Senior Software Engineer (Guarded OS)

About the Role

As a key member of the GuardedOS team, the Senior Software Engineer will play a significant role in ensuring the reliability, performance, and security of Chainguard OS packages. This will involve collaborating with cross-functional teams, including engineering, product, and customer support, to identify and prioritize project requirements, and developing and implementing solutions to meet those needs.

The successful candidate will be self-motivated, with a strong ability to work independently and communicate effectively in a remote-first environment. They will also be comfortable with ambiguity, able to turn complex problems into actionable plans, and execute those plans without compromising on quality or reliability.

What You Will Do

• Operate and develop the Elastic Build service, ensuring reliability, performance, and multi-architecture support
• Maintain and improve Melange, focusing on usability, testing, patch management, and observability
• Design and build automation for rebuild and review workflows, minimizing manual intervention and maximizing efficiency
• Support shared library transitions using build-time and runtime dependency analysis
• Develop monitoring, dashboards, and alerting systems to ensure timely identification and resolution of issues
• Create automated responses to common failure modes, reserving human attention for novel problems
• Define and deliver a roadmap for build and update services within the OS team
• Document systems thoroughly, reducing single points of knowledge and ensuring smooth knowledge transfer
• Contribute to distro-level package updates, keeping Chainguard OS up-to-date and secure

What We Are Looking For

• 4+ years of software engineering experience, with a focus on backend or distributed systems
• Strong programming skills in Go, with experience writing production services and custom controllers
• Hands-on experience operating production services at scale, including incident response and system improvement
• Familiarity with Kubernetes, Cloud Run, and cloud-native service design
• Experience with GCP services, including BigQuery, IAM, and Cloud Logging
• Strong debugging and problem-solving skills, with the ability to communicate complex issues effectively
• Ability to work independently and collaborate remotely with cross-functional teams
• Experience with Terraform and CI/CD pipelines, with a focus on automation and efficiency

Nice to Have

• Experience contributing to or maintaining build, packaging, or tooling projects
• Observability and monitoring experience, including Grafana, Prometheus, and Cloud Logging
• Familiarity with Linux build or packaging systems, including dependency management and rebuild automation
• Experience with ARM64 build environments and Looker Studio for data analysis

Benefits and Perks

• Competitive salary and benefits package
• Opportunity to work with a leading company in the open source software industry
• Collaborative and dynamic work environment, with a focus on remote work and flexible scheduling
• Professional development opportunities, including training and conference attendance
• Access to cutting-edge technologies and tools, including Kubernetes, Cloud Run, and GCP services
• Comprehensive health insurance and wellness programs, including mental health support and employee assistance
• Generous PTO and holiday allowance, with flexible scheduling to support work-life balance
• Remote work stipend and home office setup support, to ensure a comfortable and productive work environment

• Focus on showcasing your experience with Go, Kubernetes, and cloud-native service design, as these are key skills for the role.
• Be prepared to discuss your approach to system design, including automation, monitoring, and debugging, and how you would implement these in a production environment.
• Highlight your ability to work independently and communicate effectively in a remote-first environment, including experience with collaboration tools and distributed teams.
• Emphasize your understanding of the importance of security, scalability, and reliability in software development, and how you would ensure these in your work.
• Consider including examples of your experience with build, packaging, or tooling projects, as well as your familiarity with Linux build or packaging systems.
• Prepare to discuss your experience with data analysis tools, including Looker Studio, and how you would apply these in a software engineering context.