Lead Software Engineer — Cincinnati, OH at Lightning

Lead Software Engineer — Cincinnati, OH at Lightning | Recrutus

About the Team

We are building an AI agentic engineering team dedicated to ensuring the safety and reliability of our systems. Our mission is to design and deliver the guardrail components that govern how AI-driven systems behave across the entire engineering workflow. We focus on the critical infrastructure that enforces system behavior, handles failure propagation, and maintains contract stability, rather than building user-facing features.

About the Role

As a Lead Software Engineer, you will serve as a hands-on technical leader responsible for architecting backend services, APIs, and integrations that apply rigorous software engineering discipline to AI governance. This role is unique in its focus on how systems behave under misuse, failure, or unexpected inputs. You will define where and how enforcement, filtering, and validation occur within complex system architectures, establishing the patterns that other engineers follow.

In this position, you will not only write production-quality code but also mentor engineers on safe design, defensive programming, and failure handling practices. You will own shared tooling and platform components with broad organizational reach, ensuring that cross-service controls are robust and observable. The ideal candidate thrives on defining interface contracts consumed by other teams and possesses the communication skills to make these enforcement patterns repeatable across the organization.

Hiring Process

Initial Screening: A 30-minute introductory call to discuss your background and interest in AI safety and agentic systems.
Technical Deep-Dive: A session focused on your experience with Python, TypeScript, and AWS infrastructure, specifically regarding cross-service system design.
System Design & Architecture: A discussion on how you approach defining enforcement patterns, handling failure propagation, and designing scalable APIs.
Team Fit: A final conversation to assess your alignment with our culture of defensive design and technical curiosity.

Equal Opportunity & Culture

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive team. We consider qualified applicants regardless of background. Please note that for this specific opening, we are exclusively seeking candidates with a strong background in the banking sector to ensure domain expertise in our security and compliance requirements.

Application Instructions

If you are a banking professional with 5-8 years of software engineering experience and a passion for AI safety, we invite you to apply. Please submit your resume highlighting your experience with Python, TypeScript, and AWS, along with examples of cross-service systems you have architected.

Work location

Work model: On-site

2919, Observatory Avenue, Hyde Park, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, 45208, United States

Cincinnati, Ohio

Key Responsibilities

check_circleDesign and deliver backend services and APIs that enforce system behavior across multiple services
check_circleDefine where and how enforcement, filtering, and validation occur within system architectures
check_circleBuild cross-service controls and establish patterns for other engineers to implement
check_circleInstrument and improve observability across service boundaries using structured logging, metrics, and distributed tracing
check_circleOwn shared tooling and platform components with broad organizational reach
check_circleMentor engineers on safe design, defensive programming, and failure handling practices
check_circleDefine enforcement patterns and interface contracts consumed by other teams

Requirements

verified5-8 years of software engineering experience
verifiedStrong proficiency in Python and TypeScript
verifiedExperience delivering production systems on AWS (Lambda, Fargate, API Gateway)
verifiedExperience designing enforcement, filtering, or validation logic across multiple services
verifiedExperience designing and building agentic workflows or multi-agent systems
verifiedFamiliarity with LLM integration patterns (prompt injection detection, guardrail design, output filtering)
verifiedBanking industry experience required

Nice to Have

Experience with AWS Bedrock model invocation, guardrail configuration, or AgentCore runtimes

Company

Lightning Minds

Industry

IT Services and IT Consulting

Headquarters

Cary, North Carolina

Lightning Minds operates within the IT Services and IT Consulting sector, based in Cary, North Carolina. The organization functions as an Oracle Technology Consulting, Training, and staffing provider, specializing in the technology and delivery processes associated with Oracle services. A team of technology experts delivers these solutions to clients and partners, focusing on the specific needs of the Oracle ecosystem. The company adopts an open and collaborative approach to ensure the delivery of high-quality, cutting-edge technology solutions. This methodology aims to support sustainable and profitable long-term growth for its customers. Rather than merely developing innovative strategies, Lightning Minds remains engaged to assist clients in executing their plans, emphasizing the creation of lasting value through a partnership model at every stage of the engagement. The core objective of the firm is to help each organization achieve desired results quickly and consistently. By leveraging expertise in Oracle technologies, the company seeks to forge a clear path toward operational success for the organizations it serves, maintaining a focus on practical outcomes and client support throughout the entire service lifecycle.

Frequently asked questions about AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds

What does a AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds do?expand_more

Day-to-day, the AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds will design and deliver backend services and apis that enforce system behavior across multiple services; define where and how enforcement, filtering, and validation occur within system architectures; build cross-service controls and establish patterns for other engineers to implement; and instrument and improve observability across service boundaries using structured logging, metrics, and distributed tracing.

What are the requirements for this AWS Tech Lead role?expand_more

Lightning Minds is looking for candidates who meet the following requirements: 5-8 years of software engineering experience; Strong proficiency in Python and TypeScript; Experience delivering production systems on AWS (Lambda, Fargate, API Gateway); Experience designing enforcement, filtering, or validation logic across multiple services; Experience designing and building agentic workflows or multi-agent systems; and Familiarity with LLM integration patterns (prompt injection detection, guardrail design, output filtering).

Where is the AWS Tech Lead role at Lightning Minds located?expand_more

AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds is based in 2919, Observatory Avenue, Hyde Park, Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio, 45208, United States. This is a on-site role.

Is this AWS Tech Lead job remote, hybrid, or on-site?expand_more

Lightning Minds has listed this AWS Tech Lead role as on-site.

How much experience is required for this AWS Tech Lead role?expand_more

AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds typically requires 5–8 years of relevant experience at the lead level.

What skills do you need for the AWS Tech Lead role at Lightning Minds?expand_more

Key skills for AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds include Python; Typescript; Aws; Lambda; Fargate; Api Gateway; Aws Bedrock; and Agentcore.

What category does the AWS Tech Lead role belong to?expand_more

AWS Tech Lead at Lightning Minds is part of the it job category on Recrutus.

About Lightning Minds

The company adopts an open and collaborative approach to ensure the delivery of high-quality, cutting-edge technology solutions. This methodology aims to support sustainable and profitable long-term growth for its customers. Rather than merely developing innovative strategies, Lightning Minds remains engaged to assist clients in executing their plans, emphasizing the creation of lasting value through a partnership model at every stage of the engagement.

The core objective of the firm is to help each organization achieve desired results quickly and consistently. By leveraging expertise in Oracle technologies, the company seeks to forge a clear path toward operational success for the organizations it serves, maintaining a focus on practical outcomes and client support throughout the entire service lifecycle.

Browse more roles: All Lightning Minds jobs, it jobs on Recrutus.

AWS Tech Lead