Senior Big Data Engineer

An active security clearance at the TS/SCI polygraph level is required.

About the role

We are seeking a hands-on, heavy-hitting Software Engineer specializing in distributed big data infrastructure and processing to join our team in Annapolis Junction, MD. In this role, you will design, enhance, and sustain processing-intensive data analytics, Map/Reduce engines, and Accumulo datastores handling massive datasets. You will actively manage, deploy, and troubleshoot low-level cluster operations, addressing real-world issues such as offlining bad HDFS nodes or troubleshooting degraded Accumulo tservers. Leveraging Java, Ansible automation, and Kubernetes orchestration, you will directly support Data Warehouse architectures and critical processing pipelines.

Responsibilities

• Design, enhance, and sustain processing-intensive data analytics and Map/Reduce engines.
• Manage, deploy, and troubleshoot low-level cluster operations (e.g., offlining bad HDFS nodes, troubleshooting degraded Accumulo tservers).
• Develop and maintain Accumulo datastores for massive datasets.
• Support Data Warehouse architectures and critical processing pipelines using Java, Ansible, and Kubernetes.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related technical discipline, plus 7+ years of professional software engineering experience.
• OR Master’s Degree in a related field, plus 5+ years of specialized software engineering experience.
• OR High School Diploma / GED, plus 11+ years of hands-on technical software development and big data administration experience in lieu of a degree.

Skills

Required Skills

• Big Data Infrastructure & Sustainment: Practical experience deploying, configuring, and troubleshooting Hadoop, Map/Reduce, Accumulo, and ZooKeeper infrastructure.
• Java Engineering: Strong proficiency in core Java for distributed data processing applications and analytic development.
• Map/Reduce & Accumulo Development: Direct experience writing Map/Reduce applications, custom Accumulo iterators, scanners, and managing bulk/streaming ingest pipelines.
• Cluster Operations & Hardware Troubleshooting: Hands-on experience isolating and fixing cluster failures (e.g., node offlining, bad disks, memory failures on tservers).
• Automated Configuration & Containers: Proficiency developing and running Ansible playbooks alongside foundational experience deploying/troubleshooting workloads in Kubernetes.
• Data Warehouse Pipelines: Familiarity with high-throughput Data Warehouse processing workflows and pipeline architectures.

Desired Skills

• Advanced Kubernetes Orchestration: Experience authoring custom Helm charts, operators, or managing multi-tenant Kubernetes clusters.
• Linux System Administration: Deep shell scripting skills (Bash) and low-level Linux kernel tuning for big data storage nodes.
• CI/CD Automation: Experience integrating automated testing and build pipelines for big data components using GitLab CI/CD or Jenkins.
• Data Model Optimization: Background in optimizing Accumulo schema designs and tablet distributions for large-scale analytical queries.

About Nyla Technology Solutions

Nyla Technology Solutions delivers exceptional Artificial Intelligence (AI), Data Science, and Software Engineering services for the U.S. Government. Nyla embraces a forward-thinking and bold approach at every turn, earning us a solid reputation as technical trendsetters within the industry. We have a passion for developing solutions that have a quick and immediate impact on mission. Headquartered in Columbia, Maryland, our customers value how we tackle their most challenging problems and get things done.

Benefits

Nyla provides a top-of-market compensation and benefits package. Through our unique Nyla FLEX program, we custom tailor benefits to best fit your lifestyle.

• Pay:
  • 4 weeks of Annual Leave plus 11 holidays, with an additional day of Annual Leave for each year of service.
  • Flexibility to cash out annual leave hours, opt out of other benefits, or arrange for additional contract hours (over 40 hrs/week).
  • Option to earn 1.3 times your hourly rate after working over 1,880 hours on contract.
• Leave:
  • Option to buy additional annual leave for a total of 6 weeks (240 hours) plus 11 holidays.
  • Paid anniversary leave.
• Schedule:
  • Freedom to scale down to 30-32 hours per week while retaining full benefits.
• Other Benefits:
  • 100% company-covered healthcare (medical, dental, and vision).
  • 10% 401k matching with full vesting from day one.
  • $5,000 per year for professional development (fees, tuition, or time off).
  • Student loan repayment program.
  • 8 hours of paid volunteering annually.

Pay

The annual base salary range for this role is $186,000-$220,000 (USD), which does not include discretionary bonus compensation. Actual compensation offered may vary based on geographic location, work experience, education, and skill level.