Staff Software Engineer

Job Type: Full time

Job Number: JR-025936

Location: Salt Lake City,
UT

If you’re passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country-and you’re committed to working hard
to play your part in building that future-consider WGU as the next step in your career.

Driven by a mission to expand access to
higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse
workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received
praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping
students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families.

The salary range for this position takes into
account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience
and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.

At WGU, it is not typical for an individual
to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of
each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is:

Grade: Technical 411 Pay Range: $161,000.00 – $249,500.00

Job
Description

The Staff Software Engineer is a position of technical expertise, influence, and leadership in the technology realm. The
position will be required to apply their expert knowledge to ensure best practices and well-engineered architecture across the department.
They will also be a key stakeholder and initiator of major changes to processes, engineering practices, and system administration. This
position will be required to work in a space of solving critical issues and initiatives across multiple teams. It will require an extensive
and deep understanding of cutting-edge practices and innovative approaches to problems. Principal Software Engineers are also tasked with
establishing and maintaining a positive and productive culture based on the WGU Leadership Principles.

Job Duties

• Acts as an
  expert in multiple areas of software engineering.
• Maintains accountability for the quality of services in multiple areas and teams
  for the success of the assigned project for on-time, on-budget, and on-scope delivery.
• Contributes as a lead or consultant for their
  domain area or multiple teams. Is a ‘go-to’ person in at least one sub-discipline and competent and trusted in several other disciplines or
  application areas.
• Contributes formally and informally to the effectiveness of teams through formal and informal mentoring and
  direction during team meetings and problem solving.
• Contributes and often identifies systemic issues to be solved and contributes to
  the resolution of the same.
• Actively ensures that engineering has the skill sets they need to be successful with current and future
  technologies.
• Acts as a planning consultant for Portfolio or Ed Tech as a whole when identifying technical risks and dependencies.
  Identifies problems far in advance, finds multiple solutions, and recommends the preferred solution to teams and to
  management.
• Speaks authoritatively and accurately with respect to questions related to their area of ownership or for the platform
  as a whole.
• Actively improves operational excellence measured by availability of the platform to students, faculty, and
  staff.
• Applies strategies and tools to plan and execute testing strategies to find the ‘sweet spot’ that maximizes quality while
  minimizing costs. Demonstrates the ‘good enough’ principle that balances quality and time to implement.
• Understands implications of
  functional and non-functional requirements on the system. Identifies deficiencies in requirements and works with product owners to provide
  alternatives.
• Machine Learning & Intelligent Systems: Define the architecture, development, and deployment of machine
  learning, LLM, and intelligent systems at scale, from research and experimentation through production implementation.
• LLM & AI
  Platform Architecture: Define how LLMs, generative AI, agents, and intelligent systems are integrated into the core platform
  architecture to ensure scalability, extensibility, security, and operational robustness.
• Technical Vision & Innovation:
  Identify emerging technologies, research trends, and industry best practices and translate them into practical innovations that strengthen
  the platform and create new capabilities.
• Performs other job-related duties as assigned.

KSAs Expert understanding of
the processes associated with software development, including Planning, Measurement, Coding, Testing, Reuse, Tools, Abstraction, Algorithms
and Complexity, Security, and basic system understanding.

Ability to employ the tools and techniques related to an engineering
discipline, such as database management, user interface development, inter-process communication, etc.

Ability to create designs that
can be realized in code that achieve functional and non-functional requirements of the system. Appropriately uses design patterns, system
decomposition, security, and fault tolerance. A demonstrated capability in one or more design methodologies, such as Object-oriented design,
Function-oriented design, data-centered design and the notations appropriate for each.

Ability to understand differences, strengths,
and weaknesses of various Software Development Life Cycle models, and practical considerations of options

Understands implications of
Software as a Service in the creation of software systems. Thinks of and designs for scale, reliability, and cost in a public cloud
environment. Uses data and metrics to analyze Key Performance Indicators.

Ability to explain the basic value of a system and
subsystems to users and how the various subsystems interoperate to provide features. Able to act as a partner with Operations in solving
platform problems at a system level. Knows what the system can and cannot do.

Ability to demonstrate a sense of urgency when looking
for solutions to problems

Understands the general higher education landscape, particularly with online higher education, including
competitive landscape, opportunities, and feature gaps.

Ability to identify innovative ideas or technologies that represent
opportunities to advance the capabilities of the university education platform, our efficiencies in improving out platform, or both. Can
leverage change management processes to drive adoption.

Ability to make the team stronger and more cohesive

Strong
communication skills with the ability to engage others at the right level at the right time. Communicates effectively in group settings by
knowing the audience, listening effectively, and being responsive. Presents solutions, not just problems, and effectively manages
expectations.

Ability to identify, mitigate, or avoid risks and work closely with leads or managers to make sure that such risks and
dependencies are understood, accounted for, and planned for through an appropriate strategy.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field
• 10 years of experience in software
  development; pioneering new approaches and technologies in engineering
• Experience in web-based applications and web services such as
  Java, REST, SQL, GIT, and other technologies, including experience integrating third-party products
• Equivalent relevant experience
  performing the essential functions of this job may substitute for education degree requirements. Generally, equivalent relevant experience
  is defined as 1 year of experience for 1 year of education and is at the discretion of the hiring manager.

Preferred
Qualifications

• Master’s Degree or PhD in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field
• Technical
  experience in any of the following: GIT, SQL, Spring, Spring Boot, Java, Angular 2 or later, and AWS Services
• Experience with
  Salesforce development lifecycle techniques and Salesforce governor limits
• Experience with cloud-based telephony, CTI, SIP/VoIP
  phones and protocols, QoS, IVRs, and call recording
• Experience architecting, implementing, and managing enterprise-level contact
  center solutions
• Deep experience in Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, LLMs, or intelligent systems, with
  demonstrated ability to take ML/AI systems into production.
• Strong understanding of LLM architectures, model serving, inference,
  evaluation, orchestration, and integration of AI capabilities into production platforms.
• Experience with Responsible AI,
  including AI safety, privacy, security, governance, and risk management.
• A strong passion for innovation, technical excellence,
  mentorship, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Experience with distance education and distance learning students

Visa Sponsorship

While we welcome applicants from all backgrounds, WGU is not able to provide visa sponsorship for this
role.

Job Description Disclaimer: This position description provides the major duties/responsibilities, requirements, and working
conditions for the position. It is intended to be an accurate reflection of the current position; however, management reserves the right to
revise or change as necessary to meet organizational needs. Other responsibilities may be assigned when circumstances require.

This
position requires occasional travel of up to 20%, including required attendance at designated company summits (typically one to two per
year). Additional travel may include conferences, visits to company locations, and other business-related events as needed. Additional
travel may be assigned as needed to support business requirements.

Position & Application Details

Full-Time Regular
Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard
weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible
spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental
coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off
for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves,
including up to 12 weeks of parental leave.

How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU
employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday.

Additional Information

Disclaimer: The job
posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It’s not all-inclusive.

Accommodations:
Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent
Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu.

Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified
applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.

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