Senior/Staff Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET) (U.S. Air Force)

Description

The company is a digital consultancy that uses design and technology to help government agencies deliver better public services.

It works on a civic effort to change how government at every level serves people in a digital world, and its team is made up of public interest technologists.

Software engineers here design, build, and maintain systems that make government services better for the people who use them and for the government partners who run them.

The company is working with a U.S. Air Force program office that manages a set of civil engineering systems. Their users include readiness managers, range personnel, and fire and emergency services staff across civil engineering, security forces, and services.

Releases are slow. Regression testing is done by hand, security review comes after development, and it can take a month or more to move code from freeze to production. The plan is to shift the program to an outcome-driven model with test automation and security built into the pipeline, beginning with moving the first application onto a DoD software factory. Leadership hopes this office becomes the example other Air Force offices copy.

The hiring team is looking for someone to set testing direction across the whole portfolio and lead the shift from manual to automated regression, so releases can go out with confidence and the team can say clearly when one is ready.

The first 30 days go to working with company and government staff, learning how changes currently reach users, and finding where testing and security hold things up. This replaces a traditional support model, so part of the work is coaching government partners to keep these practices running after the company leaves. You will work with government engineers and other contractors, and tools and processes will change as the work progresses.

The role depends on the company being awarded the underlying contract. If the contract is not awarded, you will be told promptly and the two sides will discuss other suitable openings.

The interview process has a preliminary screen, a skills interview, a behavioral interview, and a reverse interview where you meet the team you could join. It usually takes four conversations over two to three weeks.

Responsibilities

• Set the test strategy for a portfolio of web applications and make practical calls on what to automate first.
• Build automated regression suites and connect them to the CI/CD pipeline.
• Replace manual regression with automated testing so the time from code freeze to production gets shorter.
• Lead a shared pool of four test engineers beginning in February and help them develop professionally.
• Explain release confidence in plain terms to stakeholders who are not technical.
• Work side by side with government testers and engineers, coaching them so automated testing keeps going after the company leaves.

Requirements

• Basic qualifications:
• Can write clean, working, reusable code.
• Knows how to build secure, compliant software and guard against common vulnerabilities.
• Understands how the parts of a software system fit together, with attention to performance, reliability, and availability.
• Keeps users at the center of your work and considers the impact and implications of the code you write.
• Has designed test strategy and built automated regression suites for web applications.
• Has led testers or a test effort.
• Has worked in a government or regulated environment that required formal security authorization (ATO).
• Has worked on cross-functional teams with product, design, engineering, and operations in iterative delivery.
• Has stayed aligned and accountable while working on remote teams.
• Works in a way that fits the company's core values.
• Nice-to-haves:
• Experience with Selenium or behavior-driven tools such as Cucumber, and with managing test cases in Zephyr Scale.
• Experience integrating automated tests into CI/CD, ideally GitLab CI.
• Experience testing COTS-based systems such as Esri or IBM TRIRIGA.
• Experience using AI-assisted tools to generate tests, with careful human review.
• Experience delivering technology in government, regulated industries, or other public-benefit settings.
• Some federal contract roles accept an additional degree or extra years of experience in place of a degree.
• Work must be performed within the U.S., excluding U.S. territories.
• U.S. citizenship is required for employment on this contract.
• You must be able to obtain a Common Access Card (CAC) and any special access the contract requires.

Conditions

Full-time, exempt position.

Fully remote.

Occasional travel to Montgomery, AL, and other U.S. Air Force bases.

Target start date is November 30, 2026, pending contract award.

Salary is set by interview results and your current seniority. Current Software Engineer ranges are: Associate Software Engineer $90,000 to $125,000; Software Engineer I $120,000 to $140,000; Software Engineer II $135,000 to $160,000; Senior Software Engineer $150,000 to $185,000; Staff Software Engineer $170,000 to $203,000; Principal Software Engineer $180,000 to $230,000.

The company considers candidates from a range of backgrounds and experiences.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Short-term and long-term disability insurance.
• Life and AD&D insurance.
• Dependent care FSA, healthcare FSA, and health savings account.
• 401(k) with a dollar-for-dollar match up to 10% of salary, vesting immediately.
• Flexible paid time off, generally around 25 days per year, plus 11 paid federal holidays.
• Up to 12 weeks of paid time off for eligible new birth, adoption, or foster parents.
• Performance rewards: annual salary increase, annual performance bonus, spot bonuses, and stock options.
• Business development and sales bonuses.
• Referral bonuses.
• $2,000 annual professional development allowance.
• $750 annual allowance for tech-related purchases.
• $100 annual swag budget for merchandise such as hoodies and hats.
• Flexible, remote-friendly work setup.