IT Application Developer - Senior / Specialist

The Employment Security Department (ESD) is seeking an experienced, solutions-oriented leader to serve as the IT Application Development Supervisor (Workforce Portfolio). The ideal candidate is a steady, thoughtful decision-maker—someone who brings clarity to complex software engineering practices, communicates with confidence, and leads with integrity. They are collaborative, inclusive, and committed to equity. They excel at mentoring technical teams, navigating the ambiguity of high-risk development initiatives, and translating technical requirements into secure, high-quality application solutions. They are skilled at balancing system compliance, risk mitigation, and operational needs while fostering a culture of accountability, innovation, and service. As the IT Application Development Supervisor, the successful candidate will guide a project team of professionals—including dev-ops, application, and data engineers—responsible for the development, operations, and project planning of the Workforce portfolio. This position reports to the IT Application Development Manager and provides senior-level technical leadership within the Information and Technology Services Division (ITSD). The supervisor's work directly supports ESD’s mission by ensuring that critical applications, systems, and services like WorkSource effectively serve job seekers, employers, and partners statewide. They will ensure that staff have the tools, training, and support needed to build high-quality code, responsibly manage public platforms, and comply with state and federal standards. The Information and Technology Services Division provides essential internal services that keep ESD operating effectively—from computer systems and web technologies to network, data communications, and data warehouse maintenance. Within ITSD, the Workforce Technical Team plays a critical role in protecting agency information, reducing system risk, and ensuring that development practices are consistent, secure, and aligned with state priorities. This position influences technical workflow, oversees compliance with complex regulations, and serves as a key liaison to internal business units, project management frameworks, and statewide partners. This is a leadership role that requires strong judgment, excellent communication skills, and the ability to guide staff and programs through evolving software engineering landscapes. Additionally, some of your duties include:

• Supervise, coach, and mentor technical staff, managing workloads, tracking timekeeping, writing performance expectations, and conducting evaluations to optimize team performance.
• Establish and enforce standards for code quality, source control, secure coding principles, and automated unit testing across development staff and vendors.
• Lead the analysis, design, and hands-on development of complex solutions using Salesforce Lightning Web Components (LWC), Apex Classes, triggers, and configurations.
• Drive technical direction and collaborate with architects to determine the overall design, structure, interface, and performance metrics of portfolio solutions.
• Lead and collaborate in Agile project environments, managing backlog grooming, defining scope, creating detailed work plans, and monitoring task progress to meet due dates.
• Identify project risks and mitigate issues, conducting cost-benefit analyses for proposed modifications and escalating timeline threats to business sponsors and product owners.
• Manage the change process through implementation, acting as a direct contributor and supporter of the ESD Change Management Processes to protect production environments.
• Maintain, upgrade, and configure complex systems, managing data constructs, database schemas, responsive user interfaces, and custom development tools.
• Provide Tier 3 technical support and serve as an escalation point to troubleshoot complex application errors in coordination with operations teams.
• Produce and maintain clear technical documentation independently, breaking down extremely complex technical processes into language easily understood by non-technical stakeholders.

To request a detailed position description, click here. Option 1: 11 years of experience in IT experience in business analysis, testing, or system development. Option 2: Bachelor’s degree in computer science or closely related field and 7 years of IT experience in business analysis, testing or system development. Option 3: Or a combination of 11 years of education and/or relevant IT experience. AND

• Five years of experience in Salesforce Lighting Web Components, Apex Classes, service-oriented design and development using C#, ASP.NET, MVC, JavaScript, Typescript, .NET Core, and T-SQL.
• Three years of experience in software management and work item management using Team Foundation Server, Azure DevOps, and GIT strategies.
• Three years of experience in REST/SOAP API design, development. Design and maintain integrations between Salesforce system and external systems.
• Three years of experience performing the full application life cycle activities of the standard Application Life Cycle Methodology (Scrum, Kanban, Waterfall, etc.)

Preferred/Desired Qualifications:

• Two years of experience managing in the Washington State authorizing environment related to technology oversight
• Three years of experience managing system development and implementation projects in a government environment

Required equity competencies:

• The ability to take action to learn and grow.

• The ability to take action to meet the needs of others.

Required Competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors): Technical Problem-Solving Skills:

• Ability to analyze and solve extremely complex problems through a methodical process. Fixes application errors or failures on extremely complex applications or processes.
• Seeks opportunities to resolve problems and submits findings to supervisor for review.
• Works independently to analyze extremely complex problems, communicating findings and recommendations

Systems Analysis:

• Ability to understand business processes or portions of large and extremely complex projects and propose technical solutions that can improve those processes; design information systems to automate business processes.
• Understand portions of business processes of extreme complexity by reviewing the documentation of others
• The methods used to perform the analysis are often innovative in nature. Process Analysis –
• Ability to read and develop diagrams to illustrate business and/or technical (application) processes.
• Understand extremely complex processes.
• Ability to conceptualize and communicate processing alternatives to improve efficiencies or solve business problems.

Programming:

• Ability to configure and code using agency and custom development tools
• Ability to plan, document, and code components of extremely complex systems
• Able to maintain applications and processes (fixes application errors or failures and completes service request enhancements)
• Ability to write unit test plans and perform unit testing
• Ability to think in non-linear terms, comfortable with event driven processes, object-oriented designs, service-oriented designs, and applications that consist of code running on multiple platforms.

Data Management:

• Understanding of data management constructs, tools and practices for managing data.
• Understanding of database management system features during the design and development of systems or system enhancements. For example, changing tables, data types, enforcing constraints, etc.
• Understanding of data model syntax and terminology.
• Understand customer business rules to evaluate data on reports and determine reasonableness/accuracy.

Technical Writing/Documentation:

• Documenting technical processes and writing technical material in a way that non-technical people can understand.
• Ability to document extremely complex technical processes using prescribed methods
• Ability to maintain technical documentation written by others and keep it up to date
• Documentation is typically done independently with the review of a supervisor.

Additional Requirements of Employment:

• Must be able to pass Unemployment Insurance (UI) & Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) claim and fraud check.

Please submit only the required documents as noted below and ensure all Personal Identifying Information (PII) such as Social Security numbers etc. are edited out of your materials for privacy. Additionally, we ask that you not include photographs or external links within your documents. Any documents uploaded through this platform will be securely transmitted electronically to support application review. Please submit your Resume and Cover Letter with your Online Application through the "Add Attachments" field. A resume will not substitute for the "work experience" section of the application or vice versa. Applications with blank fields, or supplemental question responses with comments such as "see attachments" may be considered incomplete. Our agency's mission and values drive every decision that we make, determine how we interact with others and are at the core of who we are. We value Access, Love, Belonging, Equity, and Stewardship. We understand that a work environment that respects your work/life balance is key; that's why many of our positions are eligible for flexible work schedules and teleworking opportunities. Through support, value, and trust, our employees are empowered to grow and develop into their best self.

Opportunity for All We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, ethnic, racial, religious, sexual orientation, and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, people over 40 years of age, people with religious beliefs, veterans or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.

The Employment Security Department is an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. If you are a person needing assistance in the application process, if you need this job announcement in an alternate format, or if you have general questions about this opportunity, please contact Katie Swanson, 360-742-8208 or the Talent Acquisition Team, or Washington Relay Service 711 prior to the recruitment closing. If you are having technical difficulties creating, accessing, or completing your application, please contact [email protected] or (360) 664-1960 or toll free (877) 664-1960, Washington Relay 711.

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