Lead Software Engineer

Valero Energy; Independence (MO); On-site; USD 122,000 - 174,000; Full time

Job summary

Valero Energy in Independence, MO is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to own Spring Boot from day one and drive high-impact projects. You will translate vague tickets into crisp acceptance criteria, tighten CI/CD, tune databases, and guide teams to deliver value quickly.

You bring 9+ years leading technology initiatives, 8+ years building REST APIs, and a pragmatic, collaborative mindset. Valero Energy values teamwork over heroics and offers real mentorship and long-term growth in a supportive

Qualifications

• 8+ years building trust the slow, unglamorous way.
• 9+ years steering technology projects end to end.
• A point of view on Valero Energy's space, sharpened by your own reading.
• Working familiarity with internship schedules and team norms at Valero Energy.

Responsibilities

• Turn vague technology tickets into crisp, testable acceptance criteria.
• Watch Ansible error budgets and prevent outages.
• Translate metrics into a leadership-friendly chart.
• Maintain and improve CI/CD infrastructure across MO teams.
• Ship fixes to Valero Energy customers in Independence, MO the same day they report them.
• Tune database queries and schemas for high-throughput workloads.
• Evaluate and recommend new tools, frameworks, and libraries.

Skills

REST API

Analytical Thinking

Presentation Skills

Tools

Ansible

Spring Boot

CI/CD

Database tuning

Job description

Some engineers tolerate complexity; the Lead Software Engineer we want at Valero Energy hunts it down and refactors it out of existence. Earn $122,000 - $174,000 as a Lead Software Engineer, take ownership of Spring Boot from day one, and build your career with a collaborative team.

Key Responsibilities

• Turn vague technology tickets into crisp, testable Analytical Thinking acceptance criteria
• Watch Ansible error budgets and pump the brakes before Independence, MO burns through them
• Translate Strategic Planning metrics into the one chart Valero Energy leadership checks each morning
• Maintain and improve CI/CD infrastructure across MO engineering teams
• Ship Strategic Planning fixes to Valero Energy customers in Independence, MO the same day they report them
• Tune database queries and schemas for high-throughput Valero Energy workloads
• Evaluate and recommend new tools, frameworks, and Presentation Skills libraries

What You'll Bring

• Proven aptitude for REST API, ideally near Independence, MO
• 8+ years building trust the slow, unglamorous way
• Reliable, accountable, and committed to following through
• 9 or more years steering technology projects end to end
• A point of view on Valero Energy's space, sharpened by your own reading
• Working familiarity with internship schedules and team norms at Valero Energy

Valero Energy is the oddball-friendly Independence, MO company that technology insiders recommend but rarely the one that advertises. Collaboration over heroics is our default, and we'd rather win as a group than burn anyone out.

We offer $122,000 - $174,000 and the things money cannot fake, real mentorship, lasting benefits, and flexibility you will actually use.

Right now, today, this seat at Valero Energy is genuinely empty and waiting.

We open the Lead Software Engineer role today and close it once we meet the right person, so hurry.