Senior Software Engineer - Architecture & Systems Design

Herndon, VAFull-timePosted Aug 6, 2026
Job Title: Senior Software Engineer - Architecture & Systems Design

Job Category: Engineering

Time Type: Full time

Minimum Clearance Required to Start: None

Employee Type: Regular

Percentage of Travel Required: None

Type of Travel: None

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The Opportunity:

  • Design, architect, and implement complex embedded RF systems as part of a multi-disciplinary team working on specialized tools, sensors, and communications devices for demanding applications
  • Contribute to software architecture decisions for inter-processor and microservice systems where your technical choices directly impact system performance, real-time behavior, and the ability to process high-rate RF data in resource-constrained environments
  • Work with engineers across the full embedded system stack—from signal processing algorithms to FPGA fabric, from application layer to hardware interfaces
  • Own technical design from initial architecture through production deployment, making practical trade-offs between competing constraints like schedule, performance, portability, and maintainability


Responsibilities:

  • Design distributed software architectures spanning multiple processing domains (x86, ARM, FPGA fabric), defining communication patterns and data flows for real-time RF signal processing systems
  • Develop high-performance C++ frameworks for inter-processor communication in systems where latency and throughput are critical constraints
  • Create technical documentation including message sequence charts, UML class diagrams, and software architecture specifications that enable distributed teams to build complex systems correctly and efficiently
  • Design microservice architectures for x86 and ARM platforms, balancing modularity, performance, and resource constraints
  • Profile and optimize software for memory-bound and compute-bound workloads using tools like vTune, identifying bottlenecks and implementing measurable performance improvements
  • Work with signal processing engineers to design data pipelines that move RF samples from ADCs through filters, demodulators, and decoders
  • Develop debugging approaches for resource-constrained embedded systems where standard tools provide limited visibility
  • Build C++/Python test harnesses and unit tests that generate representative workloads, validate system behavior, and verify edge cases
  • Integrate modern development tools and practices including CI/CD pipelines, containerization, and build automation
  • Collaborate with FPGA engineers to define hardware/software interfaces that leverage programmable logic capabilities while maintaining software flexibility


Qualifications:
Required: 

  • 5-7+ years of professional software engineering experience in embedded systems and/or high-performance computing in Linux based environments
  • BS or MS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field
  • Strong proficiency in C++ development for embedded real-time systems, including concurrency, memory management, and optimization techniques
  • Demonstrated experience designing and implementing software architectures and communicating technical concepts through documentation and diagrams
  • Experience with multi-threaded application development and debugging concurrency issues, including race conditions in inter-processor and microservice architectures
  • Working knowledge of software design patterns and development methodologies for complex systems
  • Experience with modern build systems and DevOps tools (Conan, Docker, GitLab or similar)
  • Experience with performance analysis and debugging tools (vTune, perf, gdb, valgrind, or similar) to identify and optimize bottlenecks
  • Ability to make informed trade-offs between portability, performance, and architecture-specific optimizations


Desired:

  • Experience with communications systems and digital signal processing, including filters, modulation/demodulation schemes, channel equalization, and forward error correction (FEC)
  • Experience with wireless communications protocols (3GPP, IEEE 802.11, IEEE 802.15)
  • Understanding of the signal processing pipeline from RF data collection through digital processing

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What You Can Expect:

 A culture of integrity.

At CACI, we place character and innovation at the center of everything we do. As a valued team member, you’ll be part of a high-performing group dedicated to our customer’s missions and driven by a higher purpose – to ensure the safety of our nation.

An environment of trust.

CACI values the unique contributions that every employee brings to our company and our customers - every day. You’ll have the autonomy to take the time you need through a unique flexible time off benefit and have access to robust learning resources to make your ambitions a reality.

A focus on continuous growth.

Together, we will advance our nation's most critical missions, build on our lengthy track record of business success, and find opportunities to break new ground — in your career and in our legacy.


Pay Range:

There are a host of factors that can influence final salary including, but not limited to, geographic location, Federal Government contract labor categories and contract wage rates, relevant prior work experience, specific skills and competencies, education, and certifications. Our employees value the flexibility at CACI that allows them to balance quality work and their personal lives. We offer competitive compensation, benefits and learning and development opportunities. Our broad and competitive mix of benefits options is designed to support and protect employees and their families. At CACI, you will receive comprehensive benefits such as; healthcare, wellness, financial, retirement, family support, continuing education, and time off benefits.

The proposed salary range for this position is:

$94,400 - $198,200

CACI is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other protected characteristic.

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