Staff Software Engineer – Apex Platform for Network Observability and Cybersecurity

Viavi Solutions Inc.; Minnetonka (MN); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

VIAVI Solutions in Minnetonka, MN is seeking a senior software engineer to advance the Apex reporting platform for high-scale, cloud-native monitoring. You will work in a large C++ codebase, mentor teammates, and drive end-to-end features.

The role emphasizes hands-on development, collaboration with QA, and leveraging AI tools to accelerate design and testing while maintaining quality.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or equivalent.
• 7+ years of experience as a top-performing individual contributor.
• Strong C/C++ skills and experience with large, legacy or complex codebases.
• Experience with big-data modeling and distributed software design.
• Proven ability to drive software development in Agile environments.
• Experience mentoring engineers and elevating team practices.

Responsibilities

• Develop the next generation of the Apex reporting platform for hyperscale monitoring.
• Design and implement solutions in a large C++ codebase.
• Model data and tune query performance across databases to keep queries fast.
• Mentor engineers and raise the team's overall code quality.
• Own features end-to-end with well-tested, robust code.

Skills

C/C++

Big-data modeling

Agile development

Mentoring

Communication

AI tools

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering

Tools

Visual Studio

Linux

Docker

SQL/NoSQL

Job description

Summary:

VIAVI (NASDAQ: VIAV) is a global provider of network test, monitoring and assurance solutions for telecommunications, cloud, enterprises, first responders, military, aerospace, and railway. VIAVI is also a leader in light management technologies for 3D sensing, anti-counterfeiting, consumer electronics, industrial, automotive, government and aerospace applications. We are the people behind the products that help keep the world connected at home, school, work, at play, and everywhere in between. VIAVI employees are passionate about supporting customer success and we welcome people who bring their best every day to the company – to question, to collaborate and to push for solutions that will delight our customers.

Duties & Responsibilities

Join a world-class engineering team building Observer Apex, the reporting platform behind Viavi's Network Performance and Threat Solutions (NPTS) — a high-performance big data platform that helps IT teams rapidly identify and remediate problems across enterprise networks and applications. We're looking for a senior engineer who is also a force multiplier: a top-performing individual contributor, a generous mentor, and a trusted voice on evolving a large, mature codebase. AI tools like Claude are part of how we build every day, and we want someone who uses them well to move fast without cutting corners. This is a 100% on-site role with daily collaboration, hands‑on mentorship, and direct access to real-world data, lab environments, and customer use cases.

Duties/Responsibilities

• Develop the next generation of the Apex reporting platform for hyperscale, high‑availability, cloud‑native monitoring — deployments exceeding 100 billion records/day with queries rendering in seconds.
• Design and implement solutions to complex problems in a large, mature C++ codebase.
• Model data and tune query performance across multiple database technologies (e.g., Postgres SQL, Parquet, time-series, columnar) to keep queries fast at scale.
• Judge when to refactor and when to fix in place, balancing code health against the business's need to deliver.
• Mentor other engineers and raise the team's overall bar on code quality — a multiplier, not just a top performer.
• Advocate for good architecture and the codebase's long‑term health, while staying pragmatic about delivery commitments.
• Own features end to end: clean, correct, well‑tested code that meets the definition of done.
• Use AI‑assisted tools (e.g., Claude) for design, review, refactoring, and testing — without cutting corners.
• Participate in Agile backlog refinement, planning, and delivery.
• Stay current on new technology and trends, including how AI is changing software development.
• Partner with QA to streamline validation and incremental delivery.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or equivalent.
• 7+ years of experience, with a track record as a top-performing individual contributor.
• Strong C/C++ skills — algorithm design, data structures, design patterns.
• Experience navigating large, complex, or legacy codebases, and judgment on when to fix vs. refactor.
• Strong grounding in big-data modeling and distributed software design.
• Proven ability to drive software development forward in an Agile environment.
• Experience mentoring engineers and elevating a team's practices, not just delivering individually.
• Excellent communication and critical thinking skills, with a knack for elegant solutions.
• Experience debugging and testing complex software, with an ability to anticipate side effects when modifying legacy code.
• Comfort using AI coding assistants (e.g., Claude, GitHub Copilot) to accelerate development without sacrificing quality.

Pre-Requisites / Skills / Experience Requirements:

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with Microsoft Visual Studio, Linux, Windows, Docker Sound judgment on when to build in-house versus adopt a third-party solution. Experience with SQL, NoSQL, time-series, columnar, and distributed database technologies. Deep knowledge of TCP/IP networking and OSI layer 7 protocols. Strong understanding of storage, CPU, memory, networking, and acceleration approaches for high-performance design. Experience with REST APIs, event streaming, and message queues. Familiarity with multi-tier, cloud-native, and network architectures and what impacts their performance. Experience integrating AI/LLM-based tools into engineering workflows or products.

VIAVI Solutions is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer – minorities/females/veterans/persons with disabilities.

VIAVI empowers Service Providers and IT organizations to manage the network lifecycle for complex 5G and Fiber networks with intuitive instruments, systems and technologies; and our expertise in light management and optical coatings help protect the world's bank notes from counterfeiters, enhance the colors you see, and enable advanced technology such as 3D sensing.

We are a team of thought leaders who have the freedom to support and innovate and look for new effective and efficient solutions for our customers.