Software Engineer Senior (Contract – Hybrid – Dearborn, MI)

A leading technology firm is looking for a highly skilled Software Engineer Senior (Contract – Hybrid – Dearborn, MI) to join their team. This 9+ month contract position, based in Dearborn, Michigan, offers a hybrid work model, currently requiring just one day per week onsite (though this could change). You’ll be a pivotal full-stack developer, embracing lean and agile practices to build essential frontend UIs and backend APIs. Your work will directly support data products and platforms within GDIA, specifically for the Manufacturing Analytics Team, delivering solutions in the Maintenance and Throughput space to strengthen core capabilities within Ford’s Operations skill teams.

Software Engineer Senior (Contract – Hybrid – Dearborn, MI)

Location: Dearborn, MI – This is a Hybrid role, currently requiring 1 day per week onsite, though this is subject to change.

Duration: 9+ Months Contract (with potential for extension)

Employment Type: Contract

Pay Range: Not Specified

Industry: Computer and Mathematical

Job Description: Driving Innovation in Manufacturing Analytics

As a Senior Software Engineer, you’ll be an integral part of a small, cross-functional team, working directly and continuously with business partners, software engineers, technical anchors, and designers. Your role as a full-stack developer means you’ll be building both the user-facing interfaces and the powerful backend APIs, with a strong emphasis on lean and agile methodologies. This position is vital for developing data products and platforms that enhance core capabilities within Ford’s Operations skill teams, particularly in the Maintenance and Throughput space.

• Full Stack Development with Lean and Agile Practices: You’ll operate as a full-stack developer, focusing on building responsive Frontend UIs and robust Backend APIs. Your work will be deeply embedded in lean and agile practices, emphasizing iterative development, continuous feedback, and rapid delivery cycles. This approach ensures that solutions are adaptive, efficient, and closely aligned with evolving business needs, particularly for manufacturing analytics.
• Collaborate Directly and Continuously with Stakeholders: You will engage in direct and continuous collaboration with business partners, fellow software engineers, technical anchors, and designers. This tight-knit teamwork fosters a highly communicative environment, ensuring that requirements are clearly understood, technical designs are robust, and solutions are aligned across all facets of a project. Your ability to integrate seamlessly with diverse roles is critical for success.
• Release Early and Often: A core principle of the team is to release early and often. You’ll contribute to a culture of continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD), where small, incremental changes are frequently deployed to production. This approach allows for rapid feedback loops, quick validation of features, and a high degree of responsiveness to business needs, minimizing risk and accelerating innovation in manufacturing operations.
• Lead Data Products and Platforms Development: You will be a key contributor, and potentially a technical lead, within the team focused on building data products and platforms across various skill teams within GDIA (Global Data, Insight, and Analytics). Your work will involve creating robust data ingestion pipelines, analytical tools, and reporting platforms that leverage complex manufacturing data to provide actionable insights for decision-makers.
• Deliver Products in Maintenance and Throughput Space: Your primary focus will be on delivering software products within the Maintenance and Throughput space. This means developing solutions that help optimize equipment maintenance schedules, predict potential failures, improve production throughput, and enhance overall operational efficiency within Ford’s manufacturing facilities. Your contributions will directly strengthen core capabilities for Ford’s Operations skill teams.

Required Skills & Proficiency: Your Technical Foundation

To excel as a Senior Software Engineer in this role, you’ll need extensive software development experience, a strong command of modern web technologies, and a solid understanding of cloud platforms and agile methodologies.

• Extensive Software Development Experience: You must possess 5-7+ years of verifiable experience in software development. This broad experience indicates a seasoned professional capable of tackling complex coding challenges, participating in various phases of the SDLC, and contributing effectively to enterprise-level software projects.
• React or Angular Proficiency (3+ years): You are required to have a minimum of 3+ years of experience in UI development with React (preferred) or Angular. This demonstrates strong proficiency in building modern, responsive, and interactive frontend user interfaces using one of these leading JavaScript frameworks.
• Python Experience (2+ years): A minimum of 2+ years of experience in Python is required. This indicates proficiency in using Python for backend development, scripting, data processing, or automation tasks.
• Strong Web Fundamentals: You must have a strong understanding of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. These foundational web technologies are essential for building robust and accessible user interfaces.
• REST API Development Experience: You must have proven experience in REST API development. This includes designing, building, and consuming RESTful web services, understanding HTTP methods, handling JSON data, and ensuring secure and efficient communication between frontend and backend components.
• SQL Experience: You must have experience with SQL for querying relational databases, manipulating data, and understanding database schemas. This is crucial for working with the data products and platforms your team will build.
• GCP Cloud Platform Experience: You must have experience with the Google Cloud Platform (GCP) Cloud platform. This indicates familiarity with GCP services such as compute, storage, networking, and potentially managed database services, enabling you to develop and deploy cloud-native solutions.
• Excellent Problem-Solving and Analytical Skills: You will possess excellent problem-solving and analytical skills. This enables you to dissect complex technical challenges, identify root causes, and devise innovative solutions that are efficient, scalable, and maintainable.
• Strong Communication and Teamwork Skills: You bring strong communication and teamwork skills. This is crucial for collaborating effectively with cross-functional teams, articulating technical concepts clearly, and fostering a positive and productive work environment.
• Process and Performance Improvement Identification: You actively identify areas of improvement (whether in process, performance, communication, or other aspects) and proactively work with teams to deliver solutions. This demonstrates a continuous improvement mindset and a commitment to operational excellence.
• Agile/Iterative Development Experience: You have proven experience with Agile/Iterative ways of software development. This indicates your familiarity with agile methodologies (e.g., Scrum, Kanban) and your ability to thrive in iterative development cycles with frequent feedback and rapid adjustments.
• eXtreme Programming (XP) Disciplines: You are practiced in eXtreme Programming (XP) disciplines, which highly values collaboration and quality. This specifically includes:
  • Paired programming: Experience working collaboratively with another developer on the same code.
  • Test-first/Test Driven Development (TDD): A methodology where tests are written before the code, driving design and ensuring code quality.
• Independent Work and Technical Guidance: You possess the ability to work independently on assigned tasks while also being capable of giving technical guidance to the team, sharing your expertise and helping to elevate the collective skill set.

Preferred Qualifications: Enhancing Your Impact

While the above are essential, the following skills would further enhance your application:

• GCP BigQuery, Apigee, Cloud Run, Cloud SQL Experience: Specific experience with GCP BigQuery (for large-scale data warehousing and analytics), Apigee (for API management), Cloud Run (for serverless containerized applications), and Cloud SQL (for managed relational databases on GCP). This indicates deeper expertise within the Google Cloud ecosystem.
• Python and React Unit Tests Experience: Hands-on experience with Python and React unit tests. This demonstrates a commitment to robust testing practices for both frontend and backend code.
• Dashboard Development with Charts Experience: Experience in developing Dashboards with Charts. This highlights your ability to visualize data effectively and create insightful reporting tools.
• API Development with FastAPI Experience: Experience in API development with FastAPI. This indicates proficiency with a modern, high-performance web framework for building APIs in Python.

If this Software Engineer Senior role in Dearborn, MI, aligns with your full-stack development skills in React and Python, your experience with GCP, and your passion for driving innovation in manufacturing analytics, we encourage you to learn more about this exciting hybrid contract opportunity. This is a fantastic chance to make a significant impact on core operational capabilities within a leading automotive industry client.

Are you ready to build the next generation of data products for manufacturing? Sources