Senior, Software Engineer

Dept; New York, California (NY, MO, IL); Hybrid; USD 122,000 - 165,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare

PTO

Paid Company Holidays

Job summary

DEPT is hiring a Senior Engineer to own backend services and APIs for global brands, with occasional frontend work. You will design, implement, and ship features, resolve ambiguous specs, and collaborate with product, design, and marketing teams.

We value code quality, performance, and pragmatic trade-offs. You’ll work across cloud infrastructure, AI tooling, and modern frontend when needed, while mentoring engineers and contributing to open source or talks.

Qualifications

• Proven experience building production backend systems.
• Strong proficiency in Python.
• Experience designing and integrating APIs and third-party systems.
• Solid knowledge of SQL and NoSQL databases.
• Familiarity with frontend development (Angular/Typescript).
• Experience with at least one major cloud provider (GCP/AWS/Azure).
• Daily use of GenAI productivity tools in development workflows.
• Understanding of core LLM concepts.
• Git, Agile processes, and CI/CD tooling.
• Ability to self‑direct and seek help when needed.
• Track record of getting sh*t done in a fast-paced environment.
• Experience mentoring engineers.
• Exposure to agent development frameworks.
• Contributions to open source or conference talks.

Responsibilities

• Build and deploy scalable backend services and APIs for global brands with ownership of workstreams.
• Turn incomplete specs into clear requirements, tasks, and stories with estimates.
• Participate in technical design of systems, schemas, and pipelines; advise on architecture and infra decisions.
• Integrate third-party APIs and design contracts for frontend teams and services.
• Conduct code reviews to raise quality and mentor teammates.
• Surface blockers and risks early for course correction.
• Advocate for testing, security, performance, and CI/CD best practices.
• Collaborate with client stakeholders via email, calls, and in person; create demo content.
• Apply AI capabilities to client work and develop reusable templates and guidance.
• Share learnings internally and externally when possible.

Skills

Python

APIs

Databases

Frontend (Angular/TS)

Cloud (GCP/AWS/Azure)

GenAI tools

LLM concepts

Version control

Agile/CI-CD

Mentoring

Open source

Agent development

Job description

We are a Growth Invention company built to help the world’s most ambitious brands grow faster. Operating at the intersection of technology and marketing, we create what is next by pioneering ideas, acting fast, and moving further because standing still just is not in our DNA.

We are drawn to people who stay curious, move with intent, and never stop inventing. Our culture runs on three values: better together, relentlessly curious, and get sh*t done. It is how we work, how we grow, and how we make things that matter.

At DEPT®, you will find the freedom to explore, the space to collaborate, and the trust to make a real impact for our clients, for each other, and for the world we are helping to build.

What we believe in

We build software for the world's most ambitious brands, and we're opinionated about how it gets made:

• Code quality is a top priority. Style guides, code reviews, and best practices are how we move fast without breaking things. You'll also get your hands on a wide range of cutting-edge technology.
• Great UI/UX is critical. Aesthetics, usability, and speed are all part of the product. A technically correct experience that feels bad isn't finished.
• Collaboration wins projects. Great communication is the single strongest predictor of whether a project goes well.
• We're pragmatic. We know what to build and what to leave alone, and we make real-world tradeoffs between cost, speed, and craft. Shipping something useful beats architecting something perfect.
• We're intellectually curious. We're constantly learning through craft show & tells, lunch & learns, workshares, and active Slack channels full of talented engineers across the globe.

The role

As a Senior Engineer, you own significant portions of a project and drive them to completion. You take a semi-defined problem, ask the questions that sharpen it, turn it into a plan, and ship it. You're past the stage of needing fully specified tasks handed to you, and you're building the judgment to know which task matters most.

You're comfortable working alongside product managers, engineers, marketing, sales, and finance, and you can explain your work to any of them without retreating into jargon. Most of what we build depends on getting those people to a shared understanding of what's being made and why.

This role is primarily backend focused, occasionally diving into cloud infrastructure. However, you should also be comfortable enough in a modern frontend codebase to apply best practices and create something visually appealing and smooth to use.

What you'll do

• Build and deploy scalable backend services and APIs for global brands, taking high ownership of your workstreams and their dependencies.
• Take specs that are incomplete or ambiguous, resolve the open questions, and turn them into clear requirements, tasks, and stories with time-to-complete estimates people can plan around.
• Participate in technical design of systems, schemas, and pipelines, and offer sound guidance on architecture and infrastructure decisions.
• Integrate third-party APIs and systems, and design the contracts that frontend teams and other services build against.
• Perform code reviews that raise the bar, both submitting your own work and giving constructive feedback that makes your teammates better.
• Surface technical blockers, risks, and client-facing issues early enough for the team to course‑correct.
• Advocate for best practices in testing, security, performance, and CI/CD, and encourage others to do the same.
• Work directly with working‑level client stakeholders over email, on calls, and in person, and start building demo and presentation content of your own.
• Apply AI and agentic capabilities to real client work, and contribute back to how the craft adopts them through reusable templates, prototyping sessions, and practical guidance for other teams.
• Share what you learn, internally through Slack, brown bags, and DEPT U, and externally through articles or talks as project work allows.

What you bring

• Proven experience building and maintaining production‑level backend systems used by real people.
• Strong proficiency in Python.
• Experience designing and integrating APIs and third‑party systems.
• Solid working knowledge of database platforms, both SQL and NoSQL.
• Enough familiarity with modern frontend development (preferably Angular and Typescript) to read the code, review a PR, and debug across the stack.
• Experience with at least one major cloud provider. Google Cloud preferred, AWS or Azure also welcome.
• Daily, real‑world use of GenAI productivity tools (Gemini CLI, Claude Code, Codex) in your development workflow.
• A working understanding of core LLM concepts and where they're a good fit for a problem.
• Fluency with version control (git), Agile processes, and CI/CD tooling.
• The ability to research independently and know when to ask for help, without spinning wheels on already‑solved problems.
• A track record of "getting sh*t done" in a fast‑paced environment.
• Experience mentoring engineers earlier in their careers.
• Exposure to agent development frameworks.
• Contributions to open source, technical writing, or conference speaking.

WHAT DO WE OFFER?

We are a collaborative, open‑door, best‑idea‑wins environment that fosters personal and company growth and has fun doing it. Here is a snapshot of our benefits package:

• Healthcare, Dental, and Vision coverage
• PTO
• Paid Company Holidays

WE SUPPORT YOU BEING YOU:

DEPT® is an equal opportunity employer (EOE). We believe our work is its best when our people feel safe and free to be themselves. We’re committed to an inclusive and barrier‑free recruitment and selection process and workplace, regardless of anyone’s identity, background, beliefs, lifestyle or disabilities. So tell us about any accommodations you need. It’s totally confidential and only used to make sure you feel fully supported at every step.

DEPT® participates in E‑Verify, meaning your Form I‑9 information will be sent to the federal government to confirm you are authorized to work in the U.S.

We are a B Corp‑certified company passionate about purpose‑driven work . Our hope is that you can feel good about the contributions DEPT® is making to the world and we always have an open door for your ideas in making the world a better place.

DEPT® is a Growth Invention company built to help the world’s most ambitious brands grow faster. Operating at the intersection of technology and marketing, our 4,000+ specialists deliver growth invention across Brand & Media, Experience, Commerce, CRM, and Technology & Data. We’re 50|50 tech and marketing, partner‑led, and first to move. Clients include Google, Lufthansa, Coach, eBay, and OpenAI.

The anticipated salary range for this position is listed below. Salary is based on a range of factors that include relevant experience, expertise, physical location, and organizational impact. This is based on a 40‑hour workweek and leveling. Keep in mind, we’re flexible.

US Remote Range

$122,000 - $165,000 USD