Staff Software Engineer

Vibehackers; Chicago, Northern (IL, KY); Hybrid; USD 141,000 - 212,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401K and Defined Contribution

Healthcare with company HSA

Adoption assistance

Employee Assistance Programs

Tuition assistance

On-site gyms at Deere locations

Charitable contribution match

Job summary

John Deere World Headquarters in Chicago, IL seeks a Staff Software Engineer to lead architecture and implement multisystem full‑stack solutions. You will drive platform standardization, observability, and secure‑by‑design practices while mentoring teams and advancing AI-assisted coding to accelerate delivery.

The role requires 8+ years in backend design with Java/Spring, 4+ years in cloud native AWS/Azure, and hands‑on experience with microservices, databases, and secure authentication.

Qualifications

• 8+ years designing and developing backend applications using Java frameworks, servlets, J2EE, and Spring/Spring Boot.
• 4+ years operating cloud native systems in AWS or Azure, including Docker and Kubernetes/EKS.
• 4+ years building serverless applications (AWS Lambda and API Gateway or equivalent).
• 5+ years designing and integrating databases such as MongoDB, DynamoDB, and relational databases.
• Experience designing secure systems and implementing authentication/authorization frameworks (OAuth, OIDC, SAML).
• Hands‑on observability expertise (New Relic, Datadog, CloudWatch, Grafana) and strong understanding of metrics, logs, traces, SLOs/SLAs, and on‑call readiness.
• Demonstrated ability to lead design reviews, mentor engineers, and align technology strategy with architects and product leaders.

Responsibilities

• Lead architecture, design reviews, and implementation of scalable, maintainable, reliable, and secure software and data products.
• Define system specifications, integration patterns, coding standards, and data pipeline standards in partnership with architects and principal engineers.
• Provide full‑stack leadership across React/Redux front ends, Java/Spring Boot and Python microservices, and secure REST APIs; mentor and coach engineers.
• Define and validate non‑functional requirements (scalability, reliability, performance, availability, security) and design for operational excellence (resilience, fault tolerance, disaster recovery, production readiness).
• Establish observability standards using New Relic, Datadog, CloudWatch, or Grafana; instrument services with logs, metrics, traces, dashboards, and alerts.
• Drive platform standardization by shaping reusable patterns, shared components, and common frameworks across Global IT.
• Lead AI‑assisted engineering practices and scale Vibe Coding — design prompt patterns, tool orchestration, guardrails, and disciplined verification of AI‑generated code, tests, and documentation.

Skills

React

Redux

Java

Spring Boot

Python

REST APIs

Observability

Security by design

Cloud architecture

Microservices

API Design

Event-driven architecture

Testing and automation

Prompt design

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/Computer Engineering

Tools

New Relic

Datadog

CloudWatch

Grafana

AWS

Azure

Docker

Kubernetes/EKS

Job description

Explicitly requires Vibe Coding and AI-assisted engineering practices, using agentic workflows and prompt design to accelerate development while enforcing verification of AI outputs.

About the Role

Staff Software Engineer based at John Deere World Headquarters in Chicago leading architecture and implementation of complex, multisystem full‑stack solutions. Drive platform standardization, observability, cloud native and secure-by-design practices while mentoring teams and practicing AI-assisted (Vibe) coding to accelerate delivery.

Job Description

Role

Staff Software Engineer located at John Deere World Headquarters in Chicago, IL. Lead architecture, design, and implementation of complex, multisystem solutions across digital products and drive platform standardization and reusable architectural patterns.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead architecture, design reviews, and implementation of scalable, maintainable, reliable, and secure software and data products.
• Define system specifications, integration patterns, coding standards, and data pipeline standards in partnership with architects and principal engineers.
• Provide full‑stack leadership across React/Redux front ends, Java/Spring Boot and Python microservices, and secure REST APIs; mentor and coach engineers.
• Define and validate non‑functional requirements (scalability, reliability, performance, availability, security) and design for operational excellence (resilience, fault tolerance, disaster recovery, production readiness).
• Establish observability standards using New Relic, Datadog, CloudWatch, or Grafana; instrument services with logs, metrics, traces, dashboards, and alerts.
• Drive platform standardization by shaping reusable patterns, shared components, and common frameworks across Global IT.
• Lead AI‑assisted engineering practices and scale Vibe Coding — design prompt patterns, tool orchestration, guardrails, and disciplined verification of AI‑generated code, tests, and documentation.

Requirements

• 8+ years designing and developing backend applications using Java frameworks, servlets, J2EE, and Spring or Spring Boot.
• 4+ years operating cloud native systems in AWS or Azure, including Docker and Kubernetes/EKS.
• 4+ years building serverless applications (AWS Lambda and API Gateway or equivalent).
• 5+ years designing and integrating databases such as MongoDB, DynamoDB, and relational databases.
• Experience designing secure systems and implementing authentication/authorization frameworks (OAuth, OIDC, SAML).
• Hands‑on observability expertise (New Relic, Datadog, CloudWatch, Grafana) and strong understanding of metrics, logs, traces, SLOs/SLAs, and on‑call readiness.
• Demonstrated ability to lead design reviews, mentor engineers, and align technology strategy with architects and product leaders.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or closely related field.

Preferred / Nice to Have

• AWS or Azure cloud certifications.
• Experience with event‑driven architectures and distributed messaging.
• Experience contributing to or defining cross‑team architectural patterns.
• Strong communication and stakeholder alignment skills.
• Demonstrated application of AI‑assisted engineering (agentic workflows, prompt patterns, secure guardrails).
• Proficiency with Vibe Coding practices and disciplined verification of AI‑generated outputs.
• Competitive base pay
• Savings & Retirement benefits (401K and Defined Contribution)
• Healthcare benefits with company contribution to Health Savings Account
• Adoption assistance
• Employee Assistance Programs
• Tuition assistance
• Fitness subsidies and on‑site gyms at specific Deere locations
• Charitable contribution match
• Employee Purchase Plan & discount programs
• Vacation and Holiday Pay

Location & Visa

• Primary location: Chicago, Illinois, United States.
• Onsite position at John Deere World Headquarters.
• Visa sponsorship is not available for this position.

Skills

System Design Software Architecture Full Stack Development Leadership Mentoring Security by Design Observability Cloud Architecture Operational Excellence Microservices API Design Scalability Reliability Engineering Performance Engineering Database Design Event-driven Architecture Communication Collaboration Code Review Documentation AI-assisted Engineering Prompt Design Testing and Automation

Experience Level

USD 141,132 - 211,692/year

• Flexible work arrangements
• Highly competitive base pay
• 401K and Defined Contribution
• Healthcare with company HSA contribution
• Adoption assistance
• Employee Assistance Programs
• Tuition assistance
• Fitness subsidies and on‑site gyms at specific locations