Software Engineer, Tags Distributions

KERV•Austin, TX

4d•$120,000 - $155,000•Remote

About The Position

As a Software Engineer on KERV’s Tag Distribution team, you’ll be one of the first engineers dedicated to a new team focused on our ad tag infrastructure — the systems responsible for serving and optimizing ad tags to publishers and programmatic platforms globally. This is a backend and AWS-heavy role with unique challenges in performance, reliability, and international distribution. You’ll work across a mix of architectures — from a persistent Node.js API that assembles and serves VAST ad tags, to a growing set of serverless microservices on AWS handling dynamic destinations, geo-targeted redirects, and tag validation. The infrastructure spans DynamoDB Global Tables replicated across multiple U.S. regions, edge computing for redirect flows, and caching layers that support high-throughput ad delivery. You’ll also help lead the migration and refactoring of our core VAST API from our legacy monolith into a purpose-built tag server, giving you a direct hand in shaping the long-term architecture of this critical system. If you’re energized by dynamic, high-performing systems, want to go deep on backend and cloud infrastructure, and are excited about helping build a team’s foundation rather than joining one that’s already built — this is for you.

Requirements

3–7+ years of professional experience developing backend or full-stack web applications
Strong proficiency in JavaScript/Node.js in production environments
Hands-on experience with AWS services — particularly Lambda, DynamoDB, S3, CloudFront, or comparable cloud infrastructure
Experience building or operating systems that serve high volumes of traffic with demanding performance requirements
Familiarity with serverless architectures and event-driven design patterns
Comfort working with and refactoring legacy codebases — you see migration work as an opportunity, not a chore
Ownership mindset — as one of the first engineers on this team, you’ll take responsibility for systems end-to-end, propose tradeoffs, and collaborate closely with engineering leadership and a technical PM
Strong asynchronous communication skills, ensuring efficient and effective collaboration with remote team members
Experience with or strong interest in AI-driven prompt engineering and AI coding assistants

Nice To Haves

Digital advertising experience, particularly with ad serving, tag management, VAST, SIMID, OpenRTB, or programmatic platforms (strongly preferred)
Experience with edge computing (Lambda@Edge, CloudFront Functions, or equivalent CDN-level compute)
Experience with DynamoDB Global Tables or multi-region database replication
Experience with XML parsing and transformation in high-throughput contexts
Background in API design and operation (REST, HTTP services, idempotency, rate limiting)
Experience with caching strategies at the application and CDN layers
Experience with the Serverless Framework or similar IaC tools
Familiarity with geo-targeting, IP-based routing, or international ad delivery
Experience developing an enterprise or SaaS product
Previous experience in a startup environment

Responsibilities

Build and maintain KERV’s ad tag distribution services — a persistent Node.js backend that assembles and serves VAST ad tags to publishers and programmatic platforms at scale
Develop and operate serverless microservices that support dynamic ad serving, dynamic creative optimization, geo-targeted redirects, and tag validation workflows
Lead the migration and refactoring of core VAST API functionality from our legacy monolith into our dedicated tag server architecture
Optimize for performance and reliability across caching layers, proxy services, and multi-region data replication (DynamoDB Global Tables)
Help harden production systems: improve observability (CloudWatch, logging), error handling, alerting, and cost/performance tuning for globally distributed infrastructure
Contribute to architectural decisions, weighing long-term scalability against short-term delivery needs
Write clean, well-tested code that holds up under real-time ad traffic — reliability matters when your systems are serving live impressions at scale
Participate in team code reviews, sharing knowledge and learning from others
Participate in sprint planning, ensuring that realistic plans are set forth and delivered
Communicate effectively within the engineering team and with non-technical teams
Have the discipline to shift between establishing new features and maintaining legacy features based on the needs of the business

Benefits

Unlimited PTO with a healthy culture of taking time off to recharge so you can bring your best self to work
Competitive compensation packages
Comprehensive health and wellness benefits including modern support services via Bennie, such as a custom app and healthcare concierge to support a simplified benefits experience for our staff
Mental Health Support via Samata Health paid 100% by KERV
401K with company match and 100% vesting on day 1
Unlimited referral bonuses
Flexible working schedules with remote and hybrid opportunities
Fitness Reimbursement Program
“Moments that Matter” program, centered around our heart-centered value, which celebrates and supports employees through life’s biggest wins, transitions, and challenges — because at KERV, we show up for each other beyond just the work.

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