Contract Software Engineering Manager Jobs in Houston, TX

Title:

Belong. Connect. Grow. with KBR!

Around here, we define the future.

We are a company of innovators, thinkers, creators, explorers, volunteers, and dreamers. But we all share one goal: to improve the world responsibly and safely.

On the Human Health and Performance Contract we are at the forefront of safeguarding astronaut health, ensuring human performance, and advancing technologies for human space exploration. We are seeking a Software Engineering Service Management Lead to lead our internal software engineering teams at the NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, TX.

What You'll Do:

In this role you will provide technical leadership, organizational direction, and full Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) oversight for HHPC's software engineering team. Your mission is to drive software engineering excellence, strengthen delivery discipline, and ensure all software meets NASA's quality, safety, and compliance standards.

Financial and Deliverable Management

• Lead labor forecasting, planning, estimating, execution, and reporting to ensure accurate financial visibility and alignment with NASA and contract requirements.
• Manage successful execution of all contracted technical work within the authorized budget and schedule, ensuring compliance with cost, schedule, and performance commitments.
• Develop and manage work breakdown structures, proposals, pricing inputs, and Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) estimates to support task order planning and modifications.
• Drive requirements clarification, verify scope alignment, and ensure all deliverables meet NASA acceptance criteria.
• Oversee vendor management activities including nonlabor procurement, subcontract coordination, and ensuring timely, compliant support from external partners.

Software Engineering Leadership

• Hire, mentor, coach, and develop software engineers
• Conduct regular 1on1s and collaborate with functional manager on performance reviews and workforce development
• Build and sustain a high performing software engineering culture

Technical Oversight

• Oversee software architecture, code reviews, and technical documentation
• Ensure systems are secure, scalable, and aligned with NASA requirements
• Guide solution design and ensure software engineering quality across all initiatives

Delivery & SDLC Management

• Deploy Agile practices (Scrum/Kanban) to improve team velocity and predictability
• Deploy, optimize, and manage CI/CD pipelines to increase release frequency and reduce defects
• Manage engineering capacity, eliminate technical debt, and ensure reliable sprint delivery
• Define and execute software development strategy across the entire SDLC

Modern Software Engineering Practices

• Establish coding standards, design patterns, and engineering best practices
• Implement DevOps, automated testing, and AI assisted development
• Apply modern engineering capabilities where appropriate (i.e. observability, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), security engineering, containerization, infrastructureascode, AI/ML integration, and cloudnative operations) to strengthen system reliability and delivery efficiency

Product & Platform Development

• Lead development of COTS solutions, custom applications, and platform-based tools (SharePoint, PowerApps, Power BI)
• Support development for Electronic Health Record (EHR)-related systems
• Manage full product lifecycle from ideation through optimization

NASA Coordination & Compliance

• Ensure alignment with NASA technical, safety, cost, schedule, and compliance requirements
• Participate in NASA boards, technical reviews, design reviews, and risk assessments
• Communicate schedule, risks, and technical status to NASA leadership

What You Bring:

• Experience leading technical strategy and software engineering delivery across complex software programs
• Strong background in project management, personnel management, and financial management
• Familiarity with NASA JSC processes and strict adherence to documentation, safety, and review requirements

Your Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical discipline (or equivalent experience)
• 10+ years of fullstack software development experience
• 5+ years of experience leading software engineering teams
• Expertise in modern programming languages, cloud technologies, and microservices architectures.
• Strong mastery of Agile/Scrum frameworks and DevOps practices
• Exceptional emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, and communication skills.
• Proven track record in project and personnel leadership
• Experience managing both operating (opex) and capital (capex) budgets
• PMP certification (preferred)

Your Skills:

• Extensive IT project management and application development background
• Strong leadership and organizational change management abilities
• Ability to hire, develop, and retain highperforming technical staff
• Expertise in serverless and cloudnative architectures
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fastpaced environment
• Strong proficiency in modern programming languages and frameworks

What to Expect

This position is onsite and in person at NASA JSC. Occasional travel may be required.

Why KBR

At KBR, we are passionate about our people and our Zero Harm culture. These inform all that we do and are at the heart of our commitment to an ongoing journey toward being a People First company. That commitment is central to our team of team's philosophy and fosters an environment where everyone can Belong, Connect and Grow. We Deliver - Together.

KBR Benefits

KBR offers a selection of competitive lifestyle benefits which could include 401K plan with company match, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, AD&D, flexible spending account, disability, paid time off, or flexible work schedule. We support career advancement through professional training and development.

Click here to learn more: KBR Benefits New | KBR

Belong, Connect and Grow at KBR
At KBR, we are passionate about our people and our Zero Harm culture. These inform all that we do and are at the heart of our commitment to, and ongoing journey toward being a People First company. That commitment is central to our team of team's philosophy and fosters an environment where everyone can Belong, Connect and Grow. We Deliver - Together.

KBR is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, veteran status, genetic information, union status and/or beliefs, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.