At a Glance
- Tasks: Join our team to develop and optimise a cutting-edge trading platform for sports betting.
- Company: Longshot Systems, a dynamic company focused on sports betting analytics.
- Benefits: Enjoy competitive salary, uncapped bonuses, private healthcare, and gym membership.
- Other info: Flexible hybrid working model with excellent career growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in a fast-paced environment while learning from industry experts.
- Qualifications: 2+ years in distributed systems; experience with systems languages like Go, C++, or Java.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 75000 £ per year.
At Longshot Systems we build advanced platforms for sports betting analytics and trading. We're looking for a Software Engineer to join the team that owns and develops our trading platform. Longshot is a small, focused company and so the role suits someone who can architect and implement whatever is needed to meet our next product, performance or stability goal. The team owns the technical standards and coding guidelines, CI/CD, observability and security. This role suits someone who wants to ship features and contribute to the wider technical excellence in the team and platform.
The trading platform at Longshot handles integrations with many bookmakers and exchanges worldwide. It normalises and combines the global odds data for many sports and makes it available internally for strategies to trade on. We handle thousands of odds updates and trades per second and have very strict bounds on latency, correctness and overall quality of the feed and trading. You would be at the heart of this team: integrating more trading venues, optimising key parts of the platform, making trading safer and faster, etc. We also maintain a significant historical data repository and support wider trading and research efforts around the company. Our key platform systems are all in Golang, with message buses and databases at the core of the architecture. You don't need to be fluent in Golang, but it would help. It's easy to learn and we have a team full of experts able to teach you.
We are a hybrid working company, working Thursdays in our London (Farringdon) office and flexible the rest of the week. Our typical working hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. UK time, Monday to Friday, but we support flexible working and trust our team to manage their own schedules to meet their goals.
Interview Process
- Intro call (30 mins) - your background + interests
- 1st Technical interview (30 mins) - live code review & pair programming
- 2nd Technical interview (60 mins) - deep dive technical questions
- Full assessment day (10:30-5pm) - a one day systems programming exercise designed to be similar to the real work we do in the team. Meet some of the team, see the office, have a nice lunch (on us)
Requirements
- Bachelors or Masters in a quantitative or technical subject (e.g. Maths, EE, Physics, Comp Sci) from a top university
- 2+ years experience building mission critical distributed systems (finance, gaming, telco, ad‑tech, etc.) where throughput, correctness and availability are hard requirements
- Proven track record delivering and maintaining production systems in at least one systems language (Go, C++, Rust, Java, C#, etc.), with clear, idiomatic designs
- Startup experience: shipping products in small, fast‑moving teams
- Architecture & design: Able to reason about trade-offs and produce clean, evolvable service boundaries
- Cloud & DevOps: comfortable working in AWS, Linux and wrangling build pipelines. We have dedicated DevOps people, but you do need to be competent in the core skills here
- Fluent written and spoken English. Communicating with the team is as important as the technical work. You need to be able to effectively collaborate on everything from low level details to long‑term strategic planning
Nice to have
- Trading, market making or exchange experience
Benefits
- Participation in the uncapped company bonus scheme
- 10% matched pension contributions
- Private healthcare insurance
- Long term illness insurance
- Gym membership
Software Engineer employer: Longshot Systems
At Longshot Systems, we pride ourselves on fostering a dynamic and collaborative work environment where innovation thrives. As a Software Engineer, you'll not only contribute to cutting-edge sports betting analytics but also enjoy a range of benefits including an uncapped bonus scheme, private healthcare, and a supportive culture that prioritises employee growth and flexible working arrangements. Our London office offers a vibrant atmosphere, perfect for those looking to make a significant impact in a small, focused team while enjoying the perks of hybrid working.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Software Engineer
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Longshot Systems or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Longshot Systems.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Longshot Systems.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Longshot Systems that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Software Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Longshot Systems.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Longshot Systems and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at Longshot Systems
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Longshot Systems uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
