Principal Software Engineer (Mainframe Modernization)

About Nava
Nava is a consultancy and public benefit corporation working to make government services simple and effective. Since 2015, federal, state, and local agencies have trusted Nava to help solve highly scrutinized technology modernization challenges.

As a client services company, we guide agencies constrained by legacy systems to a future with sharp user experiences built on secure, reliable, fault-tolerant cloud infrastructure. We bill for our time, offering our expertise and problem-solving approach to help our government partners enhance their digital products and services. People are at the heart of our work, from members of the public who rely on benefit programs to government agency staff. Through human-centered design and modern engineering best practices, we help our government partners understand user needs and deliver on their missions more effectively. This focus gives everyone at Nava the opportunity to do work that is meaningful, impactful, and deeply connected to public good.

Position summary

As a leader in technical innovation, you will define reusable technical strategies to transform mission-critical legacy systems into modern, scalable solutions. You will investigate new technologies, rapidly iterate on experiments to determine the most viable approach to problems, and envision new patterns for legacy system migration. You will coordinate across teams, guide architecture and implementation, and ensure that solutions meet business needs, technical standards, and long-term maintainability goals.

What you'll do:
• Productize new technologies to provide innovative solutions that facilitate modernization of legacy systems
• Create playbooks and training for Nava engineering to train up on Nava capabilities
• Develop demo applications showcasing the capabilities of these solutions
• Work with project teams to deploy capabilities within their projects and iterate based on their feedback
• Ensure that modernized systems solve legacy system pain points
• Coordinate with government partners, subject matter experts, and Nava's project teams to capture critical business rules and constraints
• Facilitate interdisciplinary coordination across teams to unlock dependencies and ensure successful application of new technologies across modernization efforts

Required skills:
• Proven experience leading end-to-end modernization efforts, including transitioning from legacy systems (e.g., mainframes, monoliths) to modern architectures (e.g., microservices, cloud-native)
• Strong architectural skills with the ability to design scalable, maintainable and secure systems
• Advanced proficiency in mainframe programming languages, technologies, and implementation patterns (e.g., COBOL, JCL, QSAM, VSAM)
• Advanced proficiency in modern programming languages and frameworks (e.g., Java, Python, Node.js, or equivalent)
• Experience with legacy system integration, interface development, and data migration strategies
• Familiarity with APIs, messaging systems, and event-driven architecture
• Strong understanding of DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code, and automated testing

Desired Skills:
• Familiarity with modern LLM technologies
• Experience with various data synchronization patterns and technologies used with mainframe systems (e.g., DB2, IBM API Connect, Change Data Capture)

Other requirements
All roles at Nava require the following:
Legal authorization to work in the United States
Ability to meet any other requirements for government contracts for which candidates are hired
Work authorization that doesn’t require visa sponsorship, now or in the future
May be subject to a government background check or security clearance, depending on the contract

Perks working with Nava
Health coverage — comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans to support your overall health needs
Insurance coverage — Nava provides disability, life, and accidental death insurance at no cost
Time off — vacation, holidays (including Juneteenth), and floating holidays to rest and recharge
Company holidays — enjoy 12 paid federal holidays each year on top of your regular PTO
Annual bonus — when Nava meets its goals, eligible employees receive a performance-based annual bonus
Parental leave — paid time off for new parents, plus weekly meals delivered to your home
Wellness program — full platform offering physical, mental, & emotional health resources & support tools
Virtual care — see doctors online with no copay through UnitedHealthcare’s virtual visit program
Sabbatical leave — earn extended unpaid leave after continuous service for personal growth or rest
401(k) match — Nava matches 4% of your salary to support your retirement savings plan
Flexible work — remote-first environment with flexibility built around your schedule and responsibilities
Home office setup — company laptop & setup assistance provided via Staples for remote work needs
Utility support — monthly reimbursement to help offset eligible home office utility expenses
Learning opportunities — internal training programs and resources to help grow your professional skills
Development opportunities — LinkedIn Learning access & an annual allowance for courses, tuition, & certs
Referral bonus — get rewarded when you refer great people who join the Nava team
Commuter benefits — pre-tax commuter programs to support in-office travel when applicable
Supportive culture — A collaborative and remote-friendly team environment where people genuinely care

Location
We have fully remote options if you reside in one of the following states:

Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin

*If you are not living in one of the states listed above, unfortunately, you will not be considered for a position at this time.

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Please contact the recruiting team at [email protected] if you would like to request reasonable accommodation during the application or interviewing process.

We participate in E-Verify. Upon hire, we will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S. This role requires you to work from the contiguous United States.

Equal Employment Opportunity
Nava is committed to providing equal employment opportunities without discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, gender and/or gender identity or expression, color, creed, religion, religious creed, age, national origin, ethnicity, disability, veteran or military status, sex, sexual orientation, reproductive health autonomy, pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth, genetic information, domestic violence victim status, marital status, citizenship status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Nava prohibits any such discrimination or harassment. This policy applies to all employees, applicants, contractors, and temporary workers of Nava.