Developer Lead

Department: IT AS App Dev & Ops
Salary/Grade: ITS/83

*Hybrid work environment, minimum number of in-person work is an expectation.

Job Summary:

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Lead Developer to oversee both application development and operations, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, scalable, and secure web applications.

The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of web development best practices, strong expertise in PHP, modern frameworks (such as Laravel), application integration, and cloud technologies (AWS preferred).This role requires a strategic thinker who can lead a team of developers, make architectural decisions, and optimize application performance while overseeing deployment and operational stability.

As a lead developer, you will work collaboratively with your manager to provide technical expertise in the design, development, testing, and debugging of new and existing software. You will also handle complex operations tasks and assist with troubleshooting technical issues. Key responsibilities include mentoring junior developers through regular feedback, tracking goals and managing work assignments. You will guide junior staff on best practices in design, coding, and development and provide resource estimates, prioritize work and allocate resources for project work.

This is an exciting opportunity for a proactive leader who thrives in a higher education environment and is passionate about driving technical excellence.

Specific Responsibilities:

Strategic Planning

• Provides development leadership for new and existing software applications
• Partners with analysts in designing new features and functionality
• Recommends projects related to system/architectural direction and strategy
• Stays informed about new technologies and changes to existing technologies
• Assists in the formation and implementation of operation/support plans for applications

Supervises

• Manages and supervises a team of 3-4 developers
• Assists their team in the creation, tracking and achievement of yearly performance goals
• Helps their team to identify professional development opportunities consistent with the member's goals and the needs of ADO-ES
• Provides development mentorship to team members
• Assists in the assignment of tasks to the proper team resources
• Ensures that Team members conform to Northwestern University's standards

Development

• Participates as an individual contributor in projects
• Designs, codes, tests, debugs and documents all phases of application development
• Assists with the development and deployment of code releases

Development Enablement & Operations

• Provides technical leadership on projects
• Performs code reviews
• Shares in operational and support duties
• Acts as subject matter expert (SME) in appropriate technologies and business domains
• Develops and implements standards and best practices for application development including security, maintenance, logging, testing, deployment, compliance, etc
• Assists with troubleshooting complex technical challenges

Miscellaneous

• Performs other duties as assigned

Minimum Qualifications:

• Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree in a major such as computer science, information technology, or related; OR appropriate combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of 5+ years of significant hands-on experience in building and designing complex applications
• Demonstrate significant experience in building and designing complex applications.
• Please see information highlighted in tables below for further skills/knowledge.
  • Message Broker
  • Apigee
  • Cloud
  • Amazon Web Services (AWS)
  • Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook)
  • NoSQL (DynamoDB, MongoDB, CouchDB)
  • Service Orienteted Architecture (SOA)
  • SQL/MySQL/Postgres
  • CSS
  • HTML 5
  • Java
  • JavaScript
  • JQuery
  • Node.js
  • PHP
  • XML
  • WEB API

• Analytical
  • Critical thinking
  • Debugging
  • Decision making
  • Enterprise architecture
  • Judgment
  • Metadata creation and management
  • Problem solving
  • Read & interpret technical drawings
  • Troubleshooting
  • Use-case analysis

• Project
  • Agile environment
  • Code documentation
  • Collaboration and teamwork
  • Facilitate collaboration
  • Iterative & incremental development
  • Organizational skills
  • Planning
  • Workflow development & documentation
  • Write proposals and project charters

Minimum Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities.)

• Strong expertise in application development using programming languages and frameworks such as PHP, Java, Node.js, and Laravel.
• Proficient in web development best practices and front-end technologies, including HTML, CSS, JavaScript, jQuery, Vue.js, and React.
• Deep understanding of database management, including SQL (PostgreSQL, Oracle) and NoSQL solutions (DynamoDB)
• Ability to troubleshoot application performance and security issues, optimizing server configurations, and enhancing application scalability and reliability.
• Proven leadership in managing development teams, conducting code reviews, enforcing best practices, and mentoring junior developers.
• Experience managing multiple projects and coordinating cross-functional teams.
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to make architectural, design, and development decisions that align with business objectives. Experience with strong monitoring and logging skills.
• Comprehensive understanding of software engineering best practices across the SDLC, including coding standards, source control, build processes, testing methodologies, and operational support.
• Excellent organizational, collaboration, and communication skills, with a proactive approach and teamwork.
• Strong familiarity with Unix/Linux operating systems, version control systems (Git), and automated testing strategies for ensuring software quality and reliability.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in higher education environment is highly desirable, with an understanding of industry-specific challenges and workflows.
• Strong expertise in Agile development methodologies, including experience with Scrum, Kanban, or other Agile frameworks, and the ability to lead Agile processes within development teams.
• 3 years in a leadership role, overseeing development teams and technical decision-making.

Preferred Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities):

• 10+ years of application development experience, with at least 5+ years in web application development using the Laravel framework and front-end frameworks such as React, Angular, or Vue.js is a plus.
• Ability to adapt to a constantly changing environment and technologies.
• Proficiency in UX/UI principles, with a focus on user experience (UX) and customer experience (CX) in web application design.
• Ability to design and develop cloud-native applications, preferably on AWS.
• Experience with continuous integration and deployment (CI/CD) systems, such as GitHub Actions, Terraform is desired.
• Experience with automated testing frameworks and tools for unit, integration, and end-to-end testing is highly desired.
• Hands-on experience with application integration, including RESTful APIs, event-driven architectures, and message queue technologies.
• Experience in project management, including cost-benefit analysis, resource evaluation, proposal writing, and drafting project charters.
• Experience in microservice architectural patterns and design
• Excellent presentation and interpersonal skills with the ability to effectively engage with stakeholders, lead discussions, and present technical concepts

Target hiring amount for this position will be $125,000 per year. Offered salary will be determined by the applicant's education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as internal equity and alignment with market data.

Benefits:
At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful, competitive, high-quality health care plans, retirement benefits, tuition discounts and more! Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/index.html to learn more.

Work-Life and Wellness:
Northwestern offers comprehensive programs and services to help you and your family navigate life's challenges and opportunities, and adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles.
We support flexible work arrangements where possible and programs to help you locate and pay for quality, affordable childcare and senior/adult care. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/work-life/index.html to learn more.

Professional Growth & Development:
Northwestern supports employee career development in all circumstances whether your workspace is on campus or at home. If you're interested in developing your professional potential or continuing your formal education, we offer a variety of tools and resources. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/learning/index.html to learn more.

Northwestern strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters for people who can obtain them as a critical tool for minimizing severe illness. More information can be found on the COVID-19 and Campus Updates webpage.

The Northwestern campus sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations. We acknowledge and honor the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer of all protected classes, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply. Click for information on EEO is the Law.