Staff Software Engineer

Vagaro; Pleasanton, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 179,000 - 218,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health & Wellness benefits

PTO 15 days + holidays

Onsite gym and perks

Job summary

Vagaro is seeking a Staff Engineer to lead backend architecture and cloud strategy in Pleasanton, CA. You’ll shape patterns, scale Azure-based services, and drive high‑throughput APIs while mentoring engineers and contributing hands-on.

You will collaborate with product and engineering leadership to align technical roadmaps with business goals and ensure reliable, scalable performance for thousands of users.

Qualifications

• 8–10+ years in software engineering with backend and distributed systems.
• Hands-on experience designing and operating cloud-native distributed systems on Azure.
• Strong C# and ASP.NET (Core/MVC) expertise.
• Experience designing and scaling RESTful and event-driven APIs.
• Experience with SQL/NoSQL databases (Azure SQL, Cosmos DB).
• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes; CI/CD and IaC.
• Excellent communication and leadership abilities.

Responsibilities

• Set the technical vision and architecture for Vagaro's backend platform.
• Architect cloud-native distributed systems on Azure balancing performance and cost.
• Lead the design of scalable RESTful and event-driven APIs.
• Drive data modeling and performance tuning for SQL/NoSQL databases.
• Define secure authentication and authorization standards (OAuth, OpenID).
• Champion asynchronous programming, concurrency, and fault-tolerant design.
• Establish observability and incident-response practices in production.
• Collaborate with product and engineering leadership on roadmaps and builds.
• Provide architecture reviews, code reviews, and mentoring across teams.
• Evaluate new technologies and lead migrations when valuable.
• Stay hands-on by prototyping critical components with the team.

Skills

C# / ASP.NET

Azure cloud architecture

Distributed systems design

Technical leadership

Architectural patterns

Communication

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS or related field

Equivalent practical experience

Tools

Azure

Docker

Kubernetes / AKS

Cosmos DB

Azure SQL

Service Bus / Event Grid

GitHub Actions

Azure DevOps

Job description

Why Vagaro?

At Vagaro, we believe in fostering a collaborative and inclusive work environment where every team member can thrive. Our culture is built on innovation, continuous learning, and a passion for making a positive impact. We support our employees' growth and vision for themselves, offering opportunities for professional development and career advancement. Join us and be part of a team that values creativity, teamwork, and a commitment to excellence. Plus, we know how to have fun while getting the job done!

What you'll Be Doing:

Vagaro is seeking an accomplished Staff Engineer to act as a technical leader and systems architect for the platform that powers our business. In this role you'll set the architectural direction for the backend systems and cloud infrastructure behind Vagaro, driving the performance, reliability, and scalability that enable seamless experiences for hundreds of thousands of businesses and their customers. You'll operate across teams — shaping technical strategy, solving our hardest engineering problems, and raising the bar for the entire organization while staying close enough to the code to lead by example.

This role is based onsite in Pleasanton, CA Monday through Friday

Compensation

• Base Annual Salary: $179,000 - $218,000
• Annual Bonus: Up to 10%

Your Impact:

• Set the technical vision and architecture for Vagaro's backend platform — defining patterns, standards, and roadmaps for scalability, reliability, security, and performance across multiple teams and services.
• Architect distributed, cloud-native systems on Microsoft Azure (e.g., AKS, Azure Functions, App Service, Service Bus, Event Grid, Cosmos DB, Azure SQL, API Management), balancing performance, cost, resiliency, and operational simplicity.
• Lead the design of well-structured, high-throughput RESTful and event-driven APIs that support frontend applications, internal tools, and third‑party integrations.
• Drive the design and optimization of data architecture across SQL and NoSQL systems — including data modeling, partitioning, sharding, and caching — to sustain performance at scale.
• Establish standards for secure, scalable authentication and authorization (OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, JWT, managed identities).
• Champion asynchronous programming, concurrency, and messaging patterns to build efficient, non-blocking, fault‑tolerant systems.
• Define observability, monitoring, and incident‑response practices that keep systems reliable and within SLA in production cloud environments.
• Partner with product managers, engineering leadership, and fellow staff engineers to translate business strategy into technical roadmaps, and to make sound build‑vs‑buy and technology‑selection decisions.
• Provide technical leadership through architecture reviews, design documents, code reviews, and mentorship, elevating engineering practices across the org.
• Evaluate and introduce new technologies, Azure services, and best practices; lead cloud migrations and modernization efforts where they deliver clear value.
• Stay hands‑on — prototype, build critical components, and tackle the most complex technical challenges alongside the team.

What you Bring:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 8–10+ years of software engineering experience, including substantial time working on backend and distributed systems, with a proven track record of systems and solutions architecture.
• Deep, hands‑on experience designing and operating large‑scale, cloud‑native distributed systems in production.
• Strong, current expertise with C# and ASP.NET (Core/MVC).
• Extensive experience architecting solutions on Microsoft Azure (strongly preferred). Experience with other major clouds such as AWS or GCP is welcome, but Azure expertise is heavily preferred.
• Proven experience designing and scaling RESTful and event‑driven APIs.
• Deep understanding of SQL and NoSQL databases (e.g., SQL Server / Azure SQL, Cosmos DB, MongoDB), including data modeling, partitioning, and performance tuning.
• Expertise in asynchronous programming and concurrency (async/await patterns).
• Strong command of caching strategies, performance optimization, and high‑availability / fault‑tolerant design.
• Solid experience with authentication and authorization frameworks (OAuth, OpenID Connect, JWT, managed identities).
• Experience with containerization and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes / AKS).
• Experience with CI/CD and infrastructure‑as‑code (e.g., Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Bicep/ARM, or Terraform).
• Demonstrated technical leadership — mentoring engineers, influencing without authority, and driving cross‑team initiatives to completion.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain complex architectural concepts to both technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Strong problem‑solving, debugging, and troubleshooting skills, and a passion for building scalable systems and high‑quality user experiences.

Nice to Have:

• Deep experience with event‑driven architecture (message queues, pub/sub, Azure Service Bus, Event Grid / Event Hubs, or Kafka).
• Experience leading cloud migrations or monolith‑to‑microservices modernization efforts.
• Experience integrating with third‑party APIs (e.g., CRM systems, messaging platforms, payments).
• Experience building and scaling high‑traffic, multi‑tenant SaaS platforms.
• Exposure to modern frontend frameworks such as React.
• Azure certifications such as Azure Solutions Architect Expert or Azure DevOps Engineer Expert.

Why You'll Love Working Here:

• Attractive Compensation & Performance Bonuses: Enjoy a competitive salary paired with performance‑based bonuses
• Generous PTO: 15 accrued days, plus 10 company holidays annually.
• Health & Wellness: Comprehensive healthcare, dental, and vision plans for you and your family.
• Exclusive Perks: Discounts on attractions, theme parks, shows, sports events, movies, hotels, and more through TicketsAtWork.
• Beauty Perks: $30/month reimbursement for any Vagaro service, including health, beauty, or wellness treatments.
• Food Perks: $50 monthly stipend for our onsite microkitchen and a complimentary DoorDash DashPass subscription.
• Growth Opportunities: College Assistance Reimbursement, access to EAP & Work/Life Programs, and a LinkedIn Learning account.
• Financial Security: 401k program with 4% matching and optional life/supplemental insurance.
• Stay Active: Access to our on‑site gym, flavored water dispenser, and basketball court to keep you fit and energized!

Equal Opportunity Employer:

Vagaro is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and affirmative action employer. We foster an inclusive environment where individuals are evaluated without discrimination based on gender, race, ethnicity, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, or any other characteristics protected by law.

Privacy Policy:

Your privacy matters! At Vagaro, we are committed to protecting your personal information. Before proceeding with your application, please review our Employee and Applicant Privacy Notice here. By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you have read and understood our Privacy Notice, which outlines how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your information during the recruitment and employment process.

Vagaro is an E-Verify employer. Learn more at www.e-verify.gov

Learn More About Vagaro:

Visit us at vagaro.com/pro and vagaro.com to learn more.