Senior Technical Writer

Bixal; Fairfax (VA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flex hours

401K with matching incentive

Parental Leave

Medical/dental/vision benefits

Flex Spending Account

Company provided short‑term disability

Commuter benefits

Paid Time Off (PTO)

11 Paid holidays

Job summary

Bixal, a Fairfax, VA‑headquartered consulting company, seeks a Senior Technical Writer to support a federal Digital Services Platform Engineering contract. The role focuses on producing and maintaining architecture docs, engineering standards, runbooks, and developer guidance for a secure, auditable platform used on sensitive financial systems.

The position is full-time for one year with potential options; it emphasizes human-centered design, Agile practices, and government digital services

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a related technical field and at least eight years of relevant experience.
• Hands-on experience in software engineering or technical product environments with strong writing and documentation skills.
• Familiarity with developer platform tooling like GitLab, Datadog, Jira, Confluence, Slack, or Figma; knowledge of CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, and SLOs.
• Ability to design clear, action-oriented content for complex digital workflows involving sensitive data.
• Proven track record reducing errors and abandonment via structured guidance and progressive disclosure.
• Strong understanding of accessibility and inclusive language practices; compliance-driven content constraints.
• Experience partnering with product, legal, compliance, and engineering for content accuracy; use Usability data to improve content.

Responsibilities

• Write and maintain the Platform Engineering Architecture Blueprint, reference architectures, and Golden Path Templates for engineers.
• Create structured Engineering Standards Catalogs, golden-path docs, and progressive, task-oriented guidance to reduce onboarding friction.
• Author and maintain runbooks, ADRs, and incident/change-management docs for CI/CD, observability, and IaC workflows.
• Collaborate with platform/security engineers and product managers to ensure accuracy and implementation integrity across tools.
• Ensure content follows accessibility standards and compliance requirements for financial systems.
• Develop Developer Onboarding Toolkit and Self-Service Platform Portal guides and catalogs.
• Research underlying systems and policies to keep content accurate and informed.
• Use adoption metrics and feedback to iteratively improve documentation and confidence.
• Support Compliance Posture Reports and Platform Maturity assessments with clear documentation.
• Perform other duties as qualified and trained.

Skills

Technical writing

Documentation

GitLab

Datadog

Jira

Confluence

CI/CD

Infrastructure-as-code

SLOs

Clear communication

Public Trust clearance

Education

Bachelor’s degree in computer science or engineering

Tools

GitLab

Datadog

Jira

Confluence

Slack

Figma

Job description

Important Notice For Applicants

At Bixal, we want to ensure a transparent and secure application process for all candidates. Official communication will come from an email address ending in @bixal.com or from @bixal.na.teamtailor-mail.com. Messages from other sources may be fraudulent, and you should exercise care to avoid any links or attachments included.

Important Notice For Applicants

At Bixal, we want to ensure a transparent and secure application process for all candidates. Official communication will come from an email address ending in @bixal.com or from @bixal.na.teamtailor-mail.com. Messages from other sources may be fraudulent, and you should exercise care to avoid any links or attachments included. Bixal will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.

Need Assistance or a Reasonable Accommodation?

If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation to complete your application, we're here to help. Please reach out to us at [e-mail] and let us know how we can support you. You do not need to share personal details or disclose the nature of your request. You can expect a response from a team member within 24 hours during the regular work week and on the next operating day during the weekend or holidays.

Why Bixal?

Bixal is a consulting company headquartered in Fairfax, VA, working alongside governments and organizations to help them deliver better services and experiences to the communities they serve. Using evidence-based knowledge and technology, Bixal empowers clients to deliver on their missions more effectively by fostering a culture of learning and continuous improvement.

Our Values

• People-First: Emphasizing the importance of people in all aspects of work.
• Collaboration and Transparency: Valuing teamwork and open communication.
• Growth Mindset: Encouraging innovation and continuous improvement.
• Creating Lasting Impact: Focusing on meaningful outcomes and positive change.

About the role

We are seeking a Senior Technical Writer to support a federal Digital Services Platform Engineering contract. This team builds and operates the secure, standardized engineering platform (source control, CI/CD, observability, infrastructure-as-code, and SaaS tooling) that powers the agency's mission-critical loan origination, servicing, repayment, and collections systems. The Senior Technical Writer will produce and maintain the architecture documentation, engineering standards, runbooks, and developer-facing guidance that make this platform understandable, adoptable, and auditable for engineering teams working with sensitive financial data. This work aligns with human-centered design, Agile methodologies, and government digital services best practices to ensure a secure, well-documented, and confidence-building developer experience.

This is a full-time position with a defined performance period of one year with additional option year periods. This role offers you a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact on a project that aligns with Bixal’s mission of delivering innovative, human-centered solutions. While the role has a fixed duration, we are committed to transparency and collaboration, keeping you informed about contract updates and new opportunities. At Bixal, we support your professional journey, ensuring your experience reflects our inclusive, purpose-driven culture and prepares you for future success.

Compensation

The salary range for this role is $120,000 – $130,000. In the spirit of transparency, most offers tend to land near the midpoint of the range. We make compensation decisions thoughtfully, considering your experience, the skills you bring, and our commitment to internal equity. Fairness and transparency are core to how we operate.

Responsibilities

Technical Writing

• Write and maintain the Platform Engineering Architecture Blueprint, reference architectures, and Golden Path Templates, translating complex technical designs into clear, action-oriented guidance for engineering audiences.
• Reduce developer confusion, onboarding friction, and support tickets by producing structured Engineering Standards Catalogs, golden-path documentation, and progressive, task-oriented guidance.
• Author and maintain platform operations runbooks, architecture decision records (ADRs), and incident/change-management documentation for CI/CD, observability, and infrastructure-as-code workflows.
• Partner closely with platform engineers, security engineers, and technical product managers to ensure documentation accuracy and implementation integrity across all supported SaaS and infrastructure tools.
• Apply accessibility standards, inclusive language practices, and compliance-driven content constraints to documentation supporting mission-critical financial systems and their audit requirements.
• Develop Developer Onboarding Toolkit and Self-Service Platform Portal content, including setup guides, service catalogs, and searchable knowledge repositories.
• Research the underlying systems, policies, and workflows behind each documentation request so content is accurate and well-informed.
• Use adoption metrics, developer feedback (e.g., Developer NPS), and support-ticket trends to iteratively refine documentation and improve developer confidence in the platform.
• Support Compliance Posture Reports and Quarterly Platform Maturity Assessments by clearly documenting policy adherence and remediation efforts.
• Other relevant duties as qualified and trained to perform

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a related technical field, plus at least eight (8) years of relevant experience.
• Hands‑on experience working within a software engineering or technical product environment (e.g., as a developer, engineer, or technical product team member) with a demonstrated strength in writing and documentation.
• Familiarity with developer platform tooling such as GitLab, Datadog, Jira, Confluence, Slack, or Figma, and with concepts like CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, and SLOs.
• Demonstrated ability to design clear, action‑oriented, and plain‑language content for complex digital workflows involving sensitive or transactional data.
• Proven track record reducing confusion, form errors, and abandonment through structured microcopy, guidance patterns, and progressive disclosure.
• Strong understanding of accessibility standards, inclusive language practices, and compliance‑driven content constraints.
• Experience partnering closely with product, legal, compliance, and engineering to ensure content accuracy and implementation integrity.
• Uses usability findings and performance data (completion rate, error rate, support contacts) to iteratively refine content and improve customer confidence.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with experience in writing, revising, sourcing, and aggregating content.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a High Risk Public Trust clearance.

Nice to Have Skills and Experience

• Experience with federal financial aid systems or government digital transformation.
• Previous coding/engineering experience.
• Knowledge of student financial aid processes, loan servicing, or public service technology.

How We Support Our Team

• Flex hours
• 401K with matching incentive
• Parental Leave
• Medical/dental/vision benefits
• Flex Spending Account
• Company provided short‑term disability and life insurance
• Commuter benefits
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• 11 Paid holidays

Our company is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all individuals and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local anti-discrimination laws. Employment decisions are based on merit, qualifications, and business needs.