Software Engineer (Associate Technology Specialist/Technology Specialist)

• Location: Richmond, California

• Program: Environmental Informatics

• Type: Full-time

• Experience Level: Mid-level

• Position Type: Permanent

• Salary: $80,000-$103,000, depending on degrees, training, and experience. See details below. 

Position Description

• Posted: April 10, 2024

• First review of applications: May 1, 2024

• Application closing date: position open until filled

Software Engineering Team Description

The Software Engineering Team (https://www.sfei.org/ei/se) is responsible for serving SFEI staff and external user community’s software application needs through collaborative engagement on some of the most important projects affecting our state’s aquatic and natural resources. The team synthesizes complex data and geospatial information into user-friendly, interactive tools, such as Ecoatlas (https://www.ecoatlas.org/), an environmental data atlas designed to illuminate data and facilitate decision-making at the watershed, regional, and statewide scales; and the Bay Shoreline Flood Explorer (https://explorer.adaptingtorisingtides.org/home), which visualizes predicted sea-level rise and impacts. Furthermore, the Software Engineering Team prides itself on its collegiality and always strives to improve and innovate. It continually re-evaluates its own processes in a bid toward greater development efficiency, sustainability, and product ease-of-use. The team is part of the Environmental Informatics Program, which focuses on providing clients and partners with the most current tools available to meet the Institute’s mission.

Position Description

Software Engineering at SFEI is looking for an accomplished developer with strong skills and even stronger curiosity to join our team. An ideal candidate will have experience with both front and back-end development and a general interest in technical innovation and the natural environment. Many of our projects are web-based applications and most include interactive web maps, so GIS knowledge or experience is a plus. We primarily use Postgres (with postGIS) as our relational database, particularly for our geospatial applications. Comfort with relational databases, knowledge of best practices, and the advanced use of views, stored procedures, and functions to streamline coding is highly desirable. SFEI is unique in that we create many applications (some long term) to support science-based decision making. Projects may range from custom CMS templates to complex geospatial analysis. Therefore, an ideal candidate will be flexible and prepared to work on a variety of projects, some with very different technical requirements or needs. 

The candidate should also have a proven track record of delivering complex projects on time and on budget, good documentation and communication skills, and the ability to collaborate with a team. Permanent remote status will be considered for the right candidate. 

Primary position responsibilities will include:

• Code complex (primarily web-based) applications using JavaScript and Python, 

• Database development (views, functions, etc) including some database design decision making

• Collaborate with other Software Engineers regarding coding standards, innovative approaches, code documentation, and key coding decisions

• Work closely with our scientific and management staff and stakeholders to design tools that support a broad range of data and decision making needs

If you are excited about this role, but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or one of our other roles.

Qualifications

Required Experience

• Total of 6 yrs progressively responsible technology experience and/or

• Bachelor’s Degree plus 6 additional technology courses or Master's Degree or equivalent

Required Skills

• Professional experience developing complex applications and user interfaces for multi-browser environments

• Comfort working in Windows and Linux environments, including command-line

• Fluency with relational databases and SQL programming; in particular PostgreSQL & SQL server

• Familiarity with RDBMS features: database views, materialized views, functions, indices, and use of foreign tables

• Fluency in API development

• Strong scripting skills and familiarity with extract, transform, load (ETL) practices

• Fluency in JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Python

• Experience with a frontend JavaScript library such as React or Vue.js

• Experience with software development testing and debugging tools and processes

• Experience with git for source control

• Experience with bug tracking and issue management tools –(e.g., JIRA, Mantis, Trac)

• Enjoys working in a collaborative team setting

• Ability to work independently and follow through with tasks under general guidance from supervising staff

• Exceptional attention to detail and problem-solving skills

• Ability to work within time and budget constraints on multiple projects

• Ability to write clean, maintainable code

• Effective written and verbal communication skills — ability to communicate technical information to non-technical clients

Preferred Skills

• Experience with PostGIS 

• Experience with web mapping libraries (e.g., Openlayers, Leaflet) and services (e.g., Mapserver, Geoserver, )

• Experience with R, Java, or C++

• Experience with GIS tool development (ArcGIS, ArcPy, GDAL)

• Experience with custom CMS development (e.g., Drupal, Django, Wordpress)

• Familiarity with object-oriented programming concepts and design patterns

• Experience with spatial statistics or geostatistical analysis

• Knowledge of subjects relating to environmental science (e.g., biology, geology, and aquatic ecology)

• Project management experience such as budget, workflow, or deliverable tracking

Salary & Benefits highlights:

• This will be a Tech Specialist position. 

• The anticipated salary range is $80,000-$103,000 for this position (Bay Area salary ranges are listed; note that salary ranges for other locations are 10-15% lower depending on location and is based on locational salary data). Salary ranges take into account many factors for making compensation decisions including but not limited to experience, education, internal equity, and organizational needs. We generally do not offer starting salaries at or near the top of the range. 

• Matching contributions to retirement plan (immediate vesting) (403B)

• Medical Insurance: health, vision, dental with employer and employee contributions

• 12 paid holidays

• Vacation days starting at 3 weeks

• Hybrid workplace, fully remote will be considered

About the Environmental Informatics Program

The Environmental Informatics Program provides clients and partners with the most current technology tools and information available to meet the Institute’s mission. We think carefully about how best to transform data into knowledge usable by our public stakeholders, whether those people are community members, unfamiliar with water quality-related matters, or deeply initiated scientists residing in federal, state, or local agencies. Database administration is a key part of the chain of information. Our Data Services (processing and analysis) and Software Engineering teams both depend on the effectiveness of our database administrator and will benefit from your innovative ideas. While many of the DBA’s activities concern the foundational infrastructure which are often in the background, our organization is nimble and agile enough to benefit from forward-thinking DBAs who wish to introduce new technologies and procedures, as long as they achieve greater efficiencies, insights, transparency, and/or client satisfaction. In other words, the Environmental Informatics program is a team that welcomes your ideas.

About SFEI

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization which has a 25-year track record of providing robust and innovative science to decision-makers, policy-makers, practitioners, and community members to measurably improve the health and resiliency of Bay-Delta ecosystems. As a boundary organization, SFEI operates at the interface between science and policy, recognized nationally for our ability to build consensus to support effective environmental decision-making and policy. Our mission is to deliver visionary science that empowers people to revitalize nature in our communities. 

SFEI employs an interdisciplinary staff of more than 70. Our operations and IT staff are the backbone of our organization and keep everything running smoothly. SFEI has three major programs: Clean Water, Environmental Informatics, and Resilient Landscapes. Our program staff represent numerous scientific and technological fields, including chemistry, modeling, ecology, wildlife biology, landscape planning, historical ecology, geomorphology, geospatial analysis, and web development. 

For more information on our mission, values, programs, and staff, visit the San Francisco Estuary Institute website.  

Equal Opportunity & Affirmative Action Employer

At SFEI, we celebrate the diversity of our staff and the places we serve, and recognize the value and strength of diversity. We are committed to growing together and creating a more diverse and inclusive workplace. In 2022, SFEI developed and adopted mission and vision statements for DEIJ within and beyond our organization. We also created an action plan which is currently underway. We strongly encourage applications from women-identified people, people of color, and people with other identities commonly under-represented in environmental science. We invite you to share what you like about your professional experience as well as about yourself personally. 

San Francisco Estuary Institute is proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. We are committed to providing employees with a work environment free of discrimination and harassment of any kind. All employment decisions are based on business needs, job requirements, and individual qualifications. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, including sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, physical or mental disability, family or parental status, protected Veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Accommodations Statement 

If you are a qualified individual with a disability or a disabled veteran, you have the right to request an accommodation if you are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our website or application portal as a result of your disability. To request an accommodation, contact us at 510-746-7355 or admin@sfei.org.

Please note that SFEI cannot sponsor an employment visa (e.g., H-1B) to fill this position.

In the spirit of a fair hiring process, no phone calls or emails please.