This is a U.S. based position. All of the programs we support require U.S. citizenship to be eligible for employment. All work must be conducted within the continental U.S.
Who we are:
Raft (https://TeamRaft.com) is a customer-obsessed non-traditional small business with a purposeful focus on Distributed Data Systems, Platforms at Scale, and Complex Application Development, with headquarters in McLean, VA. Our range of clients includes innovative federal and public agencies leveraging design thinking, cutting-edge tech stack, and cloud-native ecosystem. We build digital solutions that impact the lives of millions of Americans.
We’re looking for an experienced Data Engineer to support our customers and join our passionate team of high-impact problem solvers.
About the role:
Data Engineers on our Distributed Systems team are focused on building data platforms that make it easy for different types of user personas to access data from a central control plane. This includes building backend services, connecting OSS projects in a repeatable and performant way, and extending feature sets. Experience involving data engineering and all things data. Utilizing new tools like DuckDB, Apache Pinot, Apache Superset, and others. As the Staff Data Engineer you will be working closely with Technical SMEs on the government stakeholders to build, configure, and deploy the next generation of data platform for mission-critical needs.
Required Qualifications:
- Subject Matter Expertise on a backend language like Java, Go, Python
- Hands-on experience with Kafka and Delta Lake in real-world applications.
- Must have educational background in STEM such as Computer Science, Electrical Engineering and Mathematics
- Up-to-date knowledge of industry trends in Data Engineering, Data Streaming, and Data Search, actively engaging with the community.
- Proven expertise in working with DoD datasets, with a deep understanding of data transformation techniques.
- Ability to break down complex requirements into smaller, actionable tasks, demonstrating feasibility through proof-of-concepts (POCs).
- Experience with Kubernetes, along with a strong background in CI/CD pipelines and Platform as a Service (PaaS) environments.
Highly preferred:
- Hands-on experience with Trino and/or DuckDB, as well as Flink or another Stream Processing Engine.
- Experience in building quick POCs and evaluating the operational pros and cons of Custom Off-The-Shelf (COTS) products versus their Open Source Software (OSS) alternatives.
Clearance Requirements:
- Active Secret security clearance
- Must be able to maintain and obtain a Top Secret clearance
Work Type:
- Onsite at Hanscom AFB
- May require up to 15% travel
Salary Range:
- $140,000 - $180,000
- The determination of compensation is predicated upon a candidate's comprehensive experience, demonstrated skill, and proven abilities
What we will offer you:
- Highly competitive salary
- Fully covered healthcare, dental, and vision coverage
- 401(k) and company match
- Take as you need PTO + 11 paid holidays
- Education & training benefits
- And More!
Our Vision Statement:
We bridge the gap between humans and data through radical transparency and our obsession with the mission.
Our Customer Obsession:
We will approach every deliverable like it's a product. We will adopt a customer-obsessed mentality. As we grow, and our footprint becomes larger, teams and employees will treat each other not only as teammates but customers. We must live the customer-obsessed mindset, always. This will help us scale and it will translate to the interactions that our Rafters have with their clients and other product teams that they integrate with. Our culture will enable our success and set us apart from other companies.
How do we get there?
Public-sector modernization is critical for us to live in a better world. We, at Raft, want to innovate and solve complex problems. And, if we are successful, our generation and the ones that follow us will live in a delightful, efficient, and accessible world where out-of-box thinking, and collaboration is a norm.
Raft’s core philosophy is Ubuntu: I Am, Because We are. We support our “nadi” by elevating the other Rafters. We work as a hyper collaborative team where each team member brings a unique perspective, adding value that did not exist before. People make Raft special. We celebrate each other and our cognitive and cultural diversity. We are devoted to our practice of innovation and collaboration.
We’re an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.
Top Skills
What We Do
Raft is a digital consulting firm with niche expertise in the rapid delivery of modern, user-first, scalable, and data-intensive digital solutions. We accelerate the missions of our federal partners through human-centered design (HCD) and agile development practices, bringing deep technical expertise in DevSecOps, Kubernetes management, cloud-native microservice architectures, and secure, open source delivery.
We put our people and our culture first. We work with some of the smartest, hardest working experts in their field. We owe it to them to make sure our team is free of meaningless restrictions and internal politics so they can focus on what they love, finding innovative solutions.
We build off the Open-Source and resist vendor lock in. That way you’re not paying us to reinvent the wheel, our solutions play nice with others and are always adaptable.
We know digital innovation doesn’t always operate during bank hours, so neither do we. (It's also why we don’t dress like bankers.) We aren’t afraid to go the extra mile or put in the extra time to find a solution. We get it right the first time; we won’t waste our time (and your money) trying to fix something that’s fundamentally broken. It’s kind of like making an exceptional cup of coffee, if the beans are roasted wrong, it doesn’t matter how much pumpkin spice you dump in your cup, it’s still not going to taste great.
And above all else we’re up for a challenge; it’s in our DNA. Ask us about something that’s never been done, or better yet something that can’t be done, and we’ll find a way to do it. It’s just who we are.
If you need a partner that’s looking toward the future and not the past, don’t go traditional, go Raft.
Why Work With Us
Raft partners with public agencies to solve hard complex problems that impact the lives of millions of Americans. We work hard to make it easy for humans to connect with data.
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