Lead Software Engineer

Washington DC
December 16, 2024
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Job Description

About Data Society Group
At Data Society Group (DSG), we provide the highest quality, leading-edge industry-tailored data and AI training and solutions for Fortune 1,000 companies and federal, state, and local government organizations. We partner with our clients to educate and equip workforces with the skills they need to achieve their goals and expand their impact. By closing the data skills gap and fostering a culture of data fluency, we enable enterprises to achieve better business outcomes and shape the next generation of data and AI-powered workforces.
So far, DSG is comprised of three organizations:

  • Data Society: Delivering customized data science training and bespoke AI solutions recognized by Inc. 5000 as a Fastest Growing Company for three consecutive years.
  • The Data Lodge: A vibrant peer community and certification hub which guides organizations to become more data literate, fostering collaboration, inspiration, and expertise.
  • CDO Magazine: The premier global digital publication and events company, providing insights and thought leadership for Chief Data Officers and other data leaders from more than 100 countries.

From building foundational data literacy for employees to training data scientists on complex AI and machine learning solutions, DSG is empowering the workforces of the future. Our executive boards include industry leaders, engineers, and data scientists from around the globe, uniting to shape the future of data fluency and AI adoption.

About the Role
As the Lead Software Engineer on our Products team, you’ll play a key role in building diverse and impactful tools to support our mission. Projects will include developing an AI-based chatbot that acts as a teaching assistant, answering learner questions during and between sessions and helping instructors personalize their content, or creating AI tools for CDO Magazine to summarize and restructure interviews with data leaders into actionable best practices. You’ll collaborate with the Head of Product to identify and execute on new projects that enhance our offerings and address both internal and client needs, ensuring DSG continues to lead in data and AI innovation.

Role Overview
Hands-on Architect and Developer

  • Design, build, test, and release key AI-powered services and products focused around learning systems and data platforms.
  • Implement durable, secure software solutions that will solve critical customer problems in a fast-paced environment

Collaborate and Communicate

  • Work directly with the product team to understand requirements, evaluate trade-offs, and deliver practical, innovative solutions (with a mix of onshore and offshore resources).
  • Deeply understand the business model to accelerate outcomes and deliver value by collaborating within and across teams.

Lead by Practice and Example

  • Contribute to standards, patterns, and best practices that improve engineering capabilities in performance, security, scalability, operational excellence, and cost management.
  • Provide perspective on leading industry trends, recommendations on new and emerging technologies, technology prototypes, patent proposals, etc..
  • Practice and evangelize continuous learning, experimenting, and applying cutting-edge technology and software paradigms to solve customer problems

Ideal Background

  • 8+ years of experience developing systems/software for complex distributed systems, management products, or business applications. Your work and past projects has likely given you expertise and experience in at least two of these:
    • Large-scale microservices and distributed systems
    • Cloud computing and storage systems
    • Information Retrieval/Search Systems
    • Machine learning for Search and/or Recommender systems
  • You must have Full-stack development experience in:
    • Back-end technologies like Python (ideally), Java, Typescript, Spring, NodeJS/Bun 
    • Front-end technologies like React, Angular, SwiftUI (iOS), Kotlin (Android)
    • While your primary expertise lies in the back-end, you’ll also guide front-end decisions. We don’t expect you to be a front-end expert—there’s support and time to explore the right tools—but you’ll need enough familiarity to integrate and deliver a cohesive product experience.
  • Full-cycle development experience. You have planned and architected holistic solutions, and have experience of bringing products zero to one.
  • Experience with AI infrastructure and applications.
    • Strong working knowledge and experience applying AI to an existing application or building AI native applications (including ability to articulate value/limitations, use evaluation tools to measure accuracy, and train/tune models). 
    • Experience with AI technologies (this might be Large Language Models, Prompt Engineering, DialogFlow, SageMaker, Google Vertex AI, LangChain)
  • BS/MS in a technical field such as Computer Science or equivalent years of experience.
  • Authorized to work in the US and resides within the continental United States.

Ideal Skillset

  • Team player well-respected for strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
  • Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, complex technical environment.
  • Excellent communication skills. Communicates clearly, succinctly, and persuasively to all levels of employees, customers, and management (including executives).
  • “Self-starter” attitude and the ability to make decisions independently.
  • Flexible and resilient.
  • Travel 3-4 times per year to company in-person events.

Your first 30/60/90 days

  • First 30 Days: You’ll build relationships across teams, immerse yourself in our products and data, and familiarize yourself with the tech stack(s) we use, possible alternatives and the competitive landscape. By the end of this period, coding will be well underway as you build a clear understanding of our challenges and opportunities.
  • First 60 Days: If all goes well, you will have released one or more iterations to the code by now. Additionally, you’ll have prioritized which tools and products to build, secured buy-in from key stakeholders and leaders, and researched the best technologies and stack to bring larger backlog ideas to life. 
  • First 90 Days: You’ll be up to speed on both the in flight projects and the strategic product roadmap by now. In partnership with product leadership, you’ll have outlined product goals, mapped their business value, and developed a roadmap in partnership with stakeholders.

We move with careful urgency and believe our products can change the world. Join us!