Software Engineer (Java / Python)

Our client, a leading federal defense contractor is seeking mid-level Software Developers with strong Java and Python responsible for developing and deploying the state-of-the-art ground operational systems.

The position is mostly remote; however, due to the clearance requirement and the need to come onsite occasionally for team meetings, testing, etc., candidates will need to live near one of the following locations:

- Scottsdale, AZ (preferred)
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Northern Virginia
- California (Bay Area)
- Massachusetts (Taunton locations)
- Pittsburg, PA

Responsibilities:
- Maintains hardware, software, and related components of project
- Performs infrastructure requirements analysis, participates in research, designs, develops, and tests software and tools, to include development of new work products or enhancing existing applications, systems, or embedded products.

Required Skills

- Must be US Citizen due to government requirement
- Must be able to obtain DoD Top Secret Clearance (active Secret or Top Secret is preferred at time of hire)
- Requires a Bachelor's degree in Software Engineering, or a related STEM degree and 5+ years of job-related experience, or a Master's degree and 3 years of job-related experience.

Technical Skills:

Programming and Development:
- Proficiency in Python and Java
- Strong understanding of API design, testing, development, and management
- Familiarity with Scaled Agile methodology and best practices

DevOps and Cloud:
- Knowledge of DevOps principles, including CI/CD pipelines, GitOps, automation, configuration management, and infrastructure as code
- Experience with AWS (AWS Solutions Architect preferred), Azure is a plus
- Familiarity with containerization tools such as Docker and Kubernetes

Security:
- Understanding of security best practices, risk, compliance, vulnerability management, encryption, PKI, incident response, auditing, and monitoring

Collaboration and Communication:
- Strong ability to work effectively with development, operations, and security teams
- Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills
- Proficient in generating documentation and sharing knowledge

Artificial Intelligence:
- Experience with prompt engineering and AI tools to accelerate workloads

Tools:

CI/CD and Development:
- GitLab, Nexus Managed Artifacts, Ansible, Terragrunt, ArgoCD
VS Code, Maven

Cloud and Containerization:
- AWS: EKS, EC2, Lambda, S3, EBS/EFS, VPC, DNS, IAM, KMS, CloudWatch, CloudTrail
- Kubernetes, Docker

Security, Monitoring, and Logging:
- ACAS/Grype vulnerability scanning, SIEM (Splunk), Prometheus, Grafana, ELK Stack (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana)

Version Control and Collaboration:
- Git, Jira, Confluence

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Common Interview Questions And Answers

1. HOW DO YOU PLAN YOUR DAY?

This is what this question poses: When do you focus and start working seriously? What are the hours you work optimally? Are you a night owl? A morning bird? Remote teams can be made up of people working on different shifts and around the world, so you won't necessarily be stuck in the 9-5 schedule if it's not for you...

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When you're working on a remote team, there's no way to chat in the hallway between meetings or catch up on the latest project during an office carpool. Therefore, virtual communication will be absolutely essential to get your work done...

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4. WHAT DO YOU NEED IN YOUR PHYSICAL WORKSPACE TO SUCCEED IN YOUR WORK?

With this question, companies are looking to see what equipment they may need to provide you with and to verify how aware you are of what remote working could mean for you physically and logistically...

5. HOW DO YOU PROCESS INFORMATION?

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Or you may receive even more specific questions, such as: What's on your calendar? Do you plan blocks of time to do certain types of work? Do you have an open calendar that everyone can see?...

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Just like your schedule, how you track files and other information is very important. After all, everything is digital!...

8. HOW TO PRIORITIZE WORK?

The day I watched Marie Forleo's film separating the important from the urgent, my life changed. Not all remote jobs start fast, but most of them are...

9. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A MEETING AND PREPARE A MEETING? WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING DURING THE MEETING?

Just as communication is essential when working remotely, so is organization. Because you won't have those opportunities in the elevator or a casual conversation in the lunchroom, you should take advantage of the little time you have in a video or phone conference...

10. HOW DO YOU USE TECHNOLOGY ON A DAILY BASIS, IN YOUR WORK AND FOR YOUR PLEASURE?

This is a great question because it shows your comfort level with technology, which is very important for a remote worker because you will be working with technology over time...