Lead Software Engineer
General Dynamics Mission Systems, Inc · Pittsfield, MA
$110,175–$122,225from the description
Jul 20, 2026
Pittsfield, MA
Jul 22, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A lead engineering role focused on defense systems software, primarily writing performance-critical code in C/C++ and Python within Linux environments. The position involves guiding a cross-functional team through the full development lifecycle — from architecture and requirements through testing — while also handling source control, containerization, and technical documentation. Suits an experienced engineer comfortable with both hands-on development and team mentorship in a cleared, largely on-site setting.
Senior level · 5+ years · Pittsfield, MA · Bachelor's required · Secret clearance · Full-time
Posted 2 times — it's one opening, so apply once.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $158,265 (middle half $125,306–$199,584). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (8)
The title 'Lead Software Engineer' maps to Senior on the seniority ladder — the role leads a team technically and drives delivery, but the JD describes a hands-on IC/tech-lead role rather than a people-manager with direct-report/budget ownership, so 15-1252 (Software Developers) is preferred over 11-3021 (Computer and Information Systems Managers).
Containers are explicitly required in the responsibilities narrative ('leverage containers to build portable, reproducible development and deployment environments'); Docker is the canonical tool in this context and is marked required accordingly.
Agile is listed under Basic Qualifications but explicitly flagged as 'preferred', so it is marked as preferred.
A DoD Secret clearance is required 'within a reasonable period of time' — candidates must be eligible to obtain one; US citizenship is also explicitly required.
The degree requirement is a Bachelor's in a relevant field OR a Master's plus 3 years; the minimum hard gate is a Bachelor's degree.
The posting mentions 'practical applications of AI and automation' as a differentiator under 'What sets you apart' — this is aspirational/contextual framing, not a gated skill, so no AI-specific tool is extracted.
The position is primarily on-site in Pittsfield, MA with some hybrid flexibility; it is not fully remote.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
Read the full posting
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