Lead Site Reliability Engineer (SRE)

Optimal Market Technologies; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 175,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Optimal Market Technologies is looking for a Lead Site Reliability Engineer to join their dynamic team. Located in Chicago or NYC, this hybrid position involves overseeing production systems, improving infrastructure resilience, and managing incident responses.

The ideal candidate will possess strong Linux and automation skills, effective team leadership capabilities, and experience with AI tools. A competitive salary range of $175,000 to $200,000 is offered, alongside a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Qualifications

• Strong scripting and automation skills are necessary.
• Hands-on Linux and network administration experience is required.
• Experience in managing incident response for production systems.

Responsibilities

• Own production operations across colocation and the cloud.
• Lead the systems administration function and mentor staff.
• Set engineering standards and strategies for production.

Skills

Scripting and automation skills

Hands-on Linux administration

Infrastructure as Code expertise

AI tools experience

Production support ownership

Team management

Strong communication skills

Tools

C++

Python

SQL

Microsoft Azure

PostgreSQL

FIX Protocol

AERON middleware

Job description

About Us

Optimal Market Technologies is a FINRA-registered broker-dealer with an innovative platform of wholesale options and execution solutions designed to meet the needs of today’s dynamic market participants. Optimal can quickly and seamlessly enhance its platform, adapt to regulatory changes, and offer a more efficient implementation that scales as clients grow. Optimal is disrupting the US Options Wholesale landscape by introducing a Competition for Order Flow model through which market makers compete for retail flow on our platform based on best execution quality. Additional offerings include an Institutional Alternative Trading System (ATS) for discreet execution and price improvement and Execution Services for institutional-grade routing and algorithmic execution designed to balance price capture, speed, and market impact across trading objectives.

We recently raised funding from several strategic partners and are in a very exciting stage of growth. This is an opportunity to work for a fintech start-up and to be an integral part of growing a broker‑dealer from the ground up as a small, hardworking team. We pride ourselves on an entrepreneurial culture and cross‑team collaboration.

Position Overview

Lead Site Reliability Engineer (SRE) at Optimal Market Technologies, LLC. Location: Chicago or NYC, hybrid. The role reports to the CTO and focuses on building and leading the production systems administration function, professionalizing infrastructure, and reducing key‑person risk.

Our Environment

We run an automated trading system with single‑digit‑millisecond latency requirements on bare‑metal Linux. Azure is used for development environments, storage, and offline studies, not for production execution. Systems are written in C++, Python, and SQL. We are modernizing from CentOS7 to RHEL9 and operating legacy and new systems in parallel. The SRE will lead the rollout of new technology changes.

Primary Responsibilities

• Own production operations across colocation and the cloud: deployment, capacity, and failover.
• Build and lead the systems administration function: mentor staff, define processes, and hire as the company grows.
• Set and publish engineering standards and strategies for production.
• Perform hands‑on Linux and network administration; automate routine work through Infrastructure as Code.
• Manage vendors and service agreements; advise on build‑vs‑contract‑out decisions.
• Own infrastructure security: hardening, access control, recoverable backups, and security incident response.

Production Support, Incident Response, Resilience, and Performance

• Assist first‑line production support to reduce reliance on the development team.
• Be accountable for production stability: track incidents and convert recurring issues into automation.
• Own incident response, on‑call, and post‑incident reviews; coverage includes market hours and a rotation schedule.
• Own recovery runbooks and conduct recovery drills.
• Automate client self‑service for common issues and access to their own data, reducing manual support work.
• Partner with the development team on deployments, performance tracking, and capacity planning.

What We’re Looking For

• Strong scripting and automation skills.
• Hands‑on Linux and network administration experience.
• Expertise with Infrastructure as Code (open to multiple tools).
• Experience using AI tools, ideally Claude Code.
• A track record of owning production support and incident response.
• Experience managing and developing technical staff.
• The ability to bring structure, standards, and strategy to a growing function.
• Strong communication skills; effective with senior stakeholders and a small team.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience at a start‑up or building a new line or function inside a larger firm; comfortable under resource constraints and automation‑first.
• Experience in real‑time critical systems.
• Familiarity with FIX Protocol, PostgreSQL, middleware (ideally AERON), observability and monitoring tooling.
• Microsoft Azure, including Azure Virtual Desktop (AVD).
• Vendor management experience.

Salary Range: $175,000 USD - $200,000 USD

Optimal is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.