Lead Software Engineer Jobs in Washington
Lead Software Engineer jobs in Washington are among the most active in the country, concentrated in cloud infrastructure, enterprise software, and applied machine learning across the full range from mid-level to staff and principal. Seattle and Bellevue anchor the market, with Redmond close behind, and employers like Microsoft, Amazon, and Boeing consistently post lead-level openings across product, platform, and aerospace software teams. The most in-demand specialties right now are distributed systems, developer tooling, and AI-adjacent backend engineering. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
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Showing 5 of 65+ Lead Software Engineer jobs
DESCRIPTION
This role leads developer experience and continuous integration in DevOps & Release, reporting to the Director, DevOps & Release. It owns repositories, build, code scanning, the unit gate, and the supplier acceptance pipeline. Before anything is handed on, the bar is: commit-to-green time within its service level. It hands off to its customers as follows: toolchain, builds, and the unit gate to every team; supplier verdict input within 48 hours.
What the team needs to achieve
- Commit-to-green time within its service level.
- Hand-offs that meet their service level: toolchain, builds, and the unit gate to every team; supplier verdict input within 48 hours.
- Measured, rising capability and efficiency of the team, with manual work falling release over release.
How the team is measured
- Commit-to-green time.
- Supplier drop acceptance within 48 hours.
Key job responsibilities
- Own repositories, build, code scanning, the unit gate, and the supplier acceptance pipeline.
- Meet the bar before every hand-off: commit-to-green time within its service level.
- Work directly with engineers in the boundary teams as partners, through agreed contracts and service levels.
- Automate everything a person would otherwise do twice.
- Hire, coach, and grow the team, with clear expectations and career development for every engineer.
- Define the team's metrics and service levels, and improve them release over release.
- Make the team's decisions data-driven and its quality measurable, and escalate early when risks cross team boundaries.
- Set the team's roadmap and the structure and mechanisms that deliver it, and negotiate the boundaries of the area with peer teams.
- Build the mechanisms and best practices that make the team's work repeatable, measurable, and improving.
Export Control Requirement:
Due to applicable export control laws and regulations, candidates must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.
About the team
D2D Software is an evolving organization of many teams: Software Architecture & Specifications; Software Delivery & Business Ops; Software Integration, Verification & Reliability; DevOps & Release; Satellite Software Development; Ground Software Development; and Customer Software Engineering & Support. Each Director owns business outcomes: delivering the commitments, and the capability and efficiency of their teams. Teams work as internal customers and suppliers with agreed service levels, interfaces are agreed centrally while designs stay local, and engineers are expected to work directly with engineers across every boundary. Milestones are committed deadlines for delivery with quality, not gates to wait on, and every team runs on one toolchain and one system of record. Every measure is derived from the systems of record, never self-reported, and we improve release over release with a target of perfection.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, or related technical field
- 5+ years of software development experience
- Experience in management: developing engineers into managers and building teams
- Experience hiring and developing engineers, setting clear goals, and giving regular feedback and coaching
- Experience leading a team where the problem and strategy are not yet fully defined, working backwards from the customer
- Experience building continuous integration for embedded targets as well as cloud services, including cross-compilation and hermetic builds
- Experience running a developer platform used by many teams
- Experience across the full software development lifecycle, having shipped software and maintained it in production
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience with build systems at scale
- Experience automating supplier software acceptance
- Experience managing managers or leading several teams
- Experience setting a multi-year direction for an area, designing the team structure and mechanisms to deliver it, and aligning several teams around it
- Experience setting strategy where the problem, opportunity, and strategy are not defined, telling one-way from two-way doors, and presenting decisions and strategy narratives to senior leaders across the organization
- A record of writing clear narratives and running data-driven reviews
Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.
Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.
USA, WA, Redmond - 220,100.00 - 297,700.00 USD annually
DESCRIPTION
This role leads developer experience and continuous integration in DevOps & Release, reporting to the Director, DevOps & Release. It owns repositories, build, code scanning, the unit gate, and the supplier acceptance pipeline. Before anything is handed on, the bar is: commit-to-green time within its service level. It hands off to its customers as follows: toolchain, builds, and the unit gate to every team; supplier verdict input within 48 hours.
What the team needs to achieve
- Commit-to-green time within its service level.
- Hand-offs that meet their service level: toolchain, builds, and the unit gate to every team; supplier verdict input within 48 hours.
- Measured, rising capability and efficiency of the team, with manual work falling release over release.
How the team is measured
- Commit-to-green time.
- Supplier drop acceptance within 48 hours.
Key job responsibilities
- Own repositories, build, code scanning, the unit gate, and the supplier acceptance pipeline.
- Meet the bar before every hand-off: commit-to-green time within its service level.
- Work directly with engineers in the boundary teams as partners, through agreed contracts and service levels.
- Automate everything a person would otherwise do twice.
- Hire, coach, and grow the team, with clear expectations and career development for every engineer.
- Define the team's metrics and service levels, and improve them release over release.
- Make the team's decisions data-driven and its quality measurable, and escalate early when risks cross team boundaries.
- Set the team's roadmap and the structure and mechanisms that deliver it, and negotiate the boundaries of the area with peer teams.
- Build the mechanisms and best practices that make the team's work repeatable, measurable, and improving.
Export Control Requirement:
Due to applicable export control laws and regulations, candidates must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.
About the team
D2D Software is an evolving organization of many teams: Software Architecture & Specifications; Software Delivery & Business Ops; Software Integration, Verification & Reliability; DevOps & Release; Satellite Software Development; Ground Software Development; and Customer Software Engineering & Support. Each Director owns business outcomes: delivering the commitments, and the capability and efficiency of their teams. Teams work as internal customers and suppliers with agreed service levels, interfaces are agreed centrally while designs stay local, and engineers are expected to work directly with engineers across every boundary. Milestones are committed deadlines for delivery with quality, not gates to wait on, and every team runs on one toolchain and one system of record. Every measure is derived from the systems of record, never self-reported, and we improve release over release with a target of perfection.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, or related technical field
- 5+ years of software development experience
- Experience in management: developing engineers into managers and building teams
- Experience hiring and developing engineers, setting clear goals, and giving regular feedback and coaching
- Experience leading a team where the problem and strategy are not yet fully defined, working backwards from the customer
- Experience building continuous integration for embedded targets as well as cloud services, including cross-compilation and hermetic builds
- Experience running a developer platform used by many teams
- Experience across the full software development lifecycle, having shipped software and maintained it in production
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Experience with build systems at scale
- Experience automating supplier software acceptance
- Experience managing managers or leading several teams
- Experience setting a multi-year direction for an area, designing the team structure and mechanisms to deliver it, and aligning several teams around it
- Experience setting strategy where the problem, opportunity, and strategy are not defined, telling one-way from two-way doors, and presenting decisions and strategy narratives to senior leaders across the organization
- A record of writing clear narratives and running data-driven reviews
Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.
Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.
USA, WA, Redmond - 220,100.00 - 297,700.00 USD annually
See All 65 Lead Software Engineer Jobs in Washington
Find roles in Washington that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
Find Lead Software Engineer JobsLead Software Engineer Jobs by City in Washington
Where Washington roles are concentrated, by current openings.
Lead Software Engineer Job Market in Washington
A snapshot from current Washington openings, updated as new roles post.
Who's Hiring
Top Industries Hiring
- Technology & Software
- Construction & Real Estate
- Banking & Financial Services
What Washington Employers Look For
The qualifications that appear most often in lead software engineer jobs across Washington.
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, software engineering, or a related technical field
- Seven or more years of software engineering experience with at least two in a technical lead capacity
- Proficiency in one or more of Java, Python, C++, Go, or TypeScript in a production environment
- Demonstrated experience designing distributed systems or large-scale cloud-native architectures on AWS, Azure, or GCP
- Experience mentoring engineers and driving technical direction across cross-functional product teams
- Strong background in agile delivery, code review culture, and engineering best practices including CI/CD pipelines
Lead Software Engineer Jobs in Washington: Frequently Asked Questions
How do you become a lead software engineer in Washington?
Lead software engineers in Washington are not licensed by the state, so there is no board exam or registration required. The typical path is a computer science or software engineering degree followed by several years as an individual contributor, then a move into a senior role at one of Washington's large technology employers or a mid-size product company before stepping into a lead position. Strong distributed systems experience and a record of mentoring junior engineers are what Washington hiring managers weigh most.
How much do lead software engineers make in Washington?
Lead software engineers in Washington earn a median of about $166,540 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $96,810 for the lowest 10% to over $255,350 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.
Which companies hire lead software engineers in Washington?
Employers hiring lead software engineers in Washington right now include JPMorganChase, Amazon, and Oracle, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Washington's density of major technology headquarters and aerospace operations means lead-level engineering roles open frequently and tend to require deep platform or systems experience rather than purely product-focused backgrounds.
Which Washington cities have the most lead software engineer jobs?
Seattle, Redmond, and Bellevue have the most lead software engineer openings in Washington. Seattle and Bellevue dominate because they are home to the headquarters and major campuses of the state's largest technology employers, while Redmond's concentration of Microsoft operations and nearby Kirkland's growing product engineering scene push consistent demand outside the core Seattle corridor.
Are there remote lead software engineer jobs in Washington?
Yes, and more than most fields. About 64% of lead software engineer openings tied to Washington are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting how naturally the work translates to distributed collaboration. Architecture reviews, code reviews, and cross-team technical coordination are the parts of the role most commonly performed fully remotely, while teams that own on-call infrastructure or embedded hardware components tend to require more in-person presence.
How can I get hired as a lead software engineer in Washington with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path is through an associate or junior software engineering role at one of Washington's large technology companies, which run structured new-graduate programs that move engineers toward senior and lead tracks. Microsoft's Garage and Amazon's engineering development rotations are examples of programs that develop engineers from the ground up. Building a strong portfolio of distributed systems or cloud projects and contributing to open-source repositories that Washington employers actively use can accelerate that progression significantly.
Where can I find and apply to lead software engineer jobs in Washington?
You can find and apply to lead software engineer jobs in Washington on Migrate Mate, which lists current Washington openings. Find roles that fit your background and apply directly from the listing.
See All 65 Lead Software Engineer Jobs in Washington
Find roles in Washington that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.
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