Software Engineer - Part-Time (Consultant, Engineering & Technical Services)

Job Requirements

The Software Engineer - Part-Time (Consultant, Engineering & Technical Services) will support our customer's initiative, serving as a core engineer. The specific platform powers four primary user experiences: Homepage, Training Explorer, Career Pathways, and Career Navigator. This project requires strong expertise across both traditional cloud-hosted and modern serverless environments. This role is ideal for an engineer who can operate across backend services, cloud infrastructure, data systems, DevOps pipelines, APIs, and frontend collaboration, while maintaining production stability and supporting ongoing platform evolution.

Your Responsibilities in This Role:

Backend Engineering

• Develop and maintain backend services that manage business logic, search functionality, and data retrieval.
• Support two distinct backend architectures

Databases, Storage & Data Pipelines

• Work across multiple data stores and access patterns:
• AWS Aurora (PostgreSQL) for structured application data
• Redis for caching and performance optimization
• Amazon DynamoDB for Career Navigator training and user data
• Amazon S3 for file storage and training data ingestion
• Support ETPL (Eligible Training Provider List) refresh processes.
• Lead and maintain the transition from manual CSV uploads to real-time integrations via the Credential Engine API.
• Ensure data accuracy, performance, and scalability across systems.

Testing & Quality Assurance

• Maintain automated testing pipelines to ensure reliability and quality:
• Jest for backend testing
• Pytest for Career Navigator backend validation
• Cypress for browser-based and UI testing across applications
• Support regression testing and validation of integrations and deployments.

Infrastructure, Hosting & Cloud Operations

• Support a hybrid infrastructure model:
• AWS EC2 + Application Load Balancer (ALB)
• AWS Lambda, API Gateway, and CloudWatch for Career Navigator
• Manage infrastructure using Terraform (Infrastructure as Code) to ensure consistency, security, and repeatability across environments.
• Monitor application health, logs, and performance using CloudWatch and centralized logging.

APIs & Integrations

• Integrate and maintain external APIs, including:
• CareerOneStop API
• O*NET Web Services
• Mailchimp
• Contentful CMS
• Support internal API communication between frontend interfaces and backend services using Express and FastAPI endpoints.

DevOps, Security & Tooling

• Support CI/CD workflows:
• CircleCI (transitioning to GitHub Actions)
• AWS CodeBuild for Career Navigator packaging and deployment
• Execute and support manual deployments where required to ensure system stability.
• Manage infrastructure updates through Terraform scripts.
• Ensure platform security and observability using:
• Winston + AWS CloudWatch for logging
• HTTPS via AWS Certificate Manager
• Helmet middleware for backend security
• Auth0 + JWT for authentication and authorization

Frontend Collaboration & User Experience

• Support frontend applications built with:
• Next.js (React)
• React v17
• Tailwind CSS and Material UI (MUI v4) for styling and components
• Ensure alignment with:
• NJWDS / USWDS design systems
• Material Design standards
• Collaborate with designers using Figma for prototyping and mockups.
• Support content modeling and population through Contentful.
• Maintain accessibility, responsiveness, and performance best practices.

Work Experience

Skills and Qualifications We Require at Fearless:

At Fearless, we seek candidates who blend technical know-how with sharp problem-solving and advisory skills to drive real impact in the communities we serve. Here are the key qualifications for this role.

Fearless Skills and Competencies

• Analytical Thinking: The ability to observe and interpret information, break down complex problems into parts, identify patterns/relationships and draw logical conclusions to develop effective solutions.
• Synthetic Thinking: The ability to combine different ideas, information, or concepts to create a new, complex understanding or solution by integrating disparate elements into a new, meaningful whole.
• Adaptability: Comfort with change, flexibility in the face of shifting demands and resilience to setbacks.
• Ownership & Accountability: Committed to taking responsibility for outcomes, ensuring that all commitments are met with a focus on enhancing service delivery.
• Consultative Advising: Identifies and articulates client challenges, scopes projects and aligns recommendations to business goals and client expectations.
• Communicating with Influence: Capable of crafting and delivering clear, persuasive messages that integrate data insights and structured narratives, tailored to the strategic needs of diverse audiences to drive effective decision-making.
• Environmental Awareness: Maintains awareness of external dynamics, power structures within client environments as well as regulatory trends and contract requirements that influence service delivery.

Overall Experience

• Minimum 6–7 years of professional software engineering experience

Backend & API Development

• 5+ years building and maintaining backend services using:
• Node.js + Express (production, not greenfield only)
• Python for APIs or data services (FastAPI preferred)
• Proven experience designing and supporting RESTful APIs in live systems.

Cloud & Infrastructure

• 3–5 years working in AWS environments, including:
• EC2, Application Load Balancers
• AWS Lambda, API Gateway
• S3, CloudWatch
• Hands-on experience with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform strongly preferred).

Databases & Data Systems

• 3+ years working with relational databases:
• PostgreSQL (Aurora or equivalent)
• Experience with NoSQL data stores:
• DynamoDB
• Experience implementing caching strategies (Redis or equivalent).
• Exposure to ETL pipelines or API-driven data ingestion.

Testing & Quality

• 3+ years writing and maintaining automated tests:
• Jest, Pytest, and/or Cypress
• Experience supporting regression testing and validating production releases.

DevOps & Security

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines (CircleCI, GitHub Actions, or AWS CodeBuild).
• Familiarity with:
• Logging and monitoring (CloudWatch, Winston)
• Application security practices (HTTPS, JWT, middleware like Helmet)
• Auth providers such as Auth0 or equivalent

Frontend Collaboration

• Working knowledge (not full specialization required) of:
• React / Next.js
• Component libraries (Material UI)
• Modern CSS frameworks (Tailwind)
• Ability to collaborate effectively with design and UX teams using Figma.

Public Sector / Regulated Environment Experience (Strongly Preferred)

• Experience working on:
• Government platforms
• Workforce, education, benefits, or data-sharing systems
• Comfort operating in environments requiring:
• Stability over speed
• Documentation and stakeholder alignment
• Accessibility and compliance standards (USWDS / WCAG)

Physical Requirements:

• Ability to sit for extended periods while working on a computer or during meetings.
• Must be able to travel occasionally to client sites or company meetings.
• Ability to communicate effectively via phone, email, and in-person, requiring clear speech, listening, and written communication skills.
• Ability to move within an office environment, including reaching for files, using office equipment, and occasional light lifting (up to 10 pounds).

Benefits

Life at Fearless

We’re a digital integration consultancy on a mission to build a better tomorrow. At Fearless, we combine technology, people, and organizational development to solve meaningful problems. Through iterative development, we deliver smart, user-friendly solutions that make tech work better—for everyone.

But great tech is just part of the story. What really makes us Fearless is our Purple Culture.

What Makes Us Purple?

Being Purple means you:

• Are valued as a whole person—not just a job title
• Get matched with work that plays to your strengths and passions
• Are supported by coaches, not micromanagers
• Have the autonomy and clarity to make decisions and drive impact
• Join a community that celebrates equity, curiosity, and innovation
• Do work that matters—every day

We believe in flexibility, growth, and balance. Our benefits and culture are designed to support you in doing your best work—while making space for what matters to you outside of it.

We’re proud to be an equal opportunity employer. At Fearless, we’re building a workplace that welcomes and respects everyone—across race, gender, age, religion, identity, background, and ability.

Compensation at Fearless

Fearless is committed to providing a competitive compensation package that will meet your current and future needs. Our philosophy is aimed at rewarding team member contributions, supporting long-term financial growth and security, and overall well-being.

We believe in paying people fairly, so we've established a compensation model aimed to ensure everyone at Fearless — regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, religion, age, nationality, or willingness/ability to negotiate — is consistently paid fairly based on alignment to the needs and requirements of the role.

For part-time roles, the salary will be pro-rated based on the full-time equivalent salary ranges. The salary range for this position is 50% of the defined salary:

Minimum Salary: $91,554

Salary Midpoint: $119,020

Maximum Salary: $146,486

Hiring Range for Role: $91,554 - $122,500

Benefits at Fearless

At Fearless, we take care of our team—because when you're supported, you can do your best work. We offer a flexible, family-friendly environment with benefits designed to support your health, growth, and life outside of work.

Part-Time & Interns:

• 8.75 days of safe & sick leave annually
• Eligible for our 401(k) plan with employer contributions

Reasonable Accommodations

Fearless is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for applic