Full-Stack Engineer

Rappler; Pasig; On-site; PHP 600,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

Rappler Inc. in Pasig, Metro Manila, Philippines is seeking a hands-on Full-Stack Engineer to own the full lifecycle of our platforms—from frontend UX to APIs, databases, and cloud infrastructure.

You will build, ship, and maintain real products used by real users, focusing on speed, reliability, and clean code. You’ll design and implement backend services with Node.js, manage relational databases with PostgreSQL or MySQL, and deploy on Google Cloud Platform using Cloud Run.

Qualifications

• Proven backend experience with Node.js and RESTful APIs.
• Strong DB skills with PostgreSQL or MySQL; capable of design and migrations.
• Experience with caching strategies and web performance optimization.
• Understanding of scale, load balancing and queue-based architectures.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms; GCP preferred (Cloud Run, Memorystore, Cloud Storage, Cloud Monitoring).
• Experience with containerization (Docker) and orchestration (Kubernetes).
• Proficiency with version control and CI/CD pipelines.
• Ability to critically evaluate AI-generated code and code responsibly.
• Exposure to observability tools (OpenTelemetry, Cloud Monitoring).
• Interest in mobile app development (React Native/Flutter) is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain frontend and backend components of our platforms.
• Develop and maintain backend services using Node.js, including APIs, caching layers, and data pipelines.
• Design, manage, and optimize databases (PostgreSQL/MySQL); handle migrations and scale considerations.
• Build and deploy services on Google Cloud Platform, primarily using Cloud Run for containerized workloads.
• Implement caching strategies to improve performance across frontend and backend.
• Set up monitoring and observability to detect issues before users notice.
• Think about scale and design systems that handle growth and traffic spikes.
• Contribute to our upcoming mobile app project (React Native/Flutter) when needed.
• Integrate data from multiple sources and third-party services.
• Collaborate with designers, product managers, and engineers to ship high-quality software.
• Write clean, well-documented, testable code and conduct code reviews.

Skills

Node.js

RESTful APIs

Databases (PostgreSQL/MySQL)

Caching strategies

Cloud platforms (GCP/AWS)

Docker & Kubernetes

Git & CI/CD pipelines

AI-assisted coding judgment

Observability/Monitoring

Mobile development interest

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Git

Cloud Run

Memorystore

Cloud Storage

Cloud Monitoring

Web performance optimization

Job description

We're looking for a Full-Stack Engineer to join our development and operations team. You'll own the full lifecycle of our platforms, from what users see and interact with on the frontend, to the APIs, databases, and cloud infrastructure running behind the scenes.

This role is hands-on. You'll be building, shipping, and maintaining real products used by real people. If you care about writing solid code, making things fast and reliable, and working with a team that actually ships, keep reading.

What You’ll Be Doing:

• Design, build, and maintain frontend and backend components of our platforms.
• Develop and maintain backend services using Node.js, including APIs, caching layers, and data pipelines.
• Design, manage, and optimize databases. You'll be working with relational databases like PostgreSQL or MySQL, writing queries, handling migrations, and making sure things don't fall over at scale.
• Build and deploy services on Google Cloud Platform, primarily using Cloud Run for running containerized workloads (which also covers serverless use cases that Cloud Functions used to handle).
• Implement caching strategies to keep things fast, both on the frontend and backend (in-memory stores, CDN caching, static regeneration, etc.).
• Set up monitoring and observability (OpenTelemetry, GCP Monitoring, or similar) so we know when something's off before users do.
• Think about scale. You understand what happens when traffic spikes, how to design systems that handle growth, and when to optimize versus when to keep things simple.
• Contribute to our upcoming mobile app project. Experience with React Native, Flutter, or native mobile development is valuable here.
• Integrate with and manage data from multiple sources and third-party services.
• Work closely with designers, product folks, and other engineers to ship high-quality software.
• Write clean, well-documented, testable code and help others do the same through code reviews.
• Use AI tools (Gemini, Claude, Cursor, etc.) effectively to speed up your work, but with good judgment. You should be able to critically evaluate AI-generated code, understand its limitations, and know when to write things yourself.

What We’re Looking For:

Core Engineering Skills

• Proven backend experience with Node.js, building RESTful APIs, handling authentication, and managing data flows.
• Strong database skills. You're comfortable with PostgreSQL, MySQL, or similar relational databases. You can design schemas, write efficient queries, and understand indexing, migrations, and how databases behave under load.
• Experience with caching strategies and web performance optimization. You know why things are slow and how to fix them.
• Understanding of how to scale applications. You've thought about (or dealt with) things like load balancing, horizontal scaling, database optimization, and queue-based architectures. You know the difference between scaling smart and just throwing more servers at the problem.
• Cloud and InfrastructureExperience with cloud platforms. Google Cloud Platform (GCP) is preferred, especially Cloud Run, Memorystore, Cloud Storage, and Cloud Monitoring. Solid experience with AWS, Azure, or similar is also fine.
• Familiarity with containerization (Docker) and orchestration (Kubernetes). You don't need to be a DevOps expert, but you should be comfortable deploying and debugging in these environments.
• Mobile (Nice to Have)Some experience or strong interest in mobile app development (React Native, Flutter, or native iOS/Android).
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How You Work

• You leverage AI coding tools effectively and responsibly, using them to move faster while still applying critical thinking and sound engineering judgment.
• Strong problem-solving and debugging skills. When something breaks, you're the person who can trace it down.
• You communicate clearly. You can explain technical decisions to non-technical people without making it weird.
• You're comfortable with Git and collaborative development workflows.
• You're curious and keep up with how the industry is evolving.

Bonus Points

• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices.
• Experience with gRPC and Protocol Buffers (protobuf).
• Contributions to open-source projects.
• Experience with testing frameworks for both frontend and backend.
• Experience with real-time communication protocols (WebSockets, WebRTC).