Staff Backend Engineer (Scala)

RiseMe; New York (NY); On-site; USD 170,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

RiseMe seeks a Staff Backend Engineer (Scala) to help shape scalable, API-driven backend platforms powering internal systems and partner integrations.

You will lead design across the Backend Core Enterprise, implement large-scale services, and ensure performance, reliability, and maintainability. You’ll mentor teams, review architecture, and drive technical excellence across projects.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in software engineering.
• Proven track record in senior engineering roles.
• Experience collaborating with engineering, product, and business teams.
• Strong knowledge of Scala/JVM and functional programming.
• Proficiency with PostgreSQL and scalable data schemas.
• Experience with Kafka-based event streaming and REST APIs.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement large-scale backend systems and APIs for internal and partner use.
• Review code for readability and maintainability.
• Write API and architecture documentation.
• Optimize database schemas for performance and scalability.
• Contribute to RFCs with technical proposals and feedback.
• Mentor engineers and guide technical growth across teams.
• Stay aligned with industry trends and best practices.

Skills

Cross-functional collaboration

Attention to detail

Mentorship

Code reviews

Tools

Scala

PostgreSQL

AWS

Kafka

Kubernetes

Docker

Datadog

Job description

Staff Backend Engineer (Scala)

Backend Core Enterprise

Engine by Gen collaborates with leading financial institutions to deliver the most comprehensive and personalized financial product offers to consumers. As a Staff Engineer on the Backend Core Enterprise team, you’ll play a pivotal role in shaping products that integrate seamlessly with existing features, data, and infrastructure across the organization. These API-driven solutions power internal systems and are packaged for delivery to our extensive partner network. The team’s mission is to amplify the impact of existing verticals while engineering industry-leading architecture designed for scale, speed, and innovation.

Get ready to shape the future of scalable, high-impact distributed systems. As a Staff Engineer in this role, you’ll drive the technical design and delivery of complex software solutions that impact the entire organization. By defining and building an internal software platform, you’ll empower teams to deliver predictable, high-quality features at scale. Collaborating with stakeholders and partners, you’ll refine architectural constraints and requirements, ensuring alignment with both immediate needs and long-term goals. Your expertise will guide the organization’s architectural strategy, and your influence will extend through design and code reviews, technical mentorship, and fostering a culture of excellence in hiring and innovation.

Day-to-day:

• Design and implement large-scale backend software systems creating new partner-facing and internal data-driven APIs.
• Review code with an emphasis on readability and maintainability
• Write API and technical documentation for services and new architecture.
• Optimize database schemas to support scalable, high-performance backend services.
• Contribute to our RFC process by writing technical proposals and providing feedback to others
• Mentor and guide technical growth of engineering talent
• Be a resource for solving hard, technical problems across teams and projects
• Stay up-to-date with the state of the software industry

Qualifications:

• A minimum of 8+ years of experience in software engineering
• 2+ years of proven success in senior engineering roles
• Demonstrated success collaborating across engineering, product, and business functions to deliver functionality
• Meticulous attention to detail in reviewing others' and your own work
• Experience developing and testing in Scala or other JVM languages
• Solid understanding of software design patterns, functional programming, and database schema design
• Experience designing highly scalable event streaming architecture using Kafka/MSK or equivalent.
• Experience with service-oriented architecture and RESTful API design
• Expertise in PostgreSQL
• Expertise in AWS product and tools
• Knowledge of monitoring and observability tools, including Datadog or equivalent

Good to have, not required:

• Experience in customer-facing roles
• Familiar with modern DevOps tooling
  • Kubernetes/Docker
  • Terraform
• Familiar with Scala and the Lightbend and Typelevel ecosystems
  • Lightbend: Slick, Play/Play JSON
  • Typelevel: http4s, doobie/skunk, circe, cats, cats-effect
  • Debezium