Staff Software Engineer, Backend

At Posh, you'll set the technical direction for our backend systems. As Staff Backend Engineer, you own architecture across multiple services, drive platform improvements, and ship production code yourself. Staff at Posh means breadth and depth. You'll make architectural calls that affect multiple teams, not only your own squad. You'll raise the bar through design reviews, code review, mentorship, and technical leadership across functions. And you stay close to the work — implementation matters as much as architecture at this level. This is an in-person role at our New York City office in SoHo.

Responsibilities

Own backend architecture across multiple services and team boundaries, from design through implementation; Write production code daily and set the standard on quality, reliability, and engineering practice; Partner with engineering leads and product managers to scope large initiatives and define what done actually means; Improve scalability, performance, and reliability as the platform grows; Identify and clear technical debt across teams, not only within your immediate scope; Build security and observability into systems from day one rather than bolting them on later; Build with data in mind: instrumentation, pipelines, and tooling that surface meaningful insight for organizers and the business; Mentor engineers across levels and shape technical culture through reviews, design discussions, and direct coaching; Help us hire well — participate in technical interviews and calibration

Requirements

8+ years of backend engineering experience, including time as a Staff, Principal, or technical lead; Designed and delivered systems that span multiple services or teams with clear ownership of the outcome; Deep expertise in backend systems: APIs, data modeling, distributed systems, event-driven architecture; Strong working knowledge of the full stack; Proficient in technologies relevant to our stack (e.g., Java, Node.js, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, AWS or similar cloud providers); Has scaled platforms operationally, not just designed them on paper; Watched performance regress under load, run incidents, and evolved architecture that was already in production; Pragmatic about technology choices; Communicates technical tradeoffs clearly to engineers, product, and business leaders; Mentors and raises the engineering bar for the people around them

Nice to have

Experience at a consumer, social, or marketplace company is a plus