Lead Staff Software Engineer

Talent To Hire Inc.; Toronto; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading AI-native SaaS startup in Toronto is looking for a hands-on Lead Software Engineer to help build its new engineering team and architecture from the ground up. This role is ideal for a seasoned professional with over 10 years in software engineering, including substantial technical leadership experience. The ideal candidate should have experience with cloud-native platforms and AI/ML infrastructure, and be ready to mentor the growing team. This unique opportunity combines technical ownership with leadership responsibilities.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of software engineering experience.
• 3+ years in a technical leadership or management role.
• Experience building or scaling cloud-native SaaS platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure).
• Deep expertise in backend systems, frontend architecture, or both.
• Experience building AI/ML infrastructure or LLM-powered products.
• Track record of leading cross-functional teams in high-growth environments.
• Experience mentoring early-career engineers.

Responsibilities

• Drive technical direction, architecture, and design across systems.
• Stay hands-on—review code and lead design sessions.
• Manage and mentor a growing team.
• Collaborate closely with the VP of Software and HQ team.
• Own delivery of key product features and infrastructure.
• Lead hiring, onboarding, and shape engineering culture.
• Help scale the team from 3 to 20+ engineers.

Skills

Software engineering experience

Technical leadership or management

Building cloud-native SaaS platforms

Backend systems expertise

AI/ML infrastructure experience

Mentoring engineers

Leading cross-functional teams

Job description

Lead Software Engineer/ Hands-on – Founding Toronto Team

We’re helping an AI-native SaaS startup build its Toronto engineering hub, starting with a founding technical leader who’s eager to scale both systems and teams.

This is a rare opportunity for a Staff Engineer or Engineering Manager who’s still hands‑on with code but ready to own architecture, mentor engineers, and help grow a high‑impact team from the ground up.

🔧 What You’ll Do

• Drive technical direction, architecture, and design across backend, frontend, and ML systems
• Stay hands‑on—review code, lead design sessions, and contribute to builds
• Manage and mentor a growing team across backend, frontend, dev tools, and QA
• Collaborate closely with the VP of Software and HQ team in Silicon Valley
• Own delivery of key product features and infrastructure from the Toronto office
• Lead hiring, onboarding, and shape engineering culture in a new hub
• Help scale the team from 3 → 20+ engineers over the next 24 months

🌟 We like to speak with you if you offer :

• 10+ years of software engineering experience
• Offer 3+ years in a technical leadership or management role
• Built or scaled cloud‑native SaaS platforms (AWS, GCP, or Azure)
• Have deep expertise in backend systems, frontend architecture, or both
• Experience building or integrating AI/ML infrastructure or LLM-powered products
• Demonstrate a track record of leading cross‑functional teams in high‑growth or startup environments
• Have been mentoring early‑career engineers and growing healthy engineering cultures before
• (Bonus) : Have experience with developer tools, IDEs, or platforms for engineers

✅ Quick Self-Check:

• Are you still hands‑on but ready to grow and lead others?
• Do you thrive in startup environments where speed and ownership matter?
• Have you built scalable, production‑grade systems in the cloud?
• Can you build trust across product, design, ML, and engineering teams?

If you answered “yes” to most of these, we’d love to hear from you. This is a unique opportunity to help build both a world‑class engineering system and a world‑class engineering team—from the ground up.

Apply: [e-mail] | 416-833-3533

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