Staff Backend Software Engineer

Kixie (Headquarters: Santa Monica, CA)

Node.js AWS Lambda DynamoDB RDS Elasticsearch SQS SNS SAM CloudFormation PostgreSQL MySQL Docker Kubernetes Terraform GraphQL REST Backend Staff ML AI B2B SaaS Sales Tech AI Engineer Back End Engineer Staff Engineer

Kixie is seeking a Staff Backend Software Engineer for their Santa Monica, CA office (Hybrid 3x/week min in-office requirement). Kixie is a fast-growing, profitable B2B startup revolutionizing sales with a cloud-based voice and texting solution. We’re one of the fastest growing tech companies in LA and want someone who truly enjoys solving hard problems every day.

Role & Responsibilities:
- Architect, develop, and maintain highly scalable, secure, and resilient back-end systems and APIs using Node.js and AWS services.
- Build and optimize database architectures (e.g., PostgreSQL/RDS, DynamoDB, Elasticsearch) to ensure data integrity and high performance.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams, including product managers, front-end engineers, and DevOps, to deliver seamless end-to-end solutions.
- Design, implement, and maintain event-driven architectures and asynchronous systems using AWS SQS, SNS, and Lambda.
- Debug and resolve production issues, ensuring system reliability and uptime.
- Mentor junior team members, conduct code reviews, and foster a culture of technical excellence.
- Stay current with industry trends, evaluating and implementing new technologies to improve system performance and developer productivity.
- Utilize infrastructure-as-code tools like AWS SAM / CloudFormation.
- Instrument, measure, and analyze system performance to drive data-driven improvements.

Technical Skills Required:
- 8+ years of experience in back-end development, with a strong focus on building scalable systems.
- Expertise in Node.js, with a solid understanding of modern backend architecture and best practices.
- 3+ years of experience with ML design and ML infrastructure (e.g., model deployment, model evaluation, data processing, debugging, fine tuning).
- 3+ years of experience designing, training, and evaluating machine learning models.
- Experience using generative AI to solve real-world issues.
- Proven experience designing and building RESTful and GraphQL APIs.
- Strong knowledge of relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL) and NoSQL databases (DynamoDB, Elasticsearch).
- Experience working with AWS cloud services (Lambda, RDS, DynamoDB, SQS, SNS, Elasticsearch) and serverless architectures.
- Familiarity with containerization (Docker) and orchestration tools (Kubernetes).
- Proficient in DevOps practices, including CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code (e.g., SAM/CloudFormation, Terraform), and monitoring/alerting tools.
- Strong understanding of software design patterns, algorithms, and system architecture.

Ideal Candidate:
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
- Excellent problem-solving skills, with the ability to troubleshoot and debug complex systems.
- Experience with internal / external integration design and development is a plus.
- Familiarity with sales CRM platforms and sales processes is a plus.
- Enjoys solving hard problems and values teamwork, transparency, and community.

Benefits include comprehensive insurance, unlimited PTO, parking, career development opportunities, and a pet-friendly office.