Software Engineer

Senior Software Engineer – AI‑Enabled Platforms Location: Fairfax Station, VA (Must live in National Capital Region; able to commute to Leidos GHQ office; flexible for occasional on‑site work.) Clearance: Must have active TS clearance with ability to obtain and maintain TS/SCI. Primary 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. Architect and implement solutions using modern AI/ML frameworks, orchestration tools, vector databases, and microservices‑based architectures. Write high‑quality, maintainable code in multiple languages (Python, Java, C++, Go), leveraging AI‑assisted development tools. Leverage AI to analyze, modernize, and refactor large, complex codebases (Java, .NET, COBOL, C++). Design and optimize end‑to‑end AI workflows: prompt engineering, model evaluation, fine‑tuning, and continuous improvement. Develop and maintain CI/CD pipelines and automated testing frameworks across on‑prem, AWS, Azure. Apply DevSecOps principles for secure, resilient, compliant solutions (government/mission‑focused environments). Lead technical architecture decisions ensuring scalability, performance, and maintainability. Identify, assess, and mitigate technical risks proactively. Collaborate with cross‑functional teams; translate requirements into technical solutions; communicate to technical and non‑technical audiences. Support software lifecycle management: version control, release management, deployment across environments. Contribute to improving developer experience (DevX) through tooling, automation, and workflow enhancements. Operate within Agile environment: sprint planning, stand‑ups, demonstrations of working software. Basic Qualifications Bachelor's degree and 12+ years experience in software engineering, including senior/architect level (additional experience may substitute for degree). Expertise in designing and building distributed systems, developer tools, or platform engineering products. Hands‑on experience implementing AI/ML systems or integrating LLMs 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 SDLC from design through deployment and sustainment. Proven ability to work independently and lead within Agile/Scrum teams; experience mentoring junior engineers; strong communication skills. Must be authorized to work in the U.S. Must live in National Capital Region; flexible remote with ability to commute to GHQ as needed. Must have active TS clearance with ability to obtain and maintain TS/SCI. Preferred Qualifications Experience leading enterprise‑wide code reuse, standardization, and modernization initiatives. Familiarity with developer experience (DevEx) improvements: tooling, workflows, platform engineering. Hands‑on experience with static analysis, code quality, and security scanning tools (SonarQube, Fortify, Checkmarx). Experience with cloud environments (AWS, Azure, GCP) and services like EC2, S3; containerized architectures (Docker, Kubernetes). Working knowledge of multiple programming languages across diverse technology stacks. Experience establishing and managing software baselines, inventories, and asset catalogs. Familiarity with open‑source frameworks 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. Benefits Competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave, Retirement. Pay Range: $131,300.00 – $237,350.00 (general guideline; not a guarantee). #J-18808-Ljbffr