What are the responsibilities and job description for the Principle Software Engineer - SME position at X8?
Job Description
X8 is seeking a cleared Principal Software Engineer to join our mission-focused team supporting a federal customer. In this role, you will lead the development of scalable data pipelines, search optimization, and modern visualizations to enable data-driven decision-making for critical operations. You will play a key role in transforming raw data into actionable insights through engineering excellence, innovative design, and collaborative solutioning. This position is located in Columbia, MD
What You'll Be Doing
X8 is seeking a cleared Principal Software Engineer to join our mission-focused team supporting a federal customer. In this role, you will lead the development of scalable data pipelines, search optimization, and modern visualizations to enable data-driven decision-making for critical operations. You will play a key role in transforming raw data into actionable insights through engineering excellence, innovative design, and collaborative solutioning. This position is located in Columbia, MD
What You'll Be Doing
- Lead efforts to ingest, clean, transform, and analyze large-scale structured and unstructured datasets from diverse sources such as Excel, CSVs, system logs, and relational databases.
- Implement and optimize ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processes to ensure efficient data flow across systems.
- Develop and maintain OpenSearch/Elasticsearch clusters, including indexing strategies, performance tuning, and query optimization using Elasticsearch DSL.
- Create dashboards and visualizations in Kibana to enable real-time data exploration, trend analysis, and operational reporting.
- Design and implement UI dashboards using frameworks like React.js and Material-UI, integrating key data metrics for a seamless user experience.
- Write automation scripts and back-end services in Python, Java, or other languages to streamline data ingestion, transformation, and visualization workflows.
- Apply data science techniques and utilize tools such as Pandas and NumPy to extract insights from complex datasets.
- Work within cloud environments (e.g., AWS or Azure) and apply distributed systems principles to develop scalable, mission-critical solutions.
- Translate initial concepts and prototypes into Minimum Viable Products (MVPs), supporting rapid development cycles and mission needs.
- 15 years of experience in software engineering, data engineering, or related fields, with a focus on large-scale data processing and user interface development.
- Proficiency in data engineering techniques including transformation, cleaning, and pipeline development.
- Hands-on experience with Elasticsearch or OpenSearch for large-scale data indexing and querying.
- Ability to create intuitive, visually impactful dashboards using Kibana and/or modern UI frameworks.
- Strong programming skills in Python, Java, or Go, with a focus on automation and data processing.
- Understanding of data structures, algorithms, and core software/data science principles.
- Experience working with distributed systems and cloud infrastructure such as AWS or Azure.
- Capability to transition from rapid prototyping to MVP deployment under tight timelines.
- Experience with orchestration tools like Apache Airflow and real-time processing systems like Apache Kafka.
- Familiarity with advanced visualization platforms such as Grafana.
- Knowledge of Spark or similar frameworks for large-scale data processing.
- Exposure to mission-driven environments requiring rapid turnaround and iterative product development.
- Active TS/SCI CI Poly
- Salary Range: $200,000 (depending on experience and education)
- Time Off: 24 Days PTO and 13 Federal holidays
- 401K: up to 10% 401(k) contribution
- Up to $5,000 continuing education reimbursement
- Benefits: 100% medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance
Salary : $200,000
