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 Solutions Architect to support our customers and join our passionate team of high-impact problem solvers.
About the role:
This is an exciting opportunity for a Solutions Architect with expertise in AI/ML, big data processing, and cloud computing environments. You will be responsible for designing and implementing scalable architectures, optimizing search and analytical capabilities, and supporting mission-critical intelligence projects. Typical duties include software and data architecture development, AI/ML model deployment, cybersecurity compliance, and collaboration with cross-functional teams to create innovative solutions for government and defense environments. This role is contingent on contract award.
What we are looking for:
- 5-7 years of experience with a bachelor’s degree, or 3+ years of experience with a master’s degree in computer science, engineering, data science, or a related fiel
- Significant experience in one or more scripting languages such as Python or R, and proficiency in a big data programming language such as Python, Scala, or Java.
- Experience analyzing and decomposing requirements into software designs that can be distributed across system components.
- Expertise with Elasticsearch/OpenSearch and related indexing technologies.
- Strong understanding of RDBMS concepts, technologies, and cloud-based RDBMS services.
- Hands-on experience in AI/ML model development, containerization, and productization.
- Familiarity with natural language processing, large language models, and processing unstructured text data using containerized and Apache Spark-based computing environments such as Databricks.
- Knowledge graph construction and reasoning experience, including expertise with property graph model frameworks and Neo4J.
- Experience with cloud-based computing environments such as AWS or GCS, with a focus on GovCloud, C2S, SC2S, UC2S, and other government cloud computing environments.
- Demonstrated experience supporting military or intelligence community customers, showing progressive technical development and mission-driven outcomes.
- Experience with cybersecurity compliance, secure software development methodologies, and the process for obtaining authority to operate (ATO) on defense and intelligence community networks.
- Ability to leverage existing COTS/GOTS/OS tools in unconventional ways to meet mission objectives.
Major Duties/Tasks:
- Analyze and assess software development and data processing requirements to determine cost-effective and scalable solutions.
- Develop and align technical solutions with business goals, focusing on architectures capable of handling complex search queries across large datasets using the Advana platform.
- Design, implement, and optimize AI/ML-driven search and analytical tools.
- Collaborate with analysts, engineers, and developers to conduct research and deploy scalable, high-performance solutions.
- Work with data scientists, UX designers, developers, and testers to create well-structured, mission-ready architectures.
- Optimize software designs and architectures to meet performance, security, and scalability goals.
- Develop methodologies and tooling for profiling execution, capturing performance metrics, and ensuring cybersecurity compliance.
Clearance Requirements:
- Active TS security clearance with SCI eligibility
Salary Range:
- $130,000 - $160,000
- The determination of compensation is predicated upon a candidate's comprehensive experience, demonstrated skill, and proven abilities
Work Type:
- McLean, VA
- May require up to 10% travel
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
- Annual budget for your tech/gadgets needs
- Remote, hybrid, and flexible work options
- Team off-site in fun places!
- Generous Referral Bonuses
- 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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