Founding Engineer

People Culture Talent; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

People Culture Talent is seeking founding engineers to join early-stage, venture-backed startups. You will shape the technical direction, own significant product areas, and influence the company’s trajectory while collaborating directly with founders and early team members.

You will build core systems, establish engineering practices, and help scale both product and organization as the company grows. This role suits engineers who thrive in ambiguity and want outsized impact.

Qualifications

• Significant software engineering experience and a track record of shipping high-quality products.
• Strong technical judgment and the ability to make pragmatic decisions in fast-moving environments.
• Comfort with ambiguity and taking ownership without extensive structure.
• A product-oriented mindset with interest in customer and business impact.
• Ability to work across different areas of the technical stack.
• Excitement about early-stage companies and building systems, products, and teams from the ground up.

Responsibilities

• Build core products and features from zero to one, collaborating with founders.
• Make foundational architecture and technology decisions that influence scaling.
• Work across the stack based on product and business needs.
• Partner with founders, customers, and early team members to translate ideas into working products.
• Establish engineering practices, systems, and standards as the team grows.
• Identify and solve ambiguous technical and product challenges.
• Contribute to hiring and building the future engineering organization.

Skills

Software engineering

Technical judgment

Ownership & accountability

Product-minded

Systems thinking

Job description

PCT partners with early-stage, venture-backed companies looking for exceptional engineers to join at the earliest stages of their growth. We're always interested in connecting with Founding Engineers who are excited to build from the ground up, shape technical direction, and have an outsized impact on a company's product and trajectory.

Founding Engineer opportunities can vary significantly by company, but typically involve joining a small technical team where you'll work closely with founders and have meaningful ownership over both the product and engineering organization.

What You Might Work On

• Build and launch core products and features from zero to one.
• Make foundational architecture and technology decisions that will influence how the company scales.
• Work across the stack based on the needs of the product and business.
• Partner directly with founders, customers, and other early team members to translate ideas into working products.
• Establish engineering practices, systems, and standards as the team grows.
• Help identify, evaluate, and solve ambiguous technical and product challenges.
• Contribute to hiring and building the future engineering organization.

What We're Looking For

• Significant software engineering experience and a track record of shipping high-quality products.
• Strong technical judgment and the ability to make pragmatic decisions in fast-moving environments.
• Comfort working with ambiguity and taking ownership without extensive structure.
• A product-oriented mindset and interest in understanding the customer and business behind what you're building.
• The ability and willingness to work across different areas of the technical stack.
• Excitement about early-stage companies and building systems, products, and teams from the ground up.

When you apply, tell us what you're looking for in your next company, the types of products or technical problems you're most excited to work on, and the environments where you do your best work. We'll use that information to identify opportunities across our client portfolio that may be a strong fit.

About PCT

People Culture Talent helps VCs and venture-backed startups build thriving teams through exceptional Human Capital Management. We create people-first talent strategies for high-growth companies, partnering with organizations from pre-seed to IPO to transform their growth into a masterclass in scaling with purpose.

About Our Client Companies

PCT partners with exceptional venture-backed companies to build resilient, people-centric, diverse teams. Our clients span industries and stages, from pre-seed startups to companies preparing for IPO, including leading tech organizations like Notion, Lyft, Modern Health, Instacart, Uber, Google, Render, and GitHub.

Our clients are building ambitious products, solving complex problems, and looking for exceptional engineers who want to have a meaningful impact.

These companies share a commitment to building strong culture, high-performing teams, and innovative people programs. They're growing fast, scaling thoughtfully, and seeking exceptional talent to join their journey.