Lead Software Engineer- Englewood, CO or Sunnyvale, CA- ONSITE 4X Weely- FreeWheel

Comcast (CC) of Willow Grove; Englewood (CO); On-site; USD 160,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

FreeWheel, a Comcast company, seeks a Lead Software Engineer (ENG 5) to drive the technical direction of the Buyer Cloud Ad Serving platform. It is a high-throughput backend powering DSP auctions with sub-millisecond responses.

The role requires 13+ years in software engineering, expert C++, Go, Java, or Rust, and deep distributed systems experience. You will lead architecture, collaborate with Product, SRE, and Data Engineering, and set engineering standards with a focus on reliability and

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience)
• 13+ years of professional software engineering experience, including 2+ years in a Staff or Lead Engineer role
• Expert-level proficiency in compiled/high-performance languages (C++, Go, Java, or Rust)
• Distributed Systems: Designing, operating, and troubleshooting large-scale backend systems in production
• Systems Engineering: Concurrency, multithreading, memory management, networking, and Linux profiling
• Cloud & Infrastructure: AWS, Kubernetes, ECS, and observability (metrics, tracing, logging)
• Bonus Points: ultra-low-latency real-time decisioning systems, petabyte-scale data, cloud-native modernization

Responsibilities

• Architectural Leadership: Lead end-to-end architecture for scalable, low-latency backend services for Buyer Cloud platform
• Strategy: Drive multi-team initiatives on reliability, scalability, and operational excellence
• System Optimization: Eliminate performance bottlenecks in distributed workflows with strict latency budgets
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Collaborate with Product, Infrastructure, SRE, and Data Engineering on roadmaps
• Engineering Standards: Establish design reviews, code quality, testing, observability, and RCA practices
• Mentorship & Talent Growth: Mentor engineers through design reviews and architecture guidance; flexible schedules as needed

Skills

C++

Go

Java

Rust

Distributed systems

Linux

AWS

Kubernetes

ECS

Mentorship

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree

Tools

N/A

Job description

Job Summary

FreeWheel, a Comcast company, provides comprehensive ad platforms for publishers, advertisers, and media buyers. Powered by premium video content, robust data, and advanced technology, we’re making it easier for buyers and sellers to transact across all screens, data types, and sales channels. As a global company, we have offices in nine countries and can insert advertisements around the world.

FreeWheel is seeking a Lead Software Engineer (ENG 5) to serve as a principal-level individual contributor driving the technical direction of our Buyer Cloud Ad Serving platform.

The Ad Serving system is the high-throughput backbone of FreeWheel's demand-side platform (DSP). It processes billions of ad auctions daily, executes complex real-time decisioning strategies, and delivers responses in single-digit milliseconds. In this role, you will lead the architecture of mission-critical distributed systems, tackle complex performance and scale challenges, and influence engineering practices across multiple teams all without direct people management responsibilities.

Job Description

Responsibilities

• Architectural Leadership: Lead the end-to-end architecture, design, and execution of highly scalable, low-latency backend services for the Buyer Cloud platform.
• Strategy: Drive multi-team initiatives centered on platform reliability, system decomposition, scalability, and operational excellence.
• System Optimization: Identify and eliminate performance bottlenecks in distributed workflows operating under strict latency budgets.
• Cross-Functional Partnership: Partner with Product, Infrastructure, SRE, and Data Engineering to define technical roadmaps and align technical strategy with business goals.
• Engineering Standards: Establish best practices for design reviews, code quality, testing, observability, and incident root-cause analysis (RCA).
• Mentorship & Talent Growth: Mentor senior and mid-level engineers through design coaching, code reviews, and architectural guidance. Consistent exercise of independent judgment and discretion in matters of significance. Regular, consistent and punctual attendance. Must be able to work nights and weekends, variable schedule(s) as necessary. Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.

The Ideal Skillset

• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience).
• Experience: 13+ years of professional software engineering experience, including 2+ years in a Staff or Lead Engineer role.
• Core Languages: Expert-level proficiency in compiled/high-performance languages (C++, Go, Java, or Rust).
• Distributed Systems: Proven track record of designing, operating, and troubleshooting large-scale distributed backend systems in production.
• Systems Engineering: Deep understanding of concurrency, multithreading, memory management, networking protocols, and performance profiling on Linux.
• Cloud & Infrastructure: Experience building containerized, cloud-native services (AWS, Kubernetes, ECS, or equivalent) with robust observability (metrics, tracing, logging).
• Bonus Points: Experience with ultra-low-latency, real-time decisioning systems (e.g., AdTech/DSPs, financial trading, real-time analytics, high-frequency auction systems). Experience handling petabyte-scale datasets or systems processing millions of requests per second (RPS). Familiarity with distributed datastores and storage platforms (e.g., Aerospike, Snowflake, event streaming architectures). Demonstrated experience modernizing legacy architectures and driving cloud-native adoption.

Employees at all levels are expected to:

Understand our Operating Principles; make them the guidelines for how you do your job. Own the customer experience think and act in ways that put our customers first, give them seamless digital options at every touchpoint, and make them promoters of our products and services. Know your stuff be enthusiastic learners, users and advocates of our game-changing technology, products and services, especially our digital tools and experiences. Win as a team make big things happen by working together and being open to new ideas. Be an active part of the Net Promoter System a way of working that brings more employee and customer feedback into the company by joining huddles, making call backs and helping us elevate opportunities to do better for our customers. Drive results and growth. Support a culture of inclusion in how you work and lead. Do what's right for each other, our customers, investors and our communities.

Disclaimer

Skills: AWS Architecture, C++ Programming Language, Go Programming Language, Java (Programming Language), Low Latency Compensation.

Colorado Pay Range: $160,106.35 - $240,159.53

This job can be performed in California with a good faith estimated pay range upon hire of $130,996.11 USD - $242,585.38.

Comcast intends to offer the selected candidate base pay within the posted range for this role at the time of posting dependent on job-related, non-discriminatory factors such as experience.

The application window is 30 days from the date job is posted, unless the number of applicants requires it to close sooner or later.

Base pay is one part of the Total Rewards that Comcast provides to compensate and recognize employees for their work. Most sales positions are eligible for a Commission under the terms of an applicable plan, while most non-sales positions are eligible for a Bonus. Additionally, Comcast provides best-in-class Benefits to eligible employees. We believe that benefits should connect you to the support you need when it matters most, and should help you care for those who matter most. That’s why we provide an array of options, expert guidance and always-on tools, that are personalized to meet the needs of your reality – to help support you physically, financially and emotionally through the big milestones and in your everyday life. Please visit the compensation and benefits summary on our careers site for more details.

Education: Bachelor's Degree. While possessing the stated degree is preferred, Comcast also may consider applicants who hold some combination of coursework and experience, or who have extensive related professional experience.

Certifications (if applicable)

Relevant Work Experience: 10 Years +

Comcast is an equal opportunity workplace. We will consider all qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law.

At Comcast , you have the power to connect the world. Your career options are endless as you grow in your career. Explore your future with access to a variety of teams, locations, and resources in an expanding network. You can also explore additional opportunities at our company, NBCUniversal.