Staff Backend Engineer
Sift Stack, Inc.Base Salary
$200k - $250k/yr
Responsibilities
- Design, build, and operate backend systems that process and store large volumes of real-time telemetry data.
- Own features end-to-end from design through post-launch improvement.
- Collaborate with Frontend, Design, and Data teams to solve customer problems.
- Optimize backend systems for performance, scalability, and reliability.
- Migrate services and improve caching, storage, and indexing layers.
- Participate in on-call rotations, debug live issues, and improve observability.
- Raise engineering standards through code reviews, shared patterns, and mentorship.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Physics, or another STEM discipline.
- 7+ years of experience in backend or infrastructure roles.
- Strong understanding of distributed systems fundamentals, including state, fault tolerance, and recovery.
- Experience with Go, Rust, or Python and strong Linux and networking fundamentals.
- Deep knowledge of SQL and operational database practices including indexing, migrations, and tuning.
- Experience building and scaling APIs with gRPC and Protobuf.
- Strong debugging skills and a production-first mindset.
- Familiarity with Kubernetes, Prometheus, Argo CD, and other modern infrastructure tools.
- Bonus experience with streaming or time-series data systems such as Kafka, Flink, or TimescaleDB.
- Bonus experience with performance tuning, query or service-layer profiling, and observability tools such as Datadog or Grafana.
- Background in hardware or telemetry-heavy environments is a plus.
- Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or other protected individual eligible under ITAR and EAR regulations.
Benefits
- Equity and benefits are provided.
- Hybrid collaboration requires in-person work twice weekly on Mondays and Thursdays, plus a full in-person week every two months.
- Relocation to Los Angeles or work from the San Francisco office may be available for the right candidate.
Tech Stack
About Sift Stack, Inc.
Sift is transforming how modern machines are built and operated. Our platform goes beyond traditional monitoring, enabling automated data review that catches unusual conditions in systems too complex for manual checks. This not only enhances reliability but also dramatically speeds up development cycles. At our core, we provide a unified solution for ingesting, storing, and analyzing vast amounts of machine data. By combining powerful data processing with easy-to-use visualizations, we help engineers make sense of enormous amounts of information. From spacecraft to self-driving cars, Sift is the backbone of innovation for companies pushing technology to new limits. Born from the challenges of spaceflight, Sift aims to accelerate technological progress. We believe that by giving engineers better tools to understand and improve their creations, we can unlock a new era of innovation. Our mission goes beyond solving today's engineering problems; we're building the foundation for a future where the most ambitious machines are developed with confidence, run with precision, and constantly improved. We're also tackling related challenges like simplifying regulatory compliance, and improving manufacturing processes. By connecting data from various sources—from sensors to manufacturing records to regulatory requirements—we're empowering a new generation of engineers to build the technologies that will shape our world. Join us in our journey to usher in this new age of reliable, groundbreaking technology. Whether you're launching rockets, developing autonomous systems, or advancing energy and transportation, Sift is your partner in turning vast amounts of data into insights that drive innovation forward.