Senior Software Engineer - Boston

Traveltechessentialist; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

20 vacation days

Comprehensive medical plans

401(k) with matching

Paid parental leave

Work from Anywhere days

Paid sabbatical after five years

Pet insurance discounts

Job summary

Traveltechessentialist is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to expand its engineering presence in Boston. In this role, you will shape product strategies and lead software initiatives, contributing significantly to product launches and operations.

You'll mentor junior engineers and work collaboratively with cross-functional teams. We offer competitive compensation with stock options, 20 vacation days, healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan, and the opportunity for a fully paid sabbatical after five years.

Qualifications

• Experience translating complex business goals into technical roadmaps.
• Strong knowledge in architecting scalable systems and data models.
• Proficiency in defining and upholding engineering excellence.

Responsibilities

• Lead engineering efforts on new product launches.
• Mentor and elevate junior engineers within the team.
• Drive alignment and communication across multiple teams.

Skills

Product Leadership

System Architecture

Technical Standards

Frontend Strategy

Backend Excellence

Operational Maturity

Security & Risk

Mentorship & Influence

Cross-Functional Impact

Job description

Perk is looking for a Senior Software Engineer to help expand its engineering footprint in North America. You'll play a central role in a new product launch and shape something from the ground up.

What it means to be a Senior Engineer at Perk:

• Shape the bigger picture. You won't just build features, you'll refine the what to build and why. At Perk, senior engineers go beyond the technical solution and focus on the problem itself. You'll contribute to your squad's quarterly goals and long-term vision alongside your Product Manager and Engineering Manager.

• Architect for today and tomorrow. When a big change is needed in how our platform works, you'll write the design documents that lay the foundation. You'll guard your team's technical quality; spot areas of investment, manage technical debt, and avoid "busy work" that crowds out important work. At Perk, we prioritize impact over effort.

• Lead across boundaries. Your influence goes beyond your squad. You'll communicate complex ideas across multiple teams, identify involved stakeholders, and drive alignment across the broader organization. Whether coordinating cross-squad initiatives or partnering with architects, you'll operate comfortably beyond your immediate team.

• Raise the bar for everyone around you. Senior engineers mentor, coach, and raise the bar. You'll support less experienced colleagues through direct mentorship, thoughtful feedback during reviews, and by modeling great engineering. You’ll help managers spot team growth needs and use guild meetings, design doc reviews, and pairing sessions to elevate the overall standard.

Desired skills and experience:

• Product Leadership: Translates complex business goals into technical roadmaps; de‑risks ambiguous projects through spikes and prototyping.

• System Architecture: Architects scalable, evolvable systems and data models that account for performance, failure isolation, and long‑term maintenance.

• Technical Standards: Defines and upholds engineering excellence, including CI/CD optimizations, testing strategies, and coding standards across the stack.

• Frontend Strategy: Establishes frontend architecture patterns, including state management, performance budgets, and comprehensive testing.

• Backend Excellence: Engineers sophisticated backend solutions involving API versioning, caching strategies, and complex data migration plans.

• Operational Maturity: Leads observability and SRE practices; defines SLOs, manages incident responses, and conducts blameless post‑mortems.

• Security & Risk: Oversees operational security, including secrets hygiene and dependency risk management, to ensure a hardened production environment.

• Mentorship & Influence: Levels up the engineering organization through active mentorship, leading design reviews, and influencing the product roadmap with technical data.

• Cross‑Functional Impact: Coordinates multi‑team deliverables and aligns stakeholders to resolve technical blockers across the organization.

What we offer:

• Competitive compensation and equity ownership.

• 20 vacation days and 12 public holidays.

• Three medical plans with company contributions, including HSA for HDHP plans.

• Comprehensive dental, vision, and Wellhub gym subscription benefits.

• Life and disability policies with optional buy‑up plans.

• 401(k) plan with company matching.

• Pet insurance partner discounts.

• Perk events such as an annual summer party.

• Spring Health wellbeing partnership with 12× therapy and coaching sessions.

• 12‑16 weeks paid parental leave.

• 16 paid hours per year for community volunteering.

• Up to 20 “Work from Anywhere” days per year.

• Four‑week, fully paid sabbatical after five years.

• Relocation support for hubs.

Compensation:

Compensation for this role is a combination of salary and stock options. The anticipated base salary range is $140,000 – $170,000 per year. Actual compensation may vary based on specific qualifications, experience, and other job‑related factors.

Artificial Intelligence at Perk:

• AI is embedded in tools like Notion, Jira, GitHub, and Slack, helping specify features, review code, and surface context when production incidents happen.

• Coding interviews use AI tools; the focus remains on understanding and ownership of code.

How We Work

At Perk, we take an IRL‑first approach. Our team works together in‑person three days a week, and this role requires you to be within commuting distance of our hubs. We value face‑to‑face collaboration for connectivity, productivity, creativity, and workplace culture.

For certain roles, we can help with relocation from anywhere in the world. English is the official language at the office. Please submit your resume in English if you choose to apply, and include an updated portfolio or resume.

Perk is an equal‑opportunity employer. We welcome applicants regardless of look, background, or identity.