Software Engineer Expert

Cornerstone Defense LLC; Herndon (VA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental and Vision Plans

Generous PTO Policy

401(k)

Tuition Reimbursement and Training

Fitness Reimbursement Program

Job summary

Cornerstone Defense LLC is seeking a Software Engineer Expert in Herndon, VA. The role demands a seasoned Splunk Cloud engineer with at least 11 years of experience, focusing on data integration and cloud technologies.

Ideal candidates will have relevant educational backgrounds and expertise in Splunk. The position offers various benefits including medical, dental, vision, and a generous PTO policy, underscoring the company's commitment to employee welfare and professional development.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 11 years' experience as a System Engineer.
• 6+ years of experience working with Splunk or Splunk Certifications.
• Strong skills in Python and Bash for automation.

Responsibilities

• Performs as a Splunk Cloud engineer.
• Establishes data standards and manages data feeds.
• Communicates with stakeholders for project leadership.

Skills

Integrating diverse data streams

Data transfer tools experience (NiFi, Cribl)

Analyzing complex networks and systems

Analyzing log data from network components

Knowledge of shared networks and security enclaves

Splunk familiarity

Python

Hands-on data onboarding from AWS/Azure/GCP

CloudFormation proficiency

Strong troubleshooting and project leadership

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s Degrees in IT or Engineering

Tools

Splunk

AWS

Azure

GCP

Terraform

Ansible

Job description

Software Engineer Expert

Location: Herndon, VA

Clearance: Active TS/SCI w/ Polygraph needed to apply.

Company Overview

Cornerstone Defense is the Employer of Choice within the Intelligence, Defense, and Space communities of the U.S. Government. Realizing early on that our most prized assets are our employees, we continually focus our attention on improving the overall work/life experience they have supporting the mission. Our Team is pushed every day to use their industry leading knowledge to provide end-to-end solutions to combat our nation’s toughest and most secure problems. If you are looking for a place to not only be professionally challenged, but encouraged and supported by a company that cares, don’t look any further than Cornerstone Defense.

Benefits Overview

• Medical, Dental and Vision Plans
• Generous PTO Policy
• 401(k)
• HSA and FSA options
• Life and Disability Insurance
• Tuition Reimbursement and Training
• Perks at Work Discount Program
• Referral Program
• Leads Generation Program
• CollegeAmerica 529
• Fitness Reimbursement Program
• Travel Assistance
• Norton Lifelock Benefit Solutions
• Life Planning Financial & Legal Services

Required Education, Experience, & Skills

We are actively seeking Systems Engineers to perform as a Splunk Cloud engineer with a minimum of 11 years' experience. Information Technology or Engineering Bachelor's or Master’s Degrees are preferred. Specific skills should include the following:

• Experience integrating diverse data streams
• Experience with data transfer tools (e.g., NiFi, Cribl, etc.)
• Establishes data standards and acts as custodian of IT and service delivery data sets and streams
• Experience in analyzing complex networks and systems
• Experience in analyzing log data from various network components and operating systems
• Knowledge of complex environments involving shared networks and multiple security enclaves
• Systems Engineer with Data Engineer background
• Ability to manage and troubleshoot data feeds
• Splunk familiarization
• Python
• Experience: 6+ years working with Splunk or Splunk Certifications, with at least 3 years on Splunk Cloud or large Splunk Enterprise deployments
• Expert SPL, knowledge of Splunk apps (Enterprise Security, ITSI, DB Connect), forwarder architectures, indexer/search head concepts
• Hands‑on experience onboarding data from AWS, Azure, and/or GCP; familiarity and observability tooling
• Proficiency with CloudFormation and experience integrating Splunk deployments into CI/CD
• Strong Python and Bash skills for automation, integrations, and ingestion pipelines
• Understanding of logging best practices, log retention requirements, secure transport, and common compliance frameworks
• Strong troubleshooting, stakeholder communication, project leadership, and mentoring capability

Preferred Education, Experience, & Skills

• Splunk Certified Cloud Architect, Splunk Certified Admin, or Splunk Certified Power User
• Cloud certifications (AWS/Azure/GCP)
• Experience with observability frameworks (OpenTelemetry), metrics pipelines, and metric-to-log correlation
• Prior experience operating at enterprise scale (multi TB ingestion/day, global deployments)
• Proficiency with Terraform, Ansible, or similar IaC tools and experience integrating Splunk deployments into CI/CD