Back to jobs
New

Senior Technical Lead — R&D Mission Solutions

Remote

Senior Technical Lead — R&D Mission Platforms

Location: United States
Work Model: Remote
Travel: Approximately 15% for R&D events, technical demos, and collaboration sessions
Clearance: U.S. citizenship required. Active Secret clearance preferred; candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance.

Role Overview

Rackner is seeking a Senior Technical Lead — R&D Mission Platforms to help design, prototype, demonstrate, and advance mission-relevant software capabilities within our internal R&D environment.

This is a hands-on technical leadership role for someone who can move from concept to working software quickly, operate in ambiguity, and communicate technical ideas clearly to engineering and non-engineering stakeholders. You will work closely with Rackner’s technical leadership and R&D team to build modern platform capabilities, support technical demos, and help translate operational needs into practical software solutions.

The right candidate will be comfortable balancing deep technical work with customer-facing interaction. This role is not a traditional heads-down engineering position. It is designed for someone who can build, explain, iterate, and represent technical work in mission-focused environments.

What You'll Do

  • Lead the design, prototyping, and development of mission-relevant software and platform capabilities
  • Build backend services, APIs, full-stack applications, and cloud-native components using modern engineering practices
  • Translate ambiguous mission needs, user workflows, and technical concepts into working software
  • Support rapid build, demo, feedback, and iteration cycles for R&D initiatives
  • Collaborate directly with technical leadership, R&D engineers, and stakeholders on architecture and implementation decisions
  • Participate in technical demos, customer-facing discussions, and mission-focused events
  • Help shape system design, platform direction, and technical tradeoffs across emerging capabilities
  • Guide or mentor other engineers through architecture decisions, prototyping efforts, and implementation challenges
  • Deploy and support applications in cloud-native, containerized, or Kubernetes-based environments
  • Use modern development workflows, including AI-assisted tools where appropriate, to accelerate prototyping, testing, and delivery
  • Represent Rackner’s technical work with clarity, professionalism, and credibility in collaborative settings

Minimum Qualifications

  • U.S. citizenship required due to federal contract requirements
  • Professional background developing software systems, backend services, APIs, full-stack applications, or platform capabilities
  • Proficiency with Python, JavaScript / TypeScript, or similar modern programming languages
  • Hands-on knowledge of cloud platforms, containers, Kubernetes, DevSecOps, or cloud-native deployment environments
  • Ability to work independently in ambiguous, prototype-driven, or fast-moving technical settings
  • Strong communication skills with the ability to explain complex concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences
  • Demonstrated ownership of engineering outcomes from concept through implementation
  • Willingness to travel approximately 15% for R&D events, technical demos, collaboration sessions, or mission-focused engagements

Preferred Qualifications

  • Active Secret clearance or higher
  • Background supporting DoD, Air Force, Platform One, Big Bang, DevSecOps, mission planning, C2, ISR, autonomy, or defense software programs
  • Ability to engage with operators, mission users, customers, or non-engineering stakeholders to understand workflows and translate needs into technical solutions
  • Familiarity with Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, React, Go, FastAPI, Postgres, AWS, Docker, Kubernetes, Helm, Terraform, or CI/CD tooling
  • History of leading engineering projects, serving as an informal technical lead, or guiding architecture decisions
  • Involvement in technical demos, pilots, field events, customer-facing discussions, or live exercises
  • Background building in R&D, prototype-heavy, startup-like, defense tech, or mission-focused environments
  • Exposure to AI-enabled systems, LLMs, automation-heavy software, data-driven decision tools, or autonomy-adjacent technologies
  • Familiarity with secure software delivery, observability, infrastructure-as-code, or compliance-aware engineering practices

Travel & Event Support

This role requires approximately 15% travel for R&D events, technical demos, collaboration sessions, and mission-focused engagements. Travel is planned in advance whenever possible and may include participation in customer-facing or internal engineering events.

About Rackner

Rackner is a software consultancy focused on building mission-critical systems for the U.S. government. Our teams work across cloud platforms, DevSecOps, AI/ML, distributed systems, and modern software engineering initiatives supporting federal agencies and national security missions.

Rackner engineers collaborate closely with technical leadership, program teams, and mission stakeholders to design, build, and improve software systems that address complex operational challenges.

Benefits & Perks

Rackner invests in its people, because when you grow, we all win.

  • Company-supported certifications aligned to current and future program work, including cloud, Kubernetes, DevSecOps, security, AI/ML, project management, and related technical areas
  • Clear advancement tracks and future leadership opportunities
  • 401(k) with 100% match up to 6%
  • Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life, and disability coverage
  • Generous PTO and paid holidays
  • Home-office equipment plan and remote work support
  • Fitness and wellness reimbursement
  • Weekly pay schedule and modern perks, including team events

Equal Opportunity

Rackner is an equal opportunity employer and considers all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or other protected characteristics.

 

Create a Job Alert

Interested in building your career at Rackner? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Education

Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Select...
Which of the following technologies have you worked with in a professional environment? (Select all that apply) *
Select...
Select...
Select...
Many engineers now use tools such as GitHub Copilot or similar AI-assisted development tools. Have you used AI-assisted development tools in your workflow? *

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in Rackner’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability

Form CC-305
Page 1 of 1
OMB Control Number 1250-0005
Expires 04/30/2026

Why are you being asked to complete this form?

We are a federal contractor or subcontractor. The law requires us to provide equal employment opportunity to qualified people with disabilities. We have a goal of having at least 7% of our workers as people with disabilities. The law says we must measure our progress towards this goal. To do this, we must ask applicants and employees if they have a disability or have ever had one. People can become disabled, so we need to ask this question at least every five years.

Completing this form is voluntary, and we hope that you will choose to do so. Your answer is confidential. No one who makes hiring decisions will see it. Your decision to complete the form and your answer will not harm you in any way. If you want to learn more about the law or this form, visit the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) website at www.dol.gov/ofccp.

How do you know if you have a disability?

A disability is a condition that substantially limits one or more of your “major life activities.” If you have or have ever had such a condition, you are a person with a disability. Disabilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Alcohol or other substance use disorder (not currently using drugs illegally)
  • Autoimmune disorder, for example, lupus, fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, HIV/AIDS
  • Blind or low vision
  • Cancer (past or present)
  • Cardiovascular or heart disease
  • Celiac disease
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Deaf or serious difficulty hearing
  • Diabetes
  • Disfigurement, for example, disfigurement caused by burns, wounds, accidents, or congenital disorders
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Gastrointestinal disorders, for example, Crohn's Disease, irritable bowel syndrome
  • Intellectual or developmental disability
  • Mental health conditions, for example, depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, PTSD
  • Missing limbs or partially missing limbs
  • Mobility impairment, benefiting from the use of a wheelchair, scooter, walker, leg brace(s) and/or other supports
  • Nervous system condition, for example, migraine headaches, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Neurodivergence, for example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder, dyslexia, dyspraxia, other learning disabilities
  • Partial or complete paralysis (any cause)
  • Pulmonary or respiratory conditions, for example, tuberculosis, asthma, emphysema
  • Short stature (dwarfism)
  • Traumatic brain injury
Select...

PUBLIC BURDEN STATEMENT: According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless such collection displays a valid OMB control number. This survey should take about 5 minutes to complete.