Software Engineer - Agentic Systems

Software Engineer – Agentic SystemsAt Rincon Research Corporation, our primary business is innovating, developing, and fielding digital signal processing (DSP) products and services for the United States Defense and Intelligence Communities in support of national security.Rincon Research Corporation (RRC), an employee-owned company, is seeking a Software Engineer – Agentic Systems to support the design, development, integration, testing, and deployment software solutions that address complex mission and operational needs. This role will have a particular focus on the integration and application of emerging artificial intelligence technologies, including large language models (LLMs) and agentic AI capabilities, within existing and future software systems. The successful candidate will bring strong software engineering fundamentals and hands-on experience developing and integrating production software, along with an interest in applying AI and agent-based technologies to real-world mission challenges. This individual will work across the development lifecycle—from architecture and rapid prototyping through integration, testing, containerization, deployment, and operational support. The Software Engineer will collaborate with engineering teams, Program Managers, Business Development, and government customers to translate mission needs into effective technical solutions.Come join the team that is creating cutting edge signal processing and geolocation systems for the future!Primary ResponsibilitiesDesign, develop, integrate, test, and maintain mission-focused software applications and services using Python and other modern programming languages.Design and implement APIs, backend services, data processing components, and integrations with external systems.Apply sound software engineering principles, including modular design, code reuse, version control, automated testing, documentation, and peer review.Integrate software with APIs, databases, data platforms, enterprise services, mission systems, and third-party technologies.Develop and maintain unit, integration, regression, and end-to-end automated tests to ensure software quality and reliability.Build, package, and deploy applications using Docker and other containerization technologies.Support deployment and operation of software within cloud, on-premises, hybrid, and restricted computing environments.Participate in architecture and design activities, including evaluating technical approaches, frameworks, libraries, and integration patterns.Explore and integrate LLMs, AI-enabled services, and agentic capabilities into software applications where they provide mission value.Develop AI-enabled workflows that may incorporate model APIs, tool/function calling, retrieval, data sources, external services, and multi-step processing.Evaluate and test AI-enabled capabilities for functionality, reliability, performance, and appropriate behavior.Implement application logging, monitoring, tracing, error handling, and other capabilities necessary to troubleshoot and operate production systems.Support CI/CD and DevSecOps processes for building, testing, scanning, packaging, and deploying software.Diagnose and resolve complex technical issues across application code, integrations, containers, infrastructure, and external dependencies.Collaborate directly with engineers, program teams, and government customers to understand mission requirements and translate them into working software.Stay current with emerging software and AI technologies and identify practical opportunities to incorporate them into mission solutions.Required BackgroundUS CITIZENSHIP REQUIREDCurrent TS/SCI Clearance5+ years of professional software engineering or software development experience, or an equivalent combination of education and relevant experience.Strong proficiency in Python, including experience developing production-quality applications, services, or backend systems.Experience with one or more additional programming languages such as Java, C++, C#, JavaScript/TypeScript, or Go.Strong understanding of software engineering fundamentals, including object-oriented and/or functional design, data structures, algorithms, application architecture, debugging, and testing.Experience designing, developing, and consuming RESTful APIs and web services.Experience integrating software with databases, external services, data sources, and other applications.Hands-on experience with Docker and containerized software development and deployment.Experience with automated software testing, including unit and integration testing.Experience with Git-based development workflows, code reviews, branching strategies, and collaborative software development.Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and modern DevSecOps practices.Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills with the ability to work across application, integration, and infrastructure boundaries.Interest in learning or working knowledge of applying emerging AI technologies, including LLMs and agent-based software patterns.Ability to communicate effectively with technical teams, program leadership, and government customers.Preferred SkillsHands-on experience developing or integrating AI/ML, LLM-powered, or agentic applications.Experience with LLM APIs and platforms and integrating model capabilities into production software.Familiarity with agentic concepts such as tool/function calling, orchestration, state management, planning, memory, and multi-step workflows.Experience with agentic or LLM application frameworks such as LangGraph, LangChain, Semantic Kernel, AutoGen, or similar technologies.Familiarity with Model Context Protocol (MCP) or similar approaches for connecting AI applications with tools, data, and services.Experience with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), embeddings, vector databases, semantic search, or knowledge retrieval.Familiarity with techniques for testing and evaluating nondeterministic AI/LLM applications, including evaluation datasets, tracing, observability, and failure analysis.Experience with Kubernetes or other container orchestration technologies.Experience with cloud platforms and cloud-native application architectures.Familiarity with relational and NoSQL databases, messaging technologies, and distributed systems.Experience developing software for Linux-based environments.Familiarity with secure software development, identity and access management, secrets management, zero-trust principles, and software supply-chain security.Experience transitioning prototypes or emerging technologies into operational, production-quality mission capabilitiesExperience developing, integrating, or deploying software within secure, restricted, disconnected, or controlled government environments.Demonstrated experience supporting U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) and/or Department of Defense (DoD) customers, programs, or mission environmentsThis position can be located at our Chantilly, VA office or our Tucson, Arizona Headquarters.*The likely salary range for this position is $130,000 to $160,000. This is not, however, a guarantee of compensation or salary. Rather, salary will be set based on experience, geographic location and possibly contractual requirements and could fall outside of this range.What benefits does RRC offer?100% employer-paid premiums for family medical and dental insurance, employee life insurance, short-term and long-term disability (STD & LTD)Flexible reimbursement spending accounts for medical expense and dependent careImmediate participation and vesting in the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and 401(k) PlanEmployer contributions to RRC’s ESOPEmployer matching contributions to the company’s 401(k) PlanEmployer discretionary contributions to the company’s 401(k) PlanRincon Research Corporation is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected factor.