools.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Technology, or related field.
Experience in mentoring software engineering teams.
Experience with microservices architecture and containerization (Docker, Kubernetes).
Familiarity with modern front-end frameworks or mobile development is a plus, (i.e. React, Angular , etc.)
Certifications in AWS, Azure, or relevant cloud technologies.
Experience with commercial database systems and web-based software design.

Responsibilities

Design, develop, test and deploy software applications independently.
Collaborate with business and internal customers to guide development, debugging, and testing for application software accuracy and completeness.
Develop new functionality and applications on cross-functional Agile project teams.
Perform integrated testing and customer acceptance testing of components to ensure timely, quality results.
Design and develop scalable, well-tested backend services using Node.js 22, Express, and the OpenAPI-driven routing framework (openapi-backend) with automatic request/response validation.
Build and maintain API clients, services, and controllers following established architecture patterns, including HTTP integration and Redis caching against downstream enterprise systems.
Implement and optimize multi-tier caching (response, service, client, and prefetch layers) to meet performance and reliability targets.
Support deployment and operation of services on AWS Lambda (Serverless Framework) and ECS/Fargate.
Collaborate closely with mobile app engineers, architecture teams, and enterprise system owners to deliver end-to-end features.
Participate in code reviews, uphold coding standards, and help mentor other engineers on the team.