Senior AI-Native Architect - 2024925

Software Engineering Institute | Carnegie Mellon University; Pittsburgh (Allegheny County); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Software Engineering Institute | Carnegie Mellon University seeks an AI-Native Architect to help organizations modernize architectures and insert AI technologies into software engineering practices. You will guide architecture-scale changes, prototype agentic workflows, and shape AI-native software engineering strategies across domains.

The role emphasizes collaboration with world-class engineers, researchers, and sponsors, with potential travel to SEI sites and conferences.

Qualifications

• Deep knowledge of software architecture and engineering fundamentals.
• Broad understanding of architecture principles, practices and tools.
• Ability to learn new domains and technologies quickly.
• Track record of architecting or rearchitecting systems at scale.
• Experience aligning development with planned architectures.
• Excellent written and verbal communication to diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to develop task plans/roadmaps for complex problems.
• Strong collaboration and mentorship skills.

Responsibilities

• Assess customer system challenges and recommend technical solutions.
• Review existing systems and design modernization strategies.
• Create new architectures and reference architectures for various domains.
• Coach engineering teams to achieve architecture-scale changes.
• Prototype systems and agentic workflows to support software engineering.
• Identify opportunities to apply AI across architecture challenges.
• Share experiences and best practices with the technical community.

Skills

Software architecture

Software engineering fundamentals

Architecting at scale

Leadership & mentorship

AI in software engineering

Strong communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Software Engineering

MS/PhD in a related discipline

Job description

The future of software engineering is AI-native. Our team works to shape that future through pioneering research, practical engineering methods, and close collaboration with government, industry, and academia.

At the AI-Native Software Engineering Directorate, we focus on how today's engineering teams can quickly exploit emerging technologies and harness AI capabilities to create and evolve software quickly without losing fundamental software qualities.

To address this new world, we :

• study and guide industry and government teams’ use of AI in software engineering
• distill best practices and lessons from experiments and experience to shape AI-native software engineering
• pilot and transition improvements with organizations and measure their success
• create novel agents and agentic workflows to support software engineering
• apply AI to accelerate architecture-scale modernization
• help organizations establish AI-native software engineering practices
• guide organizations in evolving their software with architecture and AI-native approaches

Our overarching goal is to create new workflows and tools that enable AI-paced delivery of software without loss of quality. We're seeking candidates with a demonstrated track record who are motivated to shape AI-native software engineering.

AI-Native Architect

As an AI-Native Architect, you will focus on helping organizations solve architecture-scale challenges with the assistance of AI. Common challenges include modernizing legacy systems, rearchitecting systems to enable insertion of new technologies, and creating new architectures and reference architectures across different domains. New challenges include creation and evolution of agentic workflows, both for business processes and software engineering activities. You will help advance our AI-Native Software Engineering strategy by solving challenges such as:

• assessing customer system challenges and recommending technical solutions
• reviewing existing systems against today's challenges and designing modernization strategies
• creating novel architectures and reference architectures to address customer challenges
• coaching engineering teams in achieving architecture-scale changes
• architecting and prototyping systems and agentic workflows
• identifying opportunities to apply AI to diverse architecture challenges
• sharing experiences, solutions, and practice improvements with the technical community through publications and presentations

You will have the opportunity to work with world class software engineers, researchers, and data scientists working on national and global scale problems.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Comprehensive knowledge of software architecture and software engineering fundamentals
• Broad knowledge of architecture principles, practices, and tools
• Ability to quickly learn new problem domains and technologies
• A track record of architecting or rearchitecting systems at scale
• A track record of aligning development activities with planned architectures
• Ability to keep up with and adapt to rapidly changing technical advances
• Strong written and verbal communication skills; ability to convey complex technical ideas in a layperson’s terms to stakeholders with different backgrounds
• Proficiency developing task plans or roadmaps to solve complex problems
• Strong collaboration skills for working with colleagues and sponsors
• Willingness and ability to guide and mentor junior team members

Requirements

• A bachelor’s degree in computer science, software engineering, or related discipline with ten (10) years of experience; OR MS in the same fields with eight (8) years of experience; OR PhD with five (5) years of experience.
• You will be subject to a background investigation and must be able to obtain and maintain a Department of War security clearance.
• Willing to travel up to 25% of the time to locations outside of your home location. Travel sites include SEI offices in Washington, D.C., sponsor sites, and conferences.

Desired Experience

• Experience leading engineering teams to produce successful outcomes for industry or government projects
• Successful application of AI to improve software engineering activities
• Experience working with leadership to plan, develop, and deliver an overall technical strategy