Staff Software Developer - AI Innovation Team

BECU•Lexington, KY

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

Is it surprising to hear that a financial institution of 1.5 million members and over $30 billion in managed assets say that success comes from focusing on people, not profits? Our “people helping people” philosophy has guided us since 1935, driving our deep commitment to serving our members, communities, and each other. When you join our team, you become part of a purpose-driven organization where your work makes a real difference. While we’re proud of our history, we’re even more excited about our future. With business and technology transformation on the horizon, there’s never been a better time to be part of BECU. IMPACT YOU’LL MAKE: As a Staff Software Developer on BECU’s AI Innovation & Strategy team, you’ll lead the technical development of our AI tools designed to empower our members and our staff with personalized advice and recommendations. You’ll shape the architecture and strategy. Your work will directly elevate the experiences and financial outcomes for our members. This is your opportunity to lead with purpose and build solutions that matter. To join our dynamic team, we require candidates to be residents of WA, OR, ID, AZ, TX, GA, SC, VA, CA, or NC. If you’re located in Washington state and within a reasonable driving distance from Tukwila, we are requesting that you come into our HQ on Tuesdays & Wednesdays. For those candidates that live outside the commute distance of TFC and in any of our approved remote work locations, this role will be remote. Remote or onsite, we are committed to ensuring you are fully engaged and included in our collaborative environment. WHAT YOU’LL DO: Lead AI Product Development: Serve as the technical lead for our AI product, guiding its expansion and ensuring alignment with strategic goals. Architect Scalable Solutions: Design and develop robust, cloud-agnostic systems using Python, AWS, LLM, and RAG-based architecture. Collaborate Across Functions: Partner with stakeholders in contact center, retail, cybersecurity, operations, and marketing to ensure technical accuracy and impact. Drive Agile Execution: Participate in daily stand-ups and two-week sprints, using GitHub for project management and backlog prioritization. Mentor and Influence: Provide technical coaching to senior engineers, contribute to coding standards, and present solutions to technical leadership. Advance AI Foundations: Strengthen the shared infrastructure supporting our AI products, with a focus on segmentation, retrieval, and scalability. Champion Innovation: Evaluate emerging technologies, balance exploration with execution, and contribute to future AI product planning. Ensure Quality and Security: Apply secure development best practices, conduct testing, and drive improvements across BECU’s technical systems. Promote Technical Excellence: Lead code reviews, enforce standards, and contribute to continuous integration and delivery pipelines. Represent BECU Expertise: Share your knowledge internally and externally, including potential conference presentations and cross-team consulting. This isn’t just about ticking off tasks on a list. It's about making a significant, positive change in BECU’s journey, where your contributions are valued, and your growth is continually fostered. WHAT YOU’LL GAIN: A leadership role in shaping BECU’s AI strategy and product development. The chance to work on cutting-edge technologies like LLMs, RAG, and agentic systems. Collaboration with a small, agile team with startup roots and enterprise impact. Visibility and influence across multiple departments and the AI Council. A culture that values innovation, autonomy, and continuous learning.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related discipline, or equivalent work experience.
Minimum eight years of experience designing software and writing production code in a team environment.
Demonstrated expertise in Secure Development best practices.
Proven ability to deliver scalable solutions across multiple languages and environments.
Expertise with two or more of the following: Python, .NET, C#, node.js, JavaScript/TypeScript frameworks.
Experience with public cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/Google Cloud).
Knowledge of containers and orchestration (Kubernetes preferred).
Expertise in SOLID principles, OOP, SOA patterns, and distributed systems.
Experience with CI/CD tools (Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, TeamCity).
Deep understanding of TDD and testing methodologies.
Proficiency with git and branching standards.
Experience with SQL, large datasets, ETL, and analytics engines.
Proven experience leading cross-functional teams through the SDLC.
Strong verbal and written communication skills.
Full-time availability and occasional travel.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in Computer Science or related field.
Experience presenting at industry conferences.
Familiarity with agent-based systems and user interaction models.
Exposure to cloud platforms beyond AWS.
Understanding of data segmentation and collection independence.
Experience in startup or agile, autonomous team environments.
Ability to drive adoption of emerging technologies within domain.

Responsibilities

Lead AI Product Development: Serve as the technical lead for our AI product, guiding its expansion and ensuring alignment with strategic goals.
Architect Scalable Solutions: Design and develop robust, cloud-agnostic systems using Python, AWS, LLM, and RAG-based architecture.
Collaborate Across Functions: Partner with stakeholders in contact center, retail, cybersecurity, operations, and marketing to ensure technical accuracy and impact.
Drive Agile Execution: Participate in daily stand-ups and two-week sprints, using GitHub for project management and backlog prioritization.
Mentor and Influence: Provide technical coaching to senior engineers, contribute to coding standards, and present solutions to technical leadership.
Advance AI Foundations: Strengthen the shared infrastructure supporting our AI products, with a focus on segmentation, retrieval, and scalability.
Champion Innovation: Evaluate emerging technologies, balance exploration with execution, and contribute to future AI product planning.
Ensure Quality and Security: Apply secure development best practices, conduct testing, and drive improvements across BECU’s technical systems.
Promote Technical Excellence: Lead code reviews, enforce standards, and contribute to continuous integration and delivery pipelines.
Represent BECU Expertise: Share your knowledge internally and externally, including potential conference presentations and cross-team consulting.