Senior Software & Product Application Architect

Peraton is seeking a hands-on Senior Software & Product Application Architect to design, modernize, and evolve mission-critical software platforms used by first responders (fire, EMS, law enforcement, emergency management). This role blends deep technical architecture, product thinking, and practical engineering execution across modern and legacy technology stacks.  The ideal candidate is comfortable writing code, reviewing complex systems, designing solutions for complex problems or improvement, and guiding teams through modernization while ensuring reliability, security, performance, and compliance in high-availability, real-time environments

Key Responsibilities:

Architecture & Technical Leadership

• Define and evolve end-to-end application architecture for first responder software platforms, including CAD, RMS, mobile, dispatch, data integration, and analytics systems
• Design scalable, resilient, and secure architectures supporting 24x7 mission-critical operations
• Balance short-term delivery needs with long-term architectural vision
• Lead architectural decisions across cloud, hybrid, and on-prem environments

Hands-On Engineering

• Remain hands-on in code as needed (critical changes, prototyping, performance tuning, refactoring)
• Review and improve legacy systems while integrating modern frameworks and services
• Leverage AI / code generations platforms to support code generation, modernization, and cleanup
• Develop reference implementations, APIs, integration patterns, and shared services
• Participate in code reviews, debugging, and technical problem-solving

Modernization & Legacy Integration

• Lead application modernization initiatives, including:
  • Monolith to modular / service-oriented / event-driven architectures
  • Legacy language modernization and interoperability
  • Data migration and system decoupling
• Design coexistence strategies between legacy and modern platforms
• Minimize risk during transitions in life-safety systems

Product & Domain Collaboration

• Partner closely with product management, UX, and operations to translate first responder needs into technical solutions
• Ensure architectures support field operations, mobile workflows, offline capabilities, and real-time data exchange
• Understand regulatory, compliance, and security requirements specific to public safety

Performance, Reliability & Security

• Architect for high availability, low latency, fault tolerance, and disaster recovery
• Implement secure design patterns, identity and access controls, and data protection

Mentorship & Standards

• Mentor engineers and technical leads across teams
• Establish architectural standards, best practices, and documentation
• Serve as a technical escalation point for complex or cross-system issues

Technical Environment (Experience Across Multiple Stacks)

Modern Technologies:

• Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Microservices, APIs
• Containers and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes)
• Modern frameworks (.NET Core, Java, Node.js, Python, React/Angular/Vue)

Legacy Technologies:

• .NET Framework, Java, or C/C++ applications
• COBOL, MACRO VMS, or other legacy platforms (experience integrating or modernizing)
• Legacy databases and messaging systems

Data & Integration:

• Relational and NoSQL databases
• Data integration, ETL, and real-time messaging
• GIS, mapping, and telemetry integrations (preferred)

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree and 16+ years of software engineering experience with significant architecture responsibility
• Proven experience designing and evolving large-scale, mission-critical systems
• Strong hands-on experience with both modern and legacy technology stacks
• Demonstrated ability to modernize complex applications while maintaining system stability
• Excellent communication skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• U.S. Citizenship required

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in public safety, first responder, government, or regulated industries
• Experience with mapping and routing solutions and technologies such as ESRI
• Background in high-availability or real-time systems
• Experience supporting mobile and field-based applications
• Familiarity with CAD/RMS, dispatch, or emergency services workflows