Lead Development Engineer

Tyson Foods; United States; Hybrid; USD 129,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual incentive plan

Job summary

Tyson Foods is seeking a Lead Development Engineer in Springdale, AR. This senior role leads architecture design, guides development teams, and ensures delivery of software products while collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders.

The position emphasizes leadership, advanced programming skills, and strong problem-solving abilities within a manufacturing technology context.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, or related field, or significant equivalent experience.
• 5+ years of relevant software development experience in a leadership role.
• Experience designing software architecture and leading high-complexity tasks.

Responsibilities

• Designs software architecture and leads high-complexity development tasks within a team.
• Mentors development teams and drives best-practices adoption across projects.
• Collaborates with product managers, designers, and engineers to define requirements and deliver features.
• Writes and maintains technical documentation and reviews code.

Skills

Leadership

Programming

Communication

Problem-solving

Decision-making

Mentorship

Change Management

Strategic Vision

Technical Writing

Data Analysis

Education

Bachelor’s/Master’s in CS or related

Tools

AIX

SVN/CVS

Make

Modbus

Motif/Qt

Unix

Job description

Management Level:

87

Work Shift:

1ST SHIFT (United States of America)

This position is based out of our Tyson Emma office in Springdale, Arkansas. While qualified candidates from outside the Springdale area will be considered, preference will be given to candidates who are able to work onsite at the Springdale location. Candidates residing within a 50-mile radius of the Springdale office will be expected to work onsite. Candidates residing outside of the 50-mile radius may be considered for a remote work arrangement, subject to business needs and role requirements.

Lead Development Engineers are senior-level professionals with advanced expertise in software development. They lead and oversee complex software development projects, provide technical guidance and mentorship to development teams, and drive the adoption of best practices and technologies. Lead Development Engineers also collaborate with stakeholders to define project requirements, manage project timelines and resources, and ensure the successful delivery of software products.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Designs software architecture. Delivers high-complexity development tasks as part of a team. Leads and influences in collaborative meetings with peers and stakeholders. Leads interaction with stakeholders to create requirements and demonstrate work. Documents code. Establishes software product engineering best practices as it relates to software development. Reviews and corrects others.
• Works independently with limited supervision to perform work.
• Act as a knowledge resource within the team. Leads and defines priorities for projects or processes.
• Applies judgment and experience to identify resolution. Ability to make timely decisions and to take action.
• Expected to be a productive leader by example of a team that designs and improves processes, procedures, and platforms.
• Perform other assigned job-related duties that align with our organization’s vision, mission, and values and fall within your scope of practice.

Design and Development:

• Designing, coding, and debugging applications in various software languages or

tools.

Testing and Maintenance:

• Performing unit testing and integration testing.
• Maintaining and improving existing codebases and peer review code changes.
• Troubleshooting and resolving software defects and issues.

Collaboration:

• Collaborating with cross-functional teams, including product managers, designers, and other engineers, to define, design, and ship new features.
• Participating in code reviews and providing constructive feedback to peers.

Documentation:

• Writing and maintaining technical documentation to describe program development, logic, coding, testing, changes, and corrections.

Research and Development:

• Keeping up to date with the latest industry trends and technologies to ensure the company remains competitive.
• Conducting research to discover new technologies and tools to improve efficiency and performance.

Project Management:

Project Management: .

• Participating in project planning, including estimating timeframes and resource requirements.
• Managing tasks and deadlines to ensure timely delivery of projects. Security and Compliance:
• Ensuring software security and compliance with industry standards and regulations.
• Implementing data protection and security measures.

Customer Interaction:

• Interacting with customers or end-users to gather requirements and provide support.
• Translating customer requirements into technical specifications.

Continuous Improvement:

• Continuously improving development processes and methodologies.
• Engaging in continuous learning and professional development.

Qualifications:

Education: Bachelor’s, Master’s Degree, or a significant amount of relevant experience. Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, Quantitative or Engineering Field preferred.

Experience: 5+ years of relevant and practical experience.

Special Skills:

• Programming (expert in multiple languages or software tools)
• Expert in multiple front-end and back-end frameworks
• Expert in Data Engineering Design patterns for Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
• Design patterns with Version Control, DevOps & CICD
• Proficient in Monitoring and Alerting
• Technical Writing and Diagramming
• Analysis (Technical, Business, or Data)

Technical Skills:

• C/C++ in a Unix Environment
• Scripting(kshor bash)preferably with AIX.
• AIX / Unix
• SVN / CVS
• Modbus
• Make
• Manufacturing / Warehousing
• Machine / PLC Integration
• Motif/QT

Soft Skills:

• Communication: Leading and influencing in collaborative meetings.
• Leadership: Providing technical guidance and mentorship to development teams with best practices.
• Problem-solving: Designing software architecture and delivering high-complexity tasks.
• Decision-making: Applying judgment and experience to identify resolutions
• Emotional Intelligence: Understanding and motivating team members.
• Mentorship: Fostering the growth and development of the development engineering team.
• Change Management: Guiding the organization through development-related transformations.
• Strategic Vision: Aligning development initiatives with long‑term business objectives.

This position is based out of our Tyson Emma office in Springdale, Arkansas. While qualified candidates from outside the Springdale area will be considered, preference will be given to candidates who are able to work onsite at the Springdale location. Candidates residing within a 50-mile radius of the Springdale office will be expected to work onsite. Candidates residing outside of the 50-mile radius may be considered for a remote work arrangement, subject to business needs and role requirements.

Not eligible for visa sponsorship now or in the future

No eligible for relocation assistance

Internal Management & Management Support Applicants:

Automatic notification to your current manager will be initiated upon selection for interview. This applies to all candidates who are level 79 or above.

All professional team members are expected to demonstrate responsible use of approved AI tools, including safeguarding sensitive information, adhering to company policies, and validating AI-generated outputs. Individual Contributors should demonstrate the ability to integrate AI into daily work, improve efficiency through AI-enabled solutions, evaluate outputs critically, and apply professional judgment when using AI. People Leaders should demonstrate the ability to drive responsible AI adoption, enable effective use of approved solutions, identify opportunities to improve team performance through AI, and ensure accountability for the quality and accuracy of AI-supported outcomes.

Relocation Assistance Eligible:

No

Referral Payout Eligible:

No

Pay Range/Rate:

$129,000.00 - $215,000.00

Incentives:

Annual Incentive Plan:

Yes

Long-Term Incentive Plan:

No

For Professional Management levels, internal applicants should either upload a resume to their application OR complete their application fully showing current and past work experience in the sections provided.

Any listed amounts represent the base pay range. Additional compensation may be available for this position based on various factors such as shift differentials, standby/on-call, overtime, premiums, extra shift incentives, or bonuses. Pay is just one part of Tyson’s total compensation package.

_ Tyson will develop an offer based on a candidate’s or team member’s relevant skills and capabilities, the market data for the role described in this requisition, internal equity, and other information relevant to the candidate and role. _

The successful candidate(s) must be willing and able to perform the physical requirements of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation.

We provide our team members and their families with paid time off; 401(k) plans; affordable health, life, dental, vision and prescription drug benefits; and more.

Tyson is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will be considered without regard to race, national origin, color, religion, age, genetics, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or veteran status.

CCPA Notice. If you are a California resident, and would like to learn more about what categories of personal information we collect when you apply for this job, and how we may use that information, please read our CCPA Job Applicant Notice at Collection, click here. .