Staff Software Engineer, Backend

QXO; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 275,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) match

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid time off

Parental leave

Stock options

Training certifications

Job summary

QXO, based in Seattle, is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to lead the design, development, and operation of foundational eCommerce services. You will own complex systems from ideation through launch and drive long-term architectural evolution.

You will collaborate with product and design teams to build secure, reliable, and extensible services serving millions of users. This role is ideal for engineers who are highly technical, customer-obsessed, and comfortable with ambiguity and high

Qualifications

• 5+ years hands-on coding experience.
• 3+ years building scalable distributed systems.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and operate core eCommerce services.
• Design scalable, low-latency systems meeting performance and security requirements.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams on end-to-end solutions.
• Write clean, efficient, testable code.
• Lead design, architecture and code reviews.
• Mentor junior engineers and shape engineering practices.

Skills

Hands-on coding

Back-end technologies

Frameworks & libraries

Distributed systems

Cloud platforms

Architectural design

Mentoring

Concurrency

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/Engineering

Tools

CI/CD tools

Observability tools

Design reviews

Job description

About the Job

At QXO, we are redefining digital commerce. Our mission is to deliver seamless, intelligent, and scalable eCommerce experiences through next-generation software systems. Our engineering teams build distributed platforms that power critical services such as customer identity, product discovery, checkout, and personalization. If you thrive in ambiguous environments, care deeply about performance and scalability, and are driven by customer impact — we want you on our team.

Position Summary

As a Staff Software Engineer on the QXO eCommerce team, you will lead the design, development, and operation of foundational commerce services. You will own complex systems from ideation through launch and drive long-term architectural evolution. You’ll collaborate across engineering, product, and design teams to build secure, reliable, and extensible services that serve millions of users.

This role is ideal for engineers who are highly technical, customer-obsessed, and comfortable working in fast-paced environments with high ambiguity and high ownership.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, build, and operate core eCommerce services
• Design and implement scalable, low-latency systems that meet performance and security requirements.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop end-to-end solutions
• Write clean, efficient, and testable code
• Contribute to shared libraries and platform components.
• Lead design, architecture and code reviews.
• Continuously improve operational excellence and system reliability
• Mentor junior engineers and shape engineering best practices.

Qualifications & Skills

• 5+ years of hands-on coding experience
• Experience with core back-end technologies
• Experience with modern back-end frameworks and libraries
• 3+ years building scalable, distributed systems using object-oriented programming languages (Java, Kotlin, Go, etc.).
• Strong knowledge of data structures, algorithms, system design, and concurrency.
• Experience building and developing large-scale reliable distributed systems.
• Experience designing, launching, and maintaining production systems in a cloud-native environment (e.g., GCP, AWS).
• Experience leading architectural designs and mentoring other engineers.
• Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building commerce, checkout, identity, or personalization services at scale.
• Familiarity with AI/ML systems, including model inference pipelines, data labeling infrastructure, or real-time decisioning
• Experience with experimentation frameworks, recommendation engines, or search platforms.
• Experience working with CI/CD pipelines, observability tools, and performance tuning.
• Experience in Marketing or Ad Tech
• MS or Ph.D

More About QXO

QXO is the largest publicly traded distributor of roofing, waterproofing, and complementary building products in the United States. The company plans to become the tech-enabled leader in the $800 billion building products distribution industry and generate outsized value for shareholders. QXO is targeting $50 billion in annual revenues within the next decade through accretive acquisitions and organic growth. Visit www.qxo.com for more information.

In compliance with certain Pay Transparency laws, employers are required to disclose a salary range. Actual salary offers will be determined by multiple factors including but not limited to geographic location, relevant experience, knowledge, skills, other job-related qualifications, and alignment with market data and cost of labor. In addition to salary, this position is also eligible for variable compensation.

What You'll Earn

• Base pay range: $150,000 - $275,000 / year
• Annual performance bonus
• Long term incentive (equity/stock)
• 401(k) with employer match
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• PTO, company holidays, and parental leave
• Paid Time Off/Paid Sick Leave: Applicants can expect to accrue 15 days of paid time off during their first year (4.62 hours for every 80 hours worked) and increased accruals after five years of service.
• Paid training and certifications
• Legal assistance and identity protection
• Employee assistance program (EAP)

QXO is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value diversity and do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other protected status.

This position is for full-time, direct-hire employment only. We are not engaging with staffing firms, third parties, C2C arrangements, or independent contractors at this time.