---
title: 'Sr. Software Development Engineer – National Imagery at Esri'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/sr-software-development-engineer-national-imagery-esri-vienna-virginia-wpbvzesg793v'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-07'
---

# Sr. Software Development Engineer – National Imagery at Esri

- **Company:** Esri
- **Location:** Vienna Virginia, United States
- **Compensation:** $123k–$202k
- **Work type:** remote
- **Posted:** 2026-09-03
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-07
- **Apply:** https://www.esri.com/careers/5217978007?gh_jid=5217978007

## Job description

## Overview

Apply your software development education and experience as a senior member of our software development team. You will build and release Esri software technologies focused on the intersection between GIS, photogrammetry and remote sensing for the defense and intelligence communities. In this role, you will collaborate with a talented team of software developers and product engineers to create, build, test, and release advanced software technologies focused on imagery users. This is an exciting opportunity to focus your programming skills on designing and building powerful tools to support a wide variety of analytical workflows and imagery sources (such as MS and HSI, TIR, RADAR, LiDAR, Motion Imagery, and other remotely sensed data and information). The work will focus on an analytical capability that will further the efficacy of remote sensing in GIS.

## Responsibilities

- Understand U.S. DoD and intelligence community user requirements and develop appropriate GIS and remote sensing software for various defense and intelligence scenarios
- Develop rich image processing and analysis capabilities for multiple modalities including EO (MS and HSI), TIR, Radar, and motion imagery
- Develop industry leading cloud friendly desktop and enterprise class software for common defense and intelligence workflows involving data formats such as NITF, GeoTIFF, and MISB compliant video (FMV)
- Develop advanced image processing components, algorithms, and APIs
- Share and collaborate with other software developers and product engineers to integrate community toolkits and libraries into ArcGIS
- Help solve and articulate complex problems with application design, development, and great user experiences
- More seasoned candidates will lead development projects and mentor junior developers

## Requirements

- 5+ years of development experience with high performance imagery applications
- Software development experience working on COTS or GOTS software
- Experience with C/C++ or advanced C#/.NET software development programming
- Significant experience with remote sensing, image processing, photogrammetry, and/or image analysis application development
- Experience in the defense and/or intelligence communities
- Able to work with controlled unclassified information (CUI)
- U.S. citizen with the ability to obtain a U.S. Top Secret Clearance with SCI access
- Bachelor’s in computer science, geography, engineering, remote sensing, photogrammetry, or related field

Recommended Qualifications

- Experience with Graphics and GPU programming
- Experience developing using Esri APIs
- Experience in processing pipeline optimization
- Familiarity with the NITF format and specifications
- Active U.S. Top Secret clearance with SCI access
- Experience with ArcGIS, ENVI, Socet GXP, or RemoteView

## #LI-DV2

#LI-Onsite Total Rewards

Esri’s competitive total rewards strategy includes industry-leading health and welfare benefits: medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance for employees (and their families), 401(k) and profit-sharing programs, minimum accrual of 80 hours of vacation leave, twelve paid holidays throughout the calendar year, and opportunities for personal and professional growth. Base salary is one component of our total rewards strategy. Compensation decisions and the base range for this role take into account many factors including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs.

A reasonable estimate of the base salary range is $123,136—$202,488 USD

The Company

At Esri, diversity is more than just a word on a map. When employees of different experiences, perspectives, backgrounds, and cultures come together, we are more innovative and ultimately a better place to work. We believe in having a diverse workforce that is unified under our mission of creating positive global change. We understand that diversity, equity, and inclusion is not a destination but an ongoing process. We are committed to the continuation of learning, growing, and changing our workplace so every employee can contribute to their life’s best work. Our commitment to these principles extends to the global communities we serve by creating positive change with GIS technology. For more information on Esri’s Racial Equity and Social Justice initiatives, please visit our website [here](https://www.esri.com/en-us/racial-equity/overview#engage-communities).

If you don’t meet all of the preferred qualifications for this position, we encourage you to still apply!

Esri is an equal opportunity employer (EOE) and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. If you need reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please email askcareers@esri.com and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. Please note that only those inquiries concerning a request for reasonable accommodation will be responded to from this e-mail address.

[Esri Privacy](https://www.esri.com/en-us/privacy/overview) Esri takes our responsibility to protect your privacy seriously. We are committed to respecting your privacy by providing transparency in how we acquire and use your information, giving you control of your information and preferences, and holding ourselves to the highest national and international standards, including CCPA and GDPR compliance.

## About Esri

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Esri is the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, location intelligence, and mapping, enabling organizations to solve complex problems through a geographic approach.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Privately held, debt-free)
- **Headquarters**: Redlands, California, USA
- **Founded**: 1969
- **Founders**: Jack Dangermond and Laura Dangermond

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Software, Location Intelligence, Geospatial Analytics, Mapping
- **Target customers**: B2B, B2G, and B2E (Enterprise, all levels of government, nonprofits, and educational institutions). Serves over 700,000 customer organizations, including 70% of the largest global companies, most national governments, 30,000 cities and local governments, all 50 US states, and 12,000 universities.
- **Mission or purpose statement**: To empower all organizations to embrace a geographic approach, creating and sharing multidisciplinary knowledge to make better decisions, building sustainable prosperity while safeguarding the planet. Their vision is to "transform society and design a better, more sustainable future."

## Products & Services
- **ArcGIS**: A comprehensive and scalable digital mapping and analytics software platform. It is the core product, offering tools for data visualization, spatial analysis, real-time situational awareness, data sharing, and collaboration. It is used across industries for operational intelligence, market analysis, risk assessment, supply chain management, urban planning, and more.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed (Private company, debt-free).
- **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue is not publicly disclosed. The company invests 30% of its annual revenue into research and development.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Privately held with no external investors. Partners include a global ecosystem of thousands of partners who provide solutions, implementation services, and content. Strategic partnerships are pursued to advance geospatial technology.
- **Growth Signals**: Employs over 6,000 people from 73 countries with 49 offices worldwide, including 11 R&D centers. Honored in Inc.’s inaugural Best in Business awards. Continues to expand its workforce and global reach, driven by the increasing importance of location intelligence in addressing climate change, sustainability, and social equity.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Market Leadership & Scale**: The undisputed global market leader in GIS software with an enormous, entrenched customer base across all sectors (private, public, nonprofit).
- **Deep R&D Investment**: A massive 30% of annual revenue is reinvested into R&D, ensuring continuous innovation and technological leadership in geospatial analytics, AI, and mapping.
- **Long-Term Stability & Independence**: Privately held and debt-free since 1969, allowing for a long-term, sustainable growth strategy without pressure from external investors.
- **Comprehensive Ecosystem**: ArcGIS is a complete, integrated platform that is highly interoperable and supported by a vast partner network, creating a strong ecosystem lock-in.

## Strategic Focus
- **Geographic Approach to Global Challenges**: Prioritizing the use of GIS and location intelligence to tackle major global issues like climate change, sustainability, supply chain resilience, public health, and social equity.
- **AI & Enterprise Technology**: Under the leadership of CTO for Enterprise and AI Technologies, Jay Theodore, the company is focused on the long-term vision of integrating AI and advanced analytics into the ArcGIS system.
- **Open & Interoperable Systems**: Committed to keeping technology open and interoperable to foster collaboration and broad adoption.
- **Expanding Impact**: Continuing to grow its customer base and influence, particularly in national government, city planning, and scientific research.

## Why Work Here
- **Impactful Work**: Employees are motivated by the knowledge that their work supports organizations around the world in solving difficult problems related to sustainability, equity, social justice, science, and humanitarian aid.
- **Culture & Environment**: Described as a supportive culture that encourages creativity, conversation, and collaboration with incredible coworkers. The environment is engaging and focused on making a difference.
- **Benefits**: Comprehensive benefits include fully covered health premiums for employees and eligible dependents, 401(k) with matching, profit sharing (as a privately held company), generous paid time off, flexible schedules for work-life balance, and a robust employee assistance program.
- **Growth & Development**: Numerous educational resources are available, including training and scholarships to university degree programs to support personal and professional goals.
- **Diversity & Inclusion**: Employee networks include Asians and Pacific Islanders, African Americans, Hispanics, women, veterans, and the LGBTQ community. Esri is an equal opportunity employer.
- **Work Policy**: Offers flexible schedules; specific remote/hybrid policy is not explicitly stated on the careers page but is implied by the flexible schedule offering.

## Sources
1. [esri.com - About Esri](https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/about-esri/company)
2. [esri.com - About Esri Overview](https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/about-esri/overview)
3. [esri.com - Careers Overview](https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/careers/overview)
4. [esri.com - Working at Esri](https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/careers/working-esri)
5. [esri.com - Job Search](https://www.esri.com/en-us/about/careers/job-search)

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