Software Development Engineer

Help build the software infrastructure that makes complex data systems more visible, resilient, and responsive. Join NS2 Mission as a Software Development Engineer in Herndon, VA , where you'll design and develop distributed, event-driven solutions that support reliable data processing and real-time operational awareness.

You'll work across data pipelines and distributed services to create modular, scalable software capable of adapting to new data formats and mission requirements. Using technologies such as Python, Kafka, Grafana, and the ELK stack, you'll help strengthen observability, automate alerting, and build fault-tolerant systems that give engineering teams greater insight into how data and applications perform.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop event-driven software architectures that support distributed data processing and system integration.
• Build modular software components that can adapt to new data formats, domains, and evolving mission requirements.
• Develop Python-based applications using asynchronous and concurrent programming techniques.
• Implement distributed messaging and event processing solutions using Kafka.
• Design systems with a focus on fault tolerance, reliability, scalability, and maintainability.
• Develop observability capabilities that provide visibility into application, pipeline, and system events.
• Create dashboards, monitoring solutions, and operational views using Grafana and the ELK stack.
• Implement real-time alerting and event tracking to support proactive identification and response to system issues.
• Apply appropriate access control and security practices across event-driven and distributed environments.
• Support JSON-based data interchange and integration across services and data pipelines.
• Collaborate with software engineers, data engineers, and mission stakeholders to troubleshoot issues and improve platform performance.
• Contribute to technical documentation, design reviews, and software engineering best practices.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems, or a related technical discipline (or equivalent combination of education and experience).
• Professional experience developing software for distributed, cloud-based, or data-intensive environments.
• Strong proficiency in Python, including experience with asynchronous or concurrent programming.
• Hands-on experience with Kafka or comparable distributed messaging platforms.
• Understanding of distributed systems and event-driven software design principles.
• Experience developing modular, scalable software components and services.
• Working knowledge of JSON and service-to-service data interchange.
• Understanding of fault-tolerant and highly available system design.
• Familiarity with software observability concepts, including logging, monitoring, metrics, and alerting.
• Experience working in Agile software development environments.
• Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills with the ability to solve complex technical challenges.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience implementing access control within event-driven or distributed architectures.
• Strong background in modular software design for data pipelines and distributed processing systems.
• Experience with Grafana, ELK/Elastic Stack, or comparable observability platforms.
• Knowledge of real-time alerting, event tracking, and operational record-keeping solutions.
• Experience expanding software architectures to support multiple data domains and formats.
• Familiarity with containerization, cloud-native development, and modern DevOps practices.

Position Clearance Requirement

TS/SCI with an FSP

Salary and Benefits Information

The salary range for this position is $100,744.00 to $173,655.00. The proposed range is intended as a general guideline. Final compensation will be determined based on qualifications, experience, location, and contractual considerations and may fall outside of the stated range. We offer a great benefits package designed to support you and your family. View our benefits information here:

Please be aware many of our positions require the ability to obtain or maintain a U.S security clearance which requires U.S citizenship.

We win with inclusion

NS2 Mission's culture of inclusion, focus on health and well-being, and flexible working models help ensure that everyone - regardless of background - feels included and can run at their best. At NS2 Mission, we believe we are made stronger by the unique capabilities and qualities that each person brings to our company, and we invest in our employees to inspire confidence and help everyone realize their full potential. We ultimately believe in unleashing all talent and creating a better world.

NS2 Mission is committed to the values of Equal Employment Opportunity and provides accessibility accommodations to applicants with physical and/or mental disabilities. If you are interested in applying for employment with NS2 Mission and are in need of accommodation or special assistance to navigate our website or to complete your application, please send an e-mail with your request to Recruiting Operations Team: View email address on click.appcast.io.

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to their age, race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, age, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, et al), sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, protected veteran status, or disability, in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local legal requirements.