Tech Lead Software Engineer

Tech Lead Software Engineer

As a Tech Lead Software Engineer on the Customer360 Technology Team, you'll lead the design and delivery of solutions that power how Southwest understands and serves our Customers. You'll guide a Team of Engineers in building highly reliable, scalable applications across Salesforce, servicing technologies, and AI-enabled capabilities, while ensuring strong technical quality and alignment with both business and architectural standards. Acting as a bridge between Development Teams, business stakeholders, and Leadership, you'll shape technical direction, mentor Engineers, and bring clarity to complex Customer-focused initiatives.

Working closely with partners across Customer Service, Customer Experience & Engagement, Digital, Innovation, and Technology, you'll help translate evolving business needs into practical, high-impact solutions. In this role, you'll balance hands-on development with technical leadership—driving design decisions, improving systems, and enabling your team to deliver with confidence. Your work will directly support efforts to create a more connected, intelligent, and seamless Customer Experience at Southwest.

Additional details

• This role allows for voluntary remote work for the majority of your working time within the Dallas-Fort Worth area, with occasional on-site presence at our Corporate Campus for training, meetings, and business needs. This role may also require limited travel for business purposes.
• U.S. citizenship or current authorization to work in the U.S. required and no current or future work authorization sponsorship available.

Responsibilities

• Provide accurate development estimates in support of feasibility assessments and planned development activities
• Create, maintain, review and approve application designs in collaboration with Solution Architects and shared services Teams, ensuring alignment to the appropriate solution architectures and taking tradeoffs into account
• Develop, maintain, and review software with a focus on quality and maintainability
• Develop, maintain, review, and execute unit, functional, and integration tests with a focus on automation and test-driven development
• Provide technical oversight for performance testing, ensuring plan and outcomes align to expected non-functional requirements
• Plan and oversee application deployment activities and sequencing in non-production and production environments
• Investigate new technologies that could improve the applications and development activities
• Identify and resolve technical debt as appropriate, weighing the development effort against the value returned
• Mentor and coach Development Team on relevant architecture, design, development, and operations topics
• Evaluate code to ensure that it is valid, is properly structured, meets industry standards, and is compatible with browsers, devices, or operating systems
• May perform other job duties as directed by Employee's Leaders

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Advanced knowledge of software development methodologies, practices, concepts, and technologies
• Advanced knowledge of at least one programming language and at least general knowledge of one or more additional programming languages
• Knowledge of project management methodology and principles
• Ability to demonstrate strong analytical and problem-solving abilities with a proactive mindset to get ahead of issues
• Skilled in communication with ability to articulate a clear direction and priorities on ideas, approaches, concepts, options, risks, impacts, and recommendations to technical, non-technical, and Leadership audiences with ability to adapt the message accordingly
• Ability to articulate the technical implementation and how it provides business value
• Ability to lead ideation, presentation, and group-thinking sessions
• Ability to influence effectively without authority up through Senior Leadership levels to achieve desired business outcomes
• Ability to lead multiple efforts concurrently, whether administrative or project related, while maintaining a successful level of completion in their own work
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, Team-based, Customer service-oriented environment

Education

• Required: High School Diploma or GED
• Required: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information systems or similar fields of study or equivalent advanced level experience

Experience

• Required: Expert level experience, expansive and far reaching knowledge in software engineering
• Preferred: Experience with Salesforce AI capabilities (e.g., Einstein, Prompt Builder, Data Cloud, AI Cloud) and how they support sales, service, and Customer operations
• Preferred: Experience working with customer data platforms, including Salesforce Data Cloud/Data360 concepts such as unified profiles, data harmonization, and activation across customer journeys
• Preferred: Experience designing or implementing AI-driven solutions within enterprise platforms that support Customer-facing workflows
• Preferred: Experience integrating AI solutions with CRM data sources, APIs, and middleware technologies (e.g., MuleSoft, Kafka)
• Preferred: Familiarity with AWS tools supporting AI development and orchestration (e.g., Bedrock, SageMaker, agent-based workflows)

Physical Abilities

• Ability to perform work duties from [limited space work station/desk/office area] for extended periods of time
• Ability to communicate and interact with others in the English language to meet the demands of the job
• Ability to use a computer and other office productivity tools with sufficient speed and accuracy to meet the demands of the job

Other Qualifications

• Must maintain a well-groomed appearance per Company appearance standards as described in established guidelines
• Must be a U.S. citizen or have authorization to work in the United States as defined by the Immigration Reform Act of 1986
• Must be at least 18 years of age
• Must be able to comply with Company attendance standards as described in established guidelines
• Must be able to travel and/or attend Company and non-Company facilities and remote locations such as remote-based offices as necessary

Pay & Benefits

• Competitive market salary from $160,550 per year to $178,260 per year* depending on qualifications and experience. For eligible Leadership and individual contributor roles, additional bonus opportunities are available and awarded at the discretion of the company.

Benefits you'll love

• Fly for free, as a privilege, on any open seat on all Southwest flights (your eligible dependents too)
• Southwest will help fund your Retirement Savings Plan with Company contributions up to 9.3% of your eligible earnings**
• Potential for annual ProfitSharing contribution in the Southwest Retirement Savings Plan- when Southwest profits, you profit***
• Competitive health insurance for you and your eligible dependents (including pets)
• Southwest offers health plan coverage options that start from the very first day of employment. You will have 30 days to select and enroll in your health plan with coverage retroactively available to your first day of employment.
• Explore more Benefits you'll love:

*The pay amount doesn't guarantee employment for any particular period.

**401(k) Company match contributions are subject to the plan's vesting schedule. Match contributions may vary based on the position.

***Profit-sharing contributions are subject to the Retirement Savings Plan vesting schedule and are made at the discretion of the Company.