Head of Software
C4ADS · Washington, DC
Overview
We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Head of Software to join our team at C4ADS. This role is not just about managing software personnel and ensuring successful project delivery; it's about being deeply aligned with and excited about our mission to advance global security and stability through data-driven analysis and innovative technology. This is a hands-on leadership role combining strategic vision with practical implementation. The ideal candidate will bring a strong background in software development, project management, and team leadership, all while sharing our passion for making a meaningful impact in the world.
What You'll Do
Team Leadership
- Manage all software program team personnel, including software engineers and product designers, ensuring they are responsive to stakeholders, meeting their milestones, and following software development SOPs.
- Supervise team output, providing mentorship through regular code reviews and design crits.
- Maintain the hiring process for incoming software engineers, product managers, and product designers.
- Ensure that Software Engineers and Product Designers have defined growth areas and career tracks.
Technical Architecture
- Work closely with the relevant engineering staff to design the technical architecture for each project.
- Work with engineering staff to manage the organization’s cloud infrastructure.
Software Development Guidance
- Establish and maintain software development standards and processes, including:
- Recommended application architecture for software platforms and products, including standardized templates for deployment and orchestration.
- Expectations around tools used to track, monitor, and maintain code.
- Software project management and sprint processes.
- Code review, styling, and testing standards.
- Software consultant hiring and management guidelines.
- Shared infrastructure, including CI/CD authentication, cloud services, and product analytics.
Product Success
- Lead planning for new software projects through coordination with project and product managers.
- Advise on expectations, time, resource, and cost estimates for each project proposal involving software.
- Provide periodic updates to leadership and the broader organization about new products and features produced by the software team.
- Coordinate with the product and project managers to track and improve software product success, e.g., by monitoring user engagement, revenue, and costs.
- Work alongside the product manager and product designer to generate user feedback on existing products and to test upcoming features or products.
What we're looking for
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
- Extensive experience in software development and project management.
- Experience taking projects from a concept to a finished product.
- Experience with SQL databases like Postgres.
- Strong leadership and management skills.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Proficiency in software development methodologies.
- Experience with cloud compute infrastructure and security best practices.
- Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills.
- Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities effectively.
- Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Passion for fostering a positive and collaborative work environment.
- A deep excitement and alignment with C4ADS's mission to advance global security and stability through data-driven analysis and innovative technology.
Bonus Points For
- Experience with AWS (IAM, S3, EKS, ECS).
- Experience with OpenSearch or ElasticSearch.
- Experience with languages and frameworks like Python, Typescript, Django, Celery, and React.
- Experience with NoSQL databases like Redis.
- Experience administering containerized infrastructure through services like Docker and Kubernete
How We’ll Reward You:
- $140,000 salary
- Fully covered Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance for employees and covered dependents
- Unlimited vacation time, with a required minimum of 10 days per year
- 401(k) program with 4% matching for both traditional and Roth options
- A $4,500 education stipend for continuing growth
- 12 weeks of paid parental leave for the birth, adoption, or placement of a foster child
- Life & disability insurance fully covered
- Access to a pre-tax, flexible spending account (FSA)
- SmartBenefits for pre-tax deposits on SmartTrip cards
- A passionate team that values hard work and is serious about building and maintaining a great culture