Senior Staff, Software Engineer

Job description

DELFI Diagnostics, Inc. (DELFI Diagnostics) is developing next-generation, blood-based tests that are reliable, accessible and deliver a new way to help detect cancer. Employing advanced machine-learning methods to whole-genome sequencing data, the DELFI ("DNA EvaLuation of Fragments for early Interception") platform is built to address the highest-burden health challenges. DELFI Diagnostics prioritizes solutions that have the potential to save lives on a global scale, including for historically underserved populations. DELFI Diagnostics’ platform relies on fragmentomics – the discovery that cancer cells are more chaotic than normal cells and, when they die, leave behind tell-tale patterns and characteristics of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) fragments. FirstLook Lung, for individuals eligible for lung cancer screening, is DELFI Diagnostics’ first laboratory-developed screening test and can be part of routine blood work. FirstLook Lung uses millions of data points to reliably identify individuals who may have cancer detected through low-dose CT, including early stage disease with a negative predictive value of 99.8 percent. This test has not been cleared or approved by the FDA. In our passionate pursuit to radically improve health outcomes, we serve humanity when we: - Lead with Science, Anchor in Pragmatism: We pioneer life-changing science by ensuring quality, transparency, and rigor at all times. We explore thoughtfully, experiment smartly, and deliver impact with conviction. - Build With & For All: We embrace diverse backgrounds to innovate and achieve together. We are not just building a product - we aim to disrupt the path of cancer for all - no matter geography or socioeconomic class - Put We over I: We are a home for high-performing people. Through teamwork, we build collective intelligence. Each of us wins when those we serve and those who serve with us--win. We show up with empathy, humility, and integrity at every step of the journey. **DELFI has 1-2 designated in-office working days each week for employees who live within within 50 miles of Palo Alto, CA** ### About the role In this role, you'll be a senior technical leader on our bioinformatics pipeline team, contributing to long-term technical direction and architectural decisions for major systems with a focus on software and cloud architecture. You'll partner across Engineering, Data Science, R&D, Regulatory, and Project Management to translate strategy into executable technical plans. This role sits at the intersection of deep technical expertise, design control rigor, and cross-functional leadership. We seek a leader who can hold the long view while still going deep on the hardest technical problems, and who elevates the team through the standards and systems they build. ### What you'll do **Strategy & Architecture** - Set long-term technical strategy and architectural vision for our bioinformatics pipeline systems, ensuring today's decisions support tomorrow's product roadmap. - Lead system architecture and high-stakes design reviews end-to-end, guiding the team through the most complex technical tradeoffs. - Design and own data hand-off and integration architecture between software systems. **Engineering Standards & Process** - Serve as a leader in engineering best practices—establishing standards, driving software-development lifecycle (SDLC) rigor, and setting the bar for code quality, testing, and design across the team. - Drive requirements engineering, risk analysis, and verification strategies for regulated software components. - Partner with staff engineers on test design and execution, driving excellence in SDLC process implementation. **Operations & Delivery** - Architect and own the DevOps strategy for the pipeline team, including cybersecurity, CI/CD, infrastructure-as-code, deployment automation, observability, and environment management, ensuring reliability and compliance in a regulated context. - Work with data scientists, lab staff, and other stakeholders to implement production software for diagnostic applications. **Leadership** - Partner with our Program Management team and engineering leadership on roadmap planning, milestone definition, resourcing, dependency management, and risk tracking across multi-quarter initiatives. - Mentor and develop staff and senior engineers, raising the team's technical ceiling and cultivating the next generation of technical leaders. - Serve as a recognized technical authority across the organization, influencing product and platform direction without direct authority over teams or roadmaps. ### What you'll bring **Required** - Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, Data Science, or related field - Relevant professional experience dependent on level of education: - BS: 10+ years, MS: 8+ years, Ph.D: 5+ years - Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including proficiency in public speaking and technical presentation - Exposure to the life sciences industry, including DNA sequencing, quantitative genetics, bioinformatics, or data science - Demonstrated experience setting long-term technical strategy and architectural standards across multi-team or multi-system scope - Advanced knowledge of cloud computing infrastructure design and implementation for scalable high-performance computing applications (AWS preferred) - Expertise in Python and strong proficiency in at least one compiled language (Rust, Java, C++, or C#) - Strong software design skills - Experience designing data integration patterns and contracts between software systems - Strong command of agile development practices, Jira, Git, and modern CI/CD pipelines **Preferred** - Working knowledge of regulated software development standards (IEC 62304, ISO 13485, FDA 21 CFR Part 11, and ISO 14971) - Experience working at an early-stage or high-growth company where the environment moves fast