At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead backend systems design and scaling initiatives for a cutting-edge platform.
- Company: Join a dynamic tech company focused on innovation and collaboration.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible work options, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Exciting opportunity to work with AI technologies and mentor fellow engineers.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by solving complex engineering challenges in a supportive environment.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in backend engineering, distributed systems, and strong Python skills.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.
This role suits someone who has already grown beyond a typical senior remit. You enjoy diving into distributed systems problems, and you have firsthand experience scaling services under real production load.
Several years operating as a senior backend engineer, with a clear track record of leading technical initiatives end to end across a product domain.
Experience contributing to the design of distributed systems in production, including the operational realities such as failure modes, observability, data consistency, and graceful degradation.
A track record of solving scaling problems, whether database scaling, throughput, latency, or cost. You can talk through a real example end to end: how you measured the problem, what you changed, and what the outcome was.
Experience designing and operating event driven architectures in production, including message queues or streaming systems, with a clear understanding of delivery guarantees, idempotency, and failure handling.
Strong design skills around APIs, service boundaries, and the flow of data from persistent storage through to clients.
Strong Python experience, including modern web frameworks (we use FastAPI with Pydantic and strong typing).
Deep working knowledge of SQL and relational data modelling.
Excellent collaboration and communication, including the ability to explain complex systems and tradeoffs to non-technical stakeholders.
A strong product and customer mindset, with the judgement to balance shipping value against long term system health.
A high bar for code quality, testability, and operational maturity, and the habit of raising that bar through review and mentorship.
Desirable:
- Experience working on complex permissioning or access control systems (multi-tenant, role or attribute based, fine grained, audit driven, or similar).
- Experience with end to end document management systems, especially solving problems of scale and applying strong security practices such as encryption, access control, data lineage, and retention.
- Experience modernising legacy systems and migrating workloads with minimal downtime.
- Experience with a data pipeline orchestrator.
- Experience working at AI startups, including integrating with and building on top of AI and LLM based solutions.
If you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t perfectly align with the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You might just be who we’re looking for — either for this role, or perhaps another.
What the job involves:
We're looking for a Senior Engineer II to take broad technical ownership of the backend systems powering 9fin's platform. You will sit between our Senior and Staff engineering tracks. You will own meaningful systems end to end, lead multi sprint initiatives across a product domain, and shape how we build for scale.
You will operate as a strong senior IC, leading design, raising the engineering bar through review and mentorship, and partnering closely with Product, Data, and our financial and legal domain experts.
Own the design and delivery of significant backend systems and services across a product domain, from data modelling through API surface to operational concerns.
Lead complex, multi sprint engineering initiatives that span several engineers and stakeholders.
Drive scaling work: identify bottlenecks, propose architectural changes, and execute migrations safely in production.
Make pragmatic decisions about distributed systems concerns including consistency, idempotency, partitioning, retries, and observability.
Contribute to platform level discussions on service boundaries, data ownership, and how systems evolve as we enter new markets.
Run thorough code reviews, mentor senior and mid-level engineers, and help define what good looks like in the codebase.
Partner with cross functional teammates from Product, Data Engineering, and our editorial and legal domain experts to scope work and ship the right thing.
Improve developer experience by investing in tooling, testing, observability, and the paved road so the whole team moves faster.
Ramp on legacy areas of the system, find the highest leverage cleanup, and execute it without stalling delivery.
Use AI assisted engineering to move faster on understanding, prototyping, and shipping code.
Senior Engineer employer: 9fin
At 9fin, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and innovative work culture. As a Senior Engineer II, you will have the opportunity to take ownership of significant backend systems while working alongside talented professionals in a dynamic environment that values mentorship and continuous learning. Our commitment to employee growth, coupled with our focus on cutting-edge technology and AI integration, makes 9fin a rewarding place to advance your career.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior Engineer
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections in the industry, attend meetups, and engage in online forums. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or can refer you directly.
✨Tip Number 2
Show off your skills! Create a portfolio or GitHub repository showcasing your projects, especially those related to distributed systems and backend engineering. This gives potential employers a taste of what you can do beyond your CV.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for interviews by diving deep into common technical challenges in backend engineering. Be ready to discuss your past experiences with scaling services and solving complex problems, as these will be key talking points.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t hesitate to apply through our website! Even if you think your experience isn’t a perfect match, we want to hear from you. You could be just the person we’re looking for, whether for this role or another.
We think you need these skills to ace Senior Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Experience:When you're writing your application, make sure to highlight your experience with distributed systems and scaling services. We want to see real examples of how you've tackled challenges in production, so don't hold back on the details!
Be Clear and Concise:Keep your application straightforward and to the point. Use clear language to explain your technical skills and experiences, especially around APIs, data flow, and Python. We appreciate a well-structured application that’s easy to read.
Tailor Your Application:Make sure to tailor your application to the role. Reference specific requirements from the job description, like your experience with event-driven architectures or SQL. This shows us you’ve done your homework and are genuinely interested in the position.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply through our website for the best chance of getting noticed. It’s the easiest way for us to keep track of your application and ensure it reaches the right people. Don’t miss out!
How to prepare for a job interview at 9fin
✨Know Your Systems Inside Out
Make sure you can discuss your experience with distributed systems in detail. Be ready to explain how you've tackled scaling issues, including specific examples of what you measured, the changes you implemented, and the outcomes. This shows you not only understand the theory but have practical experience.
✨Showcase Your Design Skills
Prepare to talk about your design process for APIs and service boundaries. Bring examples of how you've approached data flow from storage to clients, and be ready to discuss the operational realities like failure modes and observability. This will demonstrate your strong design skills and understanding of backend systems.
✨Communicate Clearly with Non-Technical Stakeholders
Since collaboration is key, practice explaining complex technical concepts in simple terms. Think of a few scenarios where you had to bridge the gap between technical and non-technical teams. This will highlight your communication skills and ability to work cross-functionally.
✨Emphasise Your Code Quality Standards
Be prepared to discuss your approach to code quality, testability, and operational maturity. Share how you've raised the bar through mentorship and code reviews. This will show that you value high standards and are committed to improving the engineering practices within the team.
