IT Delivery Lead - NDS Federal

Overview

The NDS IT Delivery Lead balances responsibilities as a hands‑on skilled contributor and a lead. The balance of individual contribution and delivery leadership may vary based on the needs of the team – with the general expectation of 60% individual contribution and 40% delivery leadership activities. The role requires delivering on committed timelines, removing team impediments, ensuring effective team ceremonies, and driving adherence to CMMI practices, governing policies and best practices.

Hybrid work model: 24 hours of in‑office work per week for associates residing within 30 miles of an office. The position may involve remote work for internal associates.

Security clearance is required. Candidates must be U.S. citizens, as the United States Government does not accept foreign nationals for this role. The position supports Nelnet’s contract with the U.S. Department of Education.

• Individual Contributor:
  Actively contribute as a member of the development team, including coding, testing, support and release management activities.
• Code authoring:
  Write, review and maintain code, participate in pair programming, code reviews and test automation efforts.
• Test coverage:
  Write and execute unit and integration tests in collaboration with QA.
• Documentation:
  Maintain accurate and up‑to‑date technical documentation, including code and system design decisions.
• Release management:
  Coordinate and manage the path to production, including release planning, scheduling and ensuring successful deployments.
• Leadership
  
  Activities:
  
  Communicate effectively with team members and stakeholders, provide mentorship, and manage day‑to‑day work while balancing run/support tasks with product strategy.
• Impediment removal:
  Remove team impediments, log risks and elevate them to Program Managers as needed.
• Agile champion:
  Promote agile principles and foster an agile mindset within the team.
• Decision making:
  Strategize and plan effectively in uncertain situations, identify appropriate deliverables and set clear actions.
• Technical expertise:
  Demonstrate proficiency in one or more of the following skillsets – Analysis, Quality Assurance, Technical Architecture, System Reliability Engineering, Software Engineering, and related security and compliance practices.
• Process and modeling:
  Conduct workflow/gap analysis, process modeling, use case analysis, context diagramming and data/requirements modeling.
• Relationship building:
  Develop trustworthy internal and external relationships, influence decisions through collaboration.
• Self‑leadership:
  Display authenticity, courage and trustworthiness, seek personal growth, manage ambiguity and adapt to change.
• Time and project management:
  Apply strong time‑management, project‑management and administrative skills to maintain transparency and ticket management.

• U.S. citizenship required for security clearance.
• Experience with agile development, CMMI practices and stakeholder communication.
• Proficiency in at least one of the technical skill areas listed above.
• Strong leadership ability to balance individual contribution with team delivery leadership.
• Effective decision‑making and problem‑solving skills.

• Competitive annual compensation ranging from $105,000 to $130,000.
• Medical, dental and vision coverage, HSA and FSA.
• Generous earned time off.
• 401(k) with student loan repayment option.
• Life, AD&D and short‑ and long‑term disability insurance.
• Employee assistance program.
• Employee stock purchase program.
• Tuition reimbursement.
• Performance‑based incentive pay.
• Robust wellness program.

Nelnet is a committed Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion/creed, national origin, gender, sex, marital status, age, disability, use of a guide dog or service animal, sexual orientation, military/veteran status, or any other status protected by federal, state or local law. Qualified individuals with disabilities who require reasonable accommodations may request assistance by contacting Corporate Recruiting at 402‑486‑5725 or c

Nelnet is a Drug‑Free and Tobacco‑Free Workplace. The company may use automated or artificial intelligence tools for the initial review of applications. All candidate information will be reviewed by a recruiter before further evaluation.