Platform Software Engineer

Competitive Compensation & Benefits Package * 401(k) with Profit Sharing * Flexible Time Off * Office Dog!!

OUR CORE VALUES

• We recognize talent. We recognize and appreciate the unique God-given talents that our people bring to Ad Astra. Aligning these individual gifts with our work sets team members up to succeed. 
• We’re unpretentious. There’s no room for ego. We admit our imperfections and have the humility to know what we don’t know. 
• We’re passionate. We aren’t satisfied with the status quo. We’re on a mission together to protect the value of degree completion and to transform the higher education industry. 
• We’re pioneering. We’re pioneering and aren’t afraid to fail—in fact, we celebrate it. We love it when our people boldly experiment with innovative solutions. 
• We love fun. The health of our relationships is strengthened by working with people who stretch our thinking—and by enjoying the lighter side of life together. We don’t take ourselves too seriously, but we do take fun seriously. 
• We have grit. Beyond talent and intelligence, our people have stick-to-itiveness. We push through challenges to make goals a reality.

ABOUT US

By combining our unparalleled domain expertise with leading edge technology, Ad Astra is helping higher education in its mission to advance timely student completions. We are building a cloud-based software platform that will provide the foundation for our next generation of industry-leading solutions and analytics.

POSITION SUMMARY 

The Platform Software Engineer operates as a key member of all phases of our Agile Software Development Lifecycle under limited direction. They deliver value to our customers and developers by designing, developing, and implementing the platform that software solutions are built upon. They collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate requirements into high-quality solutions and maintain the quality of our platform over time with regular maintenance. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS/CORE RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Deliver high-quality software quickly
• Collaborate with technical leads and product managers to design and build shared services, libraries, and infrastructure to provide a stable platform for our software suite
• Conduct thorough testing of software to ensure reliability, security, and robustness individually and in collaboration with quality engineers
• Troubleshoot, debug, and resolve issues in the existing platform
• Maintain the quality of our platform with regular maintenance including bug fixes, dependency updates, and keeping old solutions up to date with best practices, balancing platform stability with incremental evolution
• See needs within the system that require attention/action and makes iterative improvements on those needs in service of current work without waiting for a directive or permission to do so
• Other duties as assigned

POSITION REQUIREMENTS 

• Bachelor's Degree, preferably in a technical field(or equivalent experience)
• Typically 5 years relevant experience
• Excellent verbal and communication skills
• Exceptional time management skills
• Content to operate in a "pull" based system (rather than waiting to have work pushed to you)

ESSENTIAL COMPETENCIES 

• Sense of Urgency 
• Problem Solving 
• Collaborative Communication 
• Decision Making and Judgment  
• Self-Management 
• Emergent Thinking 
• Continual Development 
• Organizational Influence 
• Innovation 

HOW PERFORMANCE IS MEASURED FOR THIS ROLE 

Performance in this role is measured by how well you make timely, well-reasoned decisions—even when information is limited—while balancing analysis, experience, and the needs of different stakeholders. It also depends on your ability to work smoothly with others by offering support, sharing information, and building shared ownership of goals. Strong self-management matters, shown through smart prioritization, clear planning, and the flexibility to adjust as things change. Finally, success includes being able to spot needs in the system and make helpful, iterative improvements without waiting for direction, taking initiative to pull in work, and creating solutions that stand on their own while adapting as the environment evolves. Quarterly Manager Reviews and “always-on” Peer Reviews in 15Five are critical factors in determining performance for this role.

Ad Astra is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace where all individuals are treated with respect and fairness—regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, age, political affiliation, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

All applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Please note that Ad Astra is unable to provide work visa sponsorship for this position.

This is an in-office, full-time position in Overland Park, KS. Ad Astra does not provide relocation expenses.