About the company
Raft is a customer-obsessed non-traditional defense tech company dedicated to empowering U.S. military and government agencies with cutting-edge AI/ML and data solutions. We are a leader in autonomous data fusion and Agentic AI, 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.
Our product suite, [R]DP (Raft Data Platform), [R]AIMS (Raft AI Mission System), and [R]AP (Raft Application Platform), is being fielded across the U.S. Army and joint force to power data fusion, AI/ML, and mission applications at the tactical and operational edge.
Responsibilities
- Serve as Raft’s embedded senior technical lead at Fort Hood, working with Army customers, program offices, and partner integrators to install, integrate, and operate [R]DP, [R]AIMS, and [R]AP in their environments
- Own end-to-end product deployment and fielding at Fort Hood and the Army units we support, including environment preparation, installation, configuration, integration with Army data sources and mission systems, validation, and sustainment
- Write and contribute production-quality code in Go, Java, or Rust, turning field-driven gaps and fixes into durable product features between integration cycles rather than waiting for the core team to catch up
- Build, improve, and maintain installation, integration, and troubleshooting playbooks that any Raft engineer or qualified customer administrator can confidently execute in connected, disconnected, and degraded environments
- Apply DevSecOps practices end to end: CI/CD pipelines, container builds, infrastructure as code, secrets management, and RMF-relevant security controls that keep fielded deployments secure, reproducible, and auditable
- Deploy and debug Kubernetes workloads in customer environments, including Helm charts and manifests, pod and networking troubleshooting, storage, ingress, and operator management on clusters where Raft products run
- Integrate Raft products with Army data sources, mission systems, and partner platforms, applying a working understanding of how data and decisions flow across Army echelons
- Champion Raft products on site by running hands-on enablement with operators and developers, answering hard technical questions, and building lasting trust through credibility and follow-through
- Capture lessons learned, customer feedback, and unmet needs from the field and translate them into actionable input for Raft’s product, engineering, and growth teams
- Know when to reach back. Identify problems that need the broader Raft team, frame them clearly, and pull in the right help quickly rather than grinding alone in the field
Requirements
- 5+ years of hands-on software engineering experience with demonstrated ability to write, debug, and ship production code in complex enterprise or government environments
- Active Secret clearance required; U.S. citizenship required
- Hands-on production coding experience in at least one backend language such as Go, Java, or Rust; this is a development role, not just a deployment role
- Strong DevSecOps experience: CI/CD, container builds, infrastructure as code, secrets management, and applying security controls in production deployments
- Working proficiency with Kubernetes sufficient to confidently deploy, configure, and debug containerized products in customer environments, including Helm, manifests, operators, pod and networking troubleshooting, storage, and ingress
- Strong scripting skills in Bash and Python for automation, integration tooling, and operational playbooks
- Demonstrated ability to build runbooks and reproducible procedures that other engineers and custom