Job Type:

Application Developer - AI – Information Services 

The Application Developer is a member of the Application Delivery team in RAND’s Information Services department The Applications Delivery team is responsible for managing a broad portfolio of custom developed and commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) applications that are used throughout the RAND enterprise.  

• The Application Developer is responsible for the design, development, and support of custom AI-enhanced applications hosted in the cloud-based Microsoft Azure platform.
• This role works closely with internal customers, researchers, and project team members (QA, project management, operations, information security) to analyze requirements and develop complex solutions under tight budget and time constraints.
• The ideal candidate maintains a positive attitude and is a team player with a desire to impact change. The candidate has very strong analytical and technical skills along with demonstrated ability to get things done in a customer-driven, fast-paced collaborative team environment. We highly value candidates who demonstrate strong enthusiasm and an aptitude for rapid learning, with direct experience in the specified technologies considered beneficial.

Minimum Qualifications 

• 5+ years of experience developing web-based applications with a variety of technologies such as Next.js, Python, Postgres, React, C#, ASP.NET, SQL Server, Web Services, TypeScript and JavaScript, JSON, XML, HTML, CSS etc…
• Strong experience developing web-based applications and APIs. 
• SQL database development skills – database design, complex queries, large data sets, performance tuning/optimization.
• Familiar with best practices in application architecture, cloud-based computing, coding standards, design patterns, security, QA.
• Proven ability to produce technical documentation such as process diagrams, process flows, data models, and system architecture diagrams. 
• Experience working in an Agile/Scrum/Lean development environment and tracking tasks in Jira or similar systems. 
• Excellent problem solving and debugging skills. 
• Commitment to quality (unit and automated testing) and attention to detail 
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal. Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively with a wide variety of technical and non-technical stakeholders. 
• Passionate about software and technology. Stays current on industry trends, technologies, and best practices. 

 
Desired Qualifications 

• Strong preference for a generalist / full stack developer that can contribute to all areas - requirements analysis, rapid prototyping, user interface, API, database, builds, deployments, server configuration. 
• Knowledge of artificial intelligence concepts, architectures, and techniques like generative AI, fine-tuning, large language models (LLM), vector databases, and retrieval augmented generation (RAG).
• Experience implementing and integrating AI-driven solutions utilizing technologies like Python, LangChain, OpenAI REST APIs, Hugging Face, Jupyter Notebooks, Neo4j graph databases or similar. 
• Experience architecting, developing and deploying cloud-native applications.

Education Requirements 

• A minimum High School Diploma or GED is required.
• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or similar discipline and a minimum of five years of relevant experience is preferred, however, a combination of education and experience may be substituted for a BS/BA degree. Please note relevant experience as outlined may be considered in lieu of a degree from an accredited university or college. 

Experience

Minimum 5 years of experience as a software developer. 

Coding and Writing Samples Required

Applicants will be required to provide code and writing samples. 

Location

• The ideal candidate will be located near a major RAND office location in Santa Monica, Pittsburgh, Washington D.C., or Boston.
• Remote candidates will be considered.  

Salary Range: $117,700 - $179,700

RAND considers a variety of factors when formulating an offer, including but not limited to, the specific role and associated responsibilities; a candidate’s work experience, education/training, skills, expertise; and internal equity. The salary range includes base pay plus RAND’s sabbatic pay (which provides additional compensation above base pay when vacation is taken). In addition, RAND provides strong benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, paid time-off and more.

Equal Opportunity Employer: race/color/religion/sex/sexual orientation/gender identity/national origin/disability/vet