Lead Software Engineer

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc.; Rockville (MD); On-site; USD 131,200 - 238,300; Full time

Job summary

Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. seeks a Lead Software Engineer to oversee development, improve quality, and mentor engineers. The role requires expertise in big data technologies, cloud services, and elaborate system designs.

Candidates should have at least 7 years of experience in software development and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science. This hybrid position offers a salary range of $131,200 to $238,300 for Maryland, Virginia, and D.C.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in software development.
• Proficient in big data technologies and cloud services.
• Strong education in Computer Science or related field.

Responsibilities

• Oversee development of software products, enhancing quality.
• Manage projects for efficiency improvements.
• Solve complex engineering challenges.

Skills

Hadoop

Spark

Hive

Trino

SQL

AWS

Python

Scala

AI development tools

Agile methodology

DevOps

Data analysis

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related discipline

Tools

GitHub Copilot

ChatGPT

Job description

Job Summary

Lead Software Engineer responsible for owning the development of software products, improving overall quality throughout the software development life cycle, and mentoring other Software Engineers. Reports directly to a Director or Senior Director.

Essential Job Functions

• Seasoned contributor working on complex projects requiring extensive knowledge of specialty areas and industry practices.
• Manages processes, projects, or products to improve efficiency within the organization or product area.
• Influences outcomes in cross‑functional settings.
• Demonstrates solid understanding of systems and processes within the job area and recommends improvements.
• Designs and develops industry‑leading solutions that meet defined quality standards, reliability specifications, and help achieve key strategic objectives.
• Ensures comparison of tasks and quality of work, supporting peers to ensure the team delivers consistently.
• Exams system components and designs, identifies gaps, and delivers solutions.
• Implements methods for managing and maintaining the organization’s software development environments to ensure developers have the tools and resources needed to create and validate builds.
• Analyzes software development trends, best practices, and innovative test environment management tools to provide actionable insights and integration recommendations to management.
• Coaches and trains less experienced colleagues in techniques, processes, and responsibilities.
• Partners within and across teams to remove barriers and identify shared goals and priorities.
• Communicates progress and priorities to key stakeholders, translating complex or technical information appropriately.

Essential Technical Skills

• Big Data Technologies: Hands‑on experience with Hadoop, Spark, Hive, and Trino for petabyte‑scale datasets; diagnosis and resolution of data skew, resource limitations, scalability challenges, and job failures in production.
• Apache Spark Expertise: Deep understanding of Spark architecture, performance tuning (partitioning, caching, broadcast joins), and optimization of large‑scale data processing jobs.
• SQL Mastery: Advanced proficiency in complex SQL, including window functions, multi‑table joins, aggregations, and query optimization.
• Cloud Technologies: Strong experience with AWS services (S3, EMR, Glue, Lambda, Athena, EKS) and serverless architectures; file format optimization, consistency management, and cloud‑based data workflows.
• Programming (Python/Scala): Clean, modular, and performant code; functional programming concepts, collections, concurrency, memory management.
• Full Stack Development: Ability to design and implement end‑to‑end solutions from UI to data layer, with modern web frameworks, APIs, and microservices architectures.
• AI Tool Proficiency: Experience with AI development tools (GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) and prompt engineering to enhance productivity.
• Agile Methodology & Change Management: Extensive experience with Scrum, Kanban, continuous improvement, and leading teams through technology transformation.
• System Design & Architecture: Ability to architect scalable, distributed data processing solutions and enterprise‑level applications.
• Object‑Oriented Development: Design patterns and software engineering best practices.
• Data Storage Technologies: Experience with relational and NoSQL databases and data modeling.
• Performance Tuning & Optimization: Identifying bottlenecks and optimizing application and data processing performance.
• DevOps & CI/CD: Continuous integration, continuous deployment pipelines, and infrastructure as code.
• Test Automation: Unit testing methodologies and QA practices.
• Software Security: Secure coding principles and application security across all layers.
• Data Analysis & Insights: Interpreting AI‑generated insights and metrics to drive measurable business value.

Education & Experience Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Systems or related discipline with at least 7 years of related experience, or equivalent training and/or work experience.

Working Conditions

Hybrid work environment with defined in‑person presence requirements; occasional travel and extended hours may be required.

Salary Range (2026)

• CO/FL/TX: $114,200 – $207,200
• IL/PA: $125,900 – $228,000
• MA/MD/VA/Washington, DC: $131,200 – $238,300
• NY/NJ: $131,200 – $248,700

Equal Opportunity Employer

FINRA is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to any legally protected category, including race, color, age, national origin, ethnicity, religion, disability, genetic information, military or veteran status, sex, or any other status or classification protected by state or local law. The company is committed to providing accommodation for disabilities during the application process.