Staff Software Engineer, Community Platform

The Washington Post

86d • $131,500 - $219,100

About The Position

The Washington Post is hiring a Staff Software Engineer to steer our community platform. This role is responsible for architectural direction and implementation of new end-user-facing features. As a staff engineer, you will work closely with a full stack engineering team and high-level product stakeholders. This position requires a seasoned engineer who can guide product direction and own technical decision-making, particularly in designing and scaling large-scale community-driven applications where user experience, safety, and scalability are critical.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, related field, or equivalent experience.
• 8+ years of experience as a software engineer, including architecting and scaling community-focused applications (social, discussion, or user-generated content platforms).
• Experience with front-end technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, and proficiency with frameworks like Next.js, Astro, and React.
• Strong command-line skills (Unix/Linux) and version control experience (Git).
• Familiarity with DevOps technologies such as Docker and Jenkins.
• Experience working with designers and applying design frameworks.
• Broad experience with databases, with MongoDB and MySQL/Postgres preferred.
• Experience with AWS technologies including ECS, Lambda, and S3.
• Proven ability to write unit and integration tests to maintain code quality.
• Excellent communication, documentation, and presentation skills for both technical and business audiences.

Responsibilities

• Own the technical direction of the community platform to ensure scalability and stability.
• Architect and implement systems that support user-driven community interactions such as discussions, feeds, notifications, and moderation workflows.
• Guide engineers in the design and implementation of new features to deliver high-quality user experiences.
• Translate business goals into technical requirements and delegate tasks effectively to keep projects on track.
• Partner with engineering, product, and news stakeholders to prioritize milestones, mitigate risks, and deliver critical projects on time.
• Establish architectural best practices and standards that maintain resilience and long-term system quality.
• Define and promote engineering excellence, setting expectations for testing, documentation, and maintainability.
• Provide vision on technology usage and drive forward engineering goals to support The Post’s broader platform objectives.

Benefits

• Competitive medical, dental and vision coverage
• Company-paid pension and 401(k) match
• Three weeks of vacation and up to three weeks of paid sick leave
• Nine paid holidays and two personal days
• 20 weeks paid parental leave for any new parent
• Robust mental health resources
• Backup care and caregiver concierge services
• Gender affirming services
• Pet insurance
• Free Post digital subscription
• Leadership and career development programs

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: Bachelor's degree
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees