Software Systems Engineer

Software & Systems Development EngineerLCS Defense is seeking a Software & Systems Development Engineer to design, develop, and maintain the software infrastructure that enables automated testing of next-generation cloud hardware platforms. This is not a traditional Systems Test Engineering role focused on writing test plans, TEMPs, or test procedures. Instead, this position is responsible for building and maintaining the test framework, automation, and hardware/software interfaces used by engineering teams to validate complex hardware systems within a dedicated development laboratory. The ideal candidate is a software engineer with experience developing automation, hardware interfaces, embedded or low-level software, and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test environments.Key ResponsibilitiesDesign, develop, and maintain software-based test frameworks used to validate next-generation hardware platforms.Develop software that interfaces directly with hardware devices, instruments, and systems under test.Build and maintain hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing environments supporting engineering development.Develop automation, utilities, scripts, and software tools that improve engineering productivity.Create software interfaces, drivers, and communication layers between test infrastructure and hardware devices.Support integration, debugging, troubleshooting, and validation of hardware/software systems.Collaborate closely with hardware, FPGA, embedded software, and cloud software engineers.Maintain laboratory software infrastructure supporting engineering development activities.Participate in code reviews and software design discussions.Support continuous improvement of automated testing capabilities.Required QualificationsBachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field.5+ years of professional software development experience.Strong programming experience in Rust (preferred) and/or Python.Experience developing software that interfaces directly with hardware.Experience with hardware/software integration.Experience with Linux development environments.Experience developing software used for automation or engineering infrastructure.Strong debugging and troubleshooting skills.Familiarity with Git version control.Preferred QualificationsExperience developing hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) test environments.Embedded software development experience.Experience writing device drivers or hardware interface software.Experience with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps tooling.Experience with AWS cloud services.Experience with Bash scripting.Experience working with FPGA-based hardware systems.Experience with automated testing frameworks.Familiarity with networking protocols used for hardware communication.Preferred Technical SkillsRustPythonC++LinuxBashGitAWSDockerKubernetesCI/CDHardware InterfacesTCP/IPSerial CommunicationsEmbedded Linux