Staff Software Engineer, Product

Valence; New York (NY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary including base + bonuses

Comprehensive health coverage

Generous PTO and parental leave

Retirement plan support

Equity in the company

Job summary

Valence is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to architect, build, and scale backend systems and user-facing experiences for their AI native coaching platform. Ideal candidates will have strong full stack experience, proficiency in Python and JavaScript, and a focus on building responsive, scalable solutions. This role offers a unique opportunity to influence a category-defining product that is transforming the future of work for enterprise customers globally. Work can be remote or hybrid from New York or Toronto.

Qualifications

• Experience in shipping production-grade systems involving backend and frontend components.
• Proficiency with Python or similar languages for backend development.
• Strong skills in modern JavaScript frameworks such as React or Vue.
• Ability to build for scale, performance, and security in enterprise environments.
• Experience designing and delivering user-facing systems from end to end.
• Strong understanding of usability, accessibility, and user adoption.

Responsibilities

• Architect APIs and integrate LLMs and services for backend performance.
• Develop responsive frontend experiences and manage data flow.
• Own end-to-end delivery of projects from requirements to monitoring.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to solve real user problems.
• Shape engineering standards and best practices within the team.

Skills

Full stack experience

Python (Django preferred)

JavaScript

Responsive UI building

Enterprise-grade thinking

Customer-centered and product-focused

Startup fluent

Job description

Valence has built the only AI native coaching platform for enterprise, offering personalized, expert, and human-like guidance and support to any leader or employee. We’re not just talking about the future of work — we’re building it now, with the most innovative Fortune 500 companies across healthcare, financial services, manufacturing, and technology.

Our focus is on the problems that actually decide whether AI changes how organizations operate — the ones with no playbook, no obvious answers, and no guarantee of success. If you want to be part of the small group that defines how AI transforms the future at a global scale, this is your chance.

And this isn’t for everyone. We’re not looking for people who want predictability or incremental progress. We only want those who are restless at the edge of what’s possible, who get bored when things feel “done,” and who are driven to redefine what AI can mean for leaders, companies, and the world. Because at Valence, the work worth doing is the kind that redefines work itself.

The Role

As a Principal Software Engineer, Product, you will be instrumental in architecting, building, and scaling both backend systems and user-facing experiences that power our LLM-driven coaching platform. You will ship features end-to-end - from designing resilient APIs and integrating models to delivering polished interfaces in the browser - while collaborating closely with cross-functional partners in product, design, and infrastructure. This is a ground-floor opportunity to shape a category-defining product used by enterprise customers worldwide.

You’ll contribute to:

• Full stack architecture, development, and optimization of features spanning backend, AI/model integration, and frontend interfaces.

• Designing for scale, performance, and security in enterprise environments.

• Debugging across the stack - from model behavior and backend services to UI logic and client performance.

• Collaborating with product, design, and operations to deliver delightful, resilient user experiences.

• Helping evolve the engineering culture, tooling, hiring, and technical roadmap as the team grows.

About Valence

We’re the only company pioneering leadership coaching for large enterprises in an AI-first way. Our mission is to transform how the world's biggest companies approach learning and development, helping teams work better together through AI-powered personalization that adapts to individual goals and organizational culture using the latest advances in machine learning and natural language processing.

We've been featured in Harvard Business Review, TIME, World Economic Forum, Financial Times, Forbes and an Inc. 5000 fastest-growing private companies in America. Our clients represent the most diverse and sophisticated enterprise AI implementations globally, including Coca-Cola, Delta, Nestlé, General Mills, Schneider Electric, Deutsche Telekom, AstraZeneca, Prudential, CVS and Bristol Myers Squibb.

Working at Valence means you'll work directly with Fortune 500 technology leaders, building expertise through the most complex enterprise deployments while gaining insight into diverse organizational approaches to AI transformation. These aren't just any enterprise clients — they're the companies defining what AI-first business transformation looks like across every major industry.

What You’ll Do

• Build and extend critical backend services: architect APIs, integrate LLMs and related services, and optimize server-side systems for performance and reliability.

• Develop polished frontend experiences: craft intuitive UI flows, ensure accessibility and responsiveness, and manage data flow between frontend and backend.

• Own end-to-end delivery: from scoping requirements, writing tests, deploying code, to monitoring and observability in production.

• Collaborate deeply: work across product, design, data, and infrastructure to solve real user problems and accelerate delivery.

• Drive best practices: help shape engineering standards, CI/CD automation, observability, and performance benchmarking.

• Mentor and grow: support team members through code reviews, technical discussions, and institution of scalable practices.

What We're Looking For

• Strong full stack experience: you have shipped production-grade systems involving both backend and frontend components, and you’re comfortable owning APIs and user experiences end-to-end.

• Technical breadth/Engineering skills: deep proficiency with Python (Django preferred) or similar languages for backend; strong JavaScript skills and familiarity with modern frameworks (e.g., React, Vue).

• Frontend craftsmanship/UX obsessed: experience building responsive, high-performance UI with attention to usability and scale.

• Enterprise-grade thinking: you build for scale, performance, security, and maintainability in large, distributed environments.

• Builder at Heart: you’ve architected and shipped production-grade, user-facing systems. You balance polish with speed, knowing when to prioritize craftsmanship and when to push scrappy experiments to learn fast.

• Versatility and pragmatism: you balance sound architectural decisions with a willingness to prototype and iterate quickly when needed.

• Customer-Centered & Product-Focused: you care as much about usability, accessibility, and adoption as you do about code quality. You think beyond “does it work” to “does it work for the user, at scale, and in enterprise environments.”

• Startup fluent: you thrive in ambiguity, value momentum over perfection, and enjoy wearing multiple hats.

What You’ll Get

Ownership & Rapid Growth

• Outsized missions from day one, with direct responsibility for company-defining projects.
• Work alongside the executive team with transparency into strategy and decision-making.
• Influence on direction through real-time customer feedback and market insights.

AI-First Operator

• Work directly with cutting-edge AI models and next-generation platforms.
• Build expertise in enterprise AI implementation across Fortune 500 companies and multiple industries.
• Establish yourself as a recognized leader among peers in shaping how AI transforms work at a global scale.

Compensation

• Competitive salary including base + bonuses.
• Comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision) from day one.
• Generous PTO, company-wide R&R shutdowns, and paid parental leave.
• Retirement plan support for US and global employees.

Equity

• Meaningful ownership in a venture-backed company at a growth inflection point.
• Financial upside that comes from scaling fast.
• Top-up grants as we scale and you deliver exceptional performance — your compensation grows alongside your impact.

Top-Performing Culture

• A culture built for top talent: intensity to win, growth without limits, and a team that solves hard problems and celebrates big wins together.

Location and Work Environment

This role can be either remote or hybrid from our offices in New York or Toronto. Candidates must be comfortable working with colleagues in different time zones (UK), and have valid travel documents without work authorization restrictions in the US.

Diversity and Inclusion

We are dedicated to creating a diverse and inclusive environment where everyone feels valued and supported. We encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and offer accommodations upon request throughout the hiring process. If you have any questions, please reach out to Allison Langille, Head of People, at [e-mail].