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
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