Staff Software Engineer - AI & Retail Transformation

Job Description

Intellibus is building a strategic transformation partnership with a $7B+ U.S. grocery retailer, starting with a focused engagement and with the potential to grow into a $20–30M+ annual relationship over the next several years.

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Hybrid role based in or near Phoenix, AZ (client HQ proximity required)

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We are seeking a senior leader who can help us incubate, lead, and grow this relationship — combining deep retail/grocery context with executive-level client leadership and technology transformation experience.

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We are looking for a Staff Software Engineer to drive technology-led transformation across complex retail and omnichannel environments. 

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This individual will combine strong software engineering and architectural expertise with a deep understanding of retail business processes, digital commerce, and AI-driven innovation.

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The ideal candidate is a hands-on technical leader who can work closely with business stakeholders, product teams, and engineering organizations to identify opportunities, define scalable solutions, and translate business challenges into measurable technology outcomes.

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This role requires engineering excellence, consulting capabilities, retail domain knowledge, and the ability to influence technical and business decisions across multiple teams.

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Key Responsibilities

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Technical Leadership & Architecture:

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• Lead the architecture, design, and development of scalable, resilient, and high-performance enterprise applications.
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• Define architectural patterns, engineering standards, and best practices across distributed systems and microservices.
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• Design and implement robust APIs and integrations across enterprise platforms using REST and GraphQL.
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• Drive technical roadmaps, architecture reviews, technology evaluations, and build-versus-buy decisions.
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• Identify opportunities to modernize legacy applications, simplify complex systems, and improve platform scalability.
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• Mentor engineers and provide technical direction across multiple engineering teams.
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Retail & Omnichannel Transformation

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• Partner with retail business and technology stakeholders to understand challenges across digital commerce, store operations, merchandising, inventory, and customer experience.
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• Design technology solutions that enable seamless omnichannel experiences across digital and physical retail channels.
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• Evaluate existing systems and workflows to identify opportunities for modernization, automation, and operational improvement.
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• Integrate enterprise applications, APIs, data platforms, and digital customer-facing systems to support connected retail experiences.
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• Translate retail business requirements into scalable technical architectures and implementation roadmaps.
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AI & Digital Transformation

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• Identify opportunities to apply generative AI, machine learning, intelligent automation, and AI agents to retail business processes.
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• Collaborate with AI and data teams to integrate intelligent capabilities into enterprise applications and workflows.
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• Evaluate emerging AI technologies and assess their feasibility, scalability, security, and business value.
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• Help define AI-enabled solutions for workflow automation, decision support, personalization, forecasting, and operational efficiency.
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• Establish appropriate engineering practices for AI integration, governance, monitoring, and production readiness.
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Consulting & Stakeholder Engagement

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• Work directly with business leaders, product managers, architects, and engineering teams to understand business objectives and technical constraints.
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• Facilitate discovery sessions, assess existing workflows, and identify opportunities for technology-led transformation.
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• Present architectural recommendations, technical trade-offs, and implementation strategies to technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
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• Connect business priorities with engineering execution, ensuring solutions deliver measurable outcomes.
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• Lead cross-functional problem-solving initiatives and influence decisions beyond individual project teams.
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Engineering Excellence & Delivery

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• Develop and maintain high-quality software using modern programming languages, frameworks, and engineering practices.
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• Improve system reliability, performance, observability, security, and maintainability.
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• Drive automated testing, CI/CD practices, production monitoring, and incident management improvements.
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• Ensure enterprise integrations follow appropriate security, authentication, authorization, and data protection standards.
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• Take ownership of complex technical problems from discovery and design through implementation and production support.
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Required Qualifications

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• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, application architecture, or enterprise technology, with demonstrated Staff-level technical leadership.
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• Strong experience in retail technology, grocery, digital commerce, omnichannel platforms, or retail transformation initiatives.
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• Demonstrated experience designing and delivering complex enterprise applications, integrations, and distributed systems.
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• Strong understanding of AI transformation, generative AI, intelligent automation, or AI-enabled enterprise solutions.
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• Experience working in consulting environments or partnering directly with senior business and technology stakeholders.
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• Proven ability to lead architecture decisions, influence multiple engineering teams, and mentor senior engineers.
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• Experience modernizing legacy systems and delivering scalable, secure, and reliable production applications.
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• Strong communication, problem-solving, and executive stakeholder engagement skills.
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Technical Skills

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Backend & Application Engineering

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• Java, Spring Boot, Python, C#/.NET, or comparable enterprise development technologies.
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• Microservices and distributed systems.
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• RESTful APIs, GraphQL, API design, and enterprise integrations.
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Cloud & Architecture

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• Microsoft Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud Platform.
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• Enterprise application architecture and cloud-native solutions.
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• Docker, Kubernetes, and infrastructure-as-code tools such as Terraform.
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Data & Integration

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• SQL and relational databases, including PostgreSQL, SQL Server, and Oracle.
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• NoSQL databases and enterprise data integration.
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• Event-driven architecture, Kafka, and message-based integration patterns.
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• ETL/ELT concepts and enterprise data pipelines.
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AI & Intelligent Automation

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• Generative AI, LLM integration, and AI-enabled applications.
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• Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), AI agents, and workflow automation.
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• Experience evaluating and integrating AI capabilities into enterprise systems.
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Engineering Practices & Tools

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• CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and Agile delivery.
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• Git, Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or Azure DevOps.
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• Application monitoring and observability tools such as New Relic, Dynatrace, or Azure Monitor.
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• Secure API design, OAuth 2.0, SSO, and enterprise application security.
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Preferred Qualifications

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• Experience delivering technology transformation within large retail or grocery organizations.
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• Exposure to omnichannel commerce, POS systems, order management, inventory, merchandising, or supply chain platforms.
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• Experience integrating AI solutions into enterprise retail workflows.
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• Experience working with executive stakeholders on technology strategy, architecture, and transformation roadmaps.
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• A track record of quantifiable improvements in system performance, operational efficiency, customer experience, or business outcomes.
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• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives in a consulting or enterprise transformation environment.
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What Success Looks Like

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• Designing scalable technology solutions aligned with retail business priorities.
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• Enabling seamless integration across omnichannel platforms and enterprise systems.
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• Identifying practical AI opportunities and helping move them from concept to production.
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• Improving engineering efficiency, system reliability, and application performance.
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• Influencing architecture and technology decisions across multiple teams.
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• Delivering measurable business value through engineering, consulting, and transformation leadership.
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Location Requirement

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• Candidates must be based in or able to work from the Phoenix, AZ area. The role is expected to support a hybrid working environment. (Travel expenses covered).
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Compensation: $180K–$240K/Year

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Our Interview Process

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• Quick Introduction - A 15-minute video call to get to know each other.
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• Skills & Problem-Solving - A short proctored assessment (under 1 hour) and a brief Google Docs presentation.
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• Technical & Leadership Conversations - Two to three focused 30-minute video interviews, with a final client conversation if needed.
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• Welcome Aboard! - Successful candidates receive an offer and next steps.
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If you are interested in reaching out to us, please apply, and our team will contact you within the hour.