Senior Software Engineer

Location

On-Site - Dayton

Why This Role Matters

At Parallax Advanced Research, our work is rooted in innovation, collaboration, and national impact. As a nonprofit research institute, we partner with government, academic, and industry clients to solve complex challenges in AI, aerospace, human‑machine teaming, and beyond.

Parallax Advanced Research Mission is to deliver innovative research and provide technology, human and business solutions via The Science of Intelligent Teaming™ for government, industry and academic clients. Parallax uses agile software development methods to deliver customized research and development software products in support of Air Force and other service missions.

Responsibilities

The Senior Software Engineer will work with a team of varying sizes to ensure creation of software programs utilizing varying techniques, tools, and computer languages depending on the current directed needs of the customer. The Senior Software Engineer will oversee updates to software and conduct quality control functions.

Responsibilities (detailed below) include mentoring and supervision of developers; collaborating with management, departments, and customers to identify end‑user requirements and specifications; testing and deploying programs and applications, troubleshooting, debugging, maintaining and improving existing software; compiling and assessing user feedback to improve software performance; observing user feedback to recommend improvements to current software products and developing technical documentation to guide future software development projects.

• Architect, design, and implement enterprise‑grade applications for CAGE and Nauti‑CAGE platforms
• Write efficient, scalable, and secure code across multiple languages and frameworks
• Lead secure CI/CD pipeline design and automation
• Integrate vulnerability scanning, compliance checks, and runtime monitoring into deployments
• Champion best practices for secure coding and infrastructure‑as‑code
• Develop, optimize, and deploy algorithms for machine learning and artificial intelligence
• Handle large‑scale datasets, ensuring data integrity and model accuracy
• Collaborate with data scientists to operationalize ML models in production
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to technical roadmaps
• Partner with cross‑functional teams to align software, security, and AI/ML initiatives
• Drive innovation by staying ahead of emerging technologies

Required Skills And Qualifications

• Active TS/SCI Clearance and US Citizenship are required
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related technical field with (10+ years) experience in software development
• Programming Languages: Python, Java, C++, Go, Rust, JavaScript/TypeScript, SQL, NoSQL, TensorFlow, Pytorch, Matplotlib, OpenCV
• Proficiency with DevSecOps Tools: Docker, Kubernetes, Jenkins, GitLab CI/CD, Terraform, Ansible, security scanning tools
• Cloud Platforms: AWS, Azure, GCP with emphasis on secure deployments and compliance
• Data Science & AI/ML: Feature engineering, model training, hyperparameter tuning, MLOps pipelines
• Architecture and Orchestration Frameworks: RAG (Retrieval‑Augmented Generation) and Agentic workflows; LangGraph, CrewAI with the ability to design multi‑step “reasoning loops”
• 10+ years in software development, with at least 5 years in DevSecOps and AI/ML
• Proven track record of embedding security in software development
• Demonstrated ability to mentor, lead projects, and influence technical direction
• Strong written and verbal communication skills for cross‑team collaboration

Preferred Qualifications (knowledge, Skills, And Abilities)

• MS or PhD in Computer Science or related technical field
• Experience with Rust or Go for secure systems programming
• 15‑20 years leading software development teams capable of mentoring junior developers, influence technical direction, and improve
• Contributions to open‑source projects in DevSecOps or AI/ML
• Experience engineering novel image extraction, enhancement and inferencing pipelines for classification/segmentation, particularly when overcoming constraints like extremely small, labeled datasets
• Expertise in data augmentation and auto‑labelling practices to overcome data scarcity

Certifications

• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD)
• CompTIA Security

Clearance & Citizenship

• Active TS/SCI Clearance and US Citizenship are required

Physical Demands and Work Environment

• Sitting & Posture – Ability to sit for long periods with good posture.
• Manual Dexterity – Use of a keyboard, mouse, and office equipment.
• Vision & Reading – Clear vision (corrected if needed) for screens and documents.
• Hearing & Communication – Ability to hear and speak clearly for calls and meetings.
• Mobility – Walking short distances, occasional reaching, bending, or lifting light objects.
• Cognitive Ability – Focus, problem‑solving, and multitasking skill

Travel requirements/percentage

10%

Benefits

• Health Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision coverage
• Insurance: 100% employer‑paid life, short‑ and long‑term disability
• Retirement: Roth or pre‑tax 401(k) with company match + annual employer contribution
• Education: 100% tuition coverage for employees + 80% for dependents
• Time Off: 25 days of PTO, flex holidays, paid parental leave, and military leave
• Work‑Life Balance: PTO sell‑back program and hybrid flexibility for select positions

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement

Parallax Advanced Research is an Equal Opportunity Employer, drug free workplace, and complies with ADA regulations as applicable.