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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Lead Software Engineer IV - **Company:** Pacific Northwest National Laboratory - **Location:** Seattle, WA, United States - **Experience:** Expert - **Salary:** $161,300.0 - **Contract:** Temporary contract - **Skills:** LangGraph Framework, Adobe Analytics, .NET Framework, Airflow, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, C Sharp (Programming Language), C++ (Programming Language), Cloud Computing, Cloud Engineering, Computer Programming, Continuous Integration, Data Infrastructure, Extract Transform Load (ETL), Distributed Systems, Data Intelligence, Python (Programming Language), Machine Learning, NoSQL, RabbitMQ, Tensorflow, Software Engineering, Software Systems, SQL Databases, Data Streaming, Parquet, Pytorch, LangChain, Retrieval-Augmented Generation, Transfer Learning, Large Language Models, Apache Spark, Multi-Cloud, Llamaindex, Agentic-AI, Event Driven Architecture, Data Lakes, Kubernetes, Apache Flink, Apache Kafka, Codebase, Graphql, Machine Learning Operations, Api Design, Restful APIs, Grpc, Data Pipelines, Docker, Golang, Microservices - **Published:** November 6, 2026 - **Apply:** https://dejobs.org/x/x/17E458A90F214968A31B6C1800321ED2/job/ ## About the Role An experienced engineer who bridges infrastructure, SI/ML, and production software. You've built highly scalable systems from scratch, led initiatives that matter, and turned complex problems into solutions. You're as comfortable architecting distributed systems processing terabytes per hour as you are fine-tuning LLMs. You bring startup agility to mission-critical work., * Engineering Leadership: Expert Python + another language (C#/.NET, Go, C++); proven track record establishing best practices, advanced CI/CD, and architecting distributed systems * SI/ML Architecture: Production agentic SI experience; deep expertise with PyTorch/TensorFlow/JAX and LLM orchestration; advanced LLM optimization (LoRA/PEFT, RAG, fine-tuning); end-to-end ML platform design * Cloud & Distributed Systems: Enterprise-scale architecture across AWS/Azure/GCP; Docker/Kubernetes/IaC; event-driven systems (Kafka, RabbitMQ); API design mastery (REST, GraphQL, gRPC); polyglot persistence (SQL/NoSQL/warehouses) * Data Platform Engineering: Cloud-native pipelines & orchestration (Airflow, Prefect); data lakehouse architectures; distributed computing (Spark, Flink, Ray); petabyte-scale optimization and modern data formats (Parquet, Iceberg, Delta) * Leadership & Communication: Mentoring teams, articulating strategy to executives & stakeholders, balancing delivery with technical excellence, and driving cross-functional collaboration, * PhD and 3 years of Software Engineering experience -OR- * MS/MA and 5 years of Software Engineering experience -OR- * BS/BA and 7 years of Software Engineering experience -OR- * AA and 16 years of Software Engineering experience in designing, architecting, programming, deploying, and automating software solutions in support of scientific research or consumer digital product development -OR- * HS/GED and 18 years of Software Engineering experience in designing, architecting, programming, deploying, and automating software solutions in support of scientific research or consumer digital product development * Current, hands-on software development experience using Python Preferred Qualifications: * Actively using Python for the previous five years * Expert-level Python: Architecting production frameworks, libraries, and large multi-language codebases at scale * Enterprise ETL/data platform leadership: Designing petabyte-scale ETL/ELT pipelines, orchestration (Airflow, Prefect, Step Functions), and data lakehouse architectures * Advanced cloud architecture: Multi-cloud strategy across AWS, Azure, or GCP with Kubernetes and Infrastructure as Code at enterprise scale * FFRDC or national laboratory experience: Prior work within a Federally Funded Research and Development Center or DOE national lab environment * National security / intelligence experience: Supporting government, defense, or intelligence programs, including classified and compliance-driven environments * Production agentic SI / advanced LLM experience: Deploying autonomous agent systems, RAG, and fine-tuned models in operational environments * Distributed ML at scale: Deploying and optimizing ML workloads on Ray, Spark, or Kubernetes clusters * Technical team leadership: Proven experience leading engineering teams through ambiguous, high-impact scope, This position requires the ability to obtain and maintain a federal security clearance. A security clearance background investigation includes review of your employment, education, financial, and criminal history, as well as interviews with you and your personal references, neighbors, and co-workers to determine trustworthiness, reliability, and loyalty to the United States. The investigation also examines your foreign connections, drug and alcohol use, foreign influence, and overall conduct. Requirements: * U.S. Citizenship * Background Investigation: Applicants selected will be subject to a Federal background investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified matter in accordance with 10 CFR 710, Appendix B. * Drug Testing: All Security Clearance positions are Testing Designated Positions, which means that the applicant selected for hire is subject to pre-employment drug testing, and post-employment random drug testing. In addition, applicants must be able to demonstrate non-use of illegal drugs, including marijuana, for the 12 consecutive months preceding completion of the requisite Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP). Note: Applicants will be considered ineligible for security clearance processing by the U.S. Department of Energy if non-use of illegal drugs, including marijuana, for 12 months cannot be demonstrated. ## Description We are seeking an exceptional Lead Software Engineer to architect and build next-generation SI systems at PNNL, spanning agentic SI platforms, petabyte-scale data orchestration, and real-time intelligence processing that define the future of national security technology. This role blends deep technical leadership with hands-on SI/ML engineering, requiring both strategic vision and tactical excellence., * SI-Native Systems: Agentic SI with dynamic reasoning, LLM orchestration (LangChain, LlamaIndex, LangGraph), MLOps platforms, and multi-modal reasoning pipelines * Scalable Infrastructure: Microservices across security enclaves, real-time streaming (TB/hour), petabyte-scale ETL, data lake/mesh architectures, and Kubernetes/CI-CD for classified & edge environments * Production Systems: Secure SI deployments, observability across enclaves, ethical SI compliance, and geospatial/time-series intelligence data fusion * Technical Leadership: Lead engineers on high-impact ambiguous scope, drive architecture and strategy, build roadmaps from cutting-edge research, and mentor teams, You will work at the intersection of cutting-edge SI research and production engineering, building platforms that process the nation's most sensitive intelligence data while mentoring teams and shaping technical strategy. Startup agility on problems of national importance., This position is based in Richland, WA or Seattle, WA and requires an onsite presence Monday through Thursday, with Friday as required by business needs.