Staff Software Engineer (AI-Native Full-Stack)

Hi there :)

Thanks for checking in to find out about our open position. We´ll provide as much information as possible, but please feel free to reach us if you have further questions. We´ll be happy to see your application, even if there are skills you don't quite master!

About Us

At South Geeks, we engage top-performing Software Engineers, Security Experts, and Data Analysts from Latin America to join our clients' teams worldwide. For over 8 years, we've been helping future-shaping companies scale faster by curating world-class tech talent and building long-lasting, strategic partnerships. We pride ourselves on a people-centered culture that powers innovation, collaboration, and excellence.

About the Client

Our client is a fast-growing US-based edtech company whose platform powers school-family communication for over 22 million students across the country. Their engineering team is navigating an exciting architectural transition, while continuing to ship fast. This is a high-visibility role with regular interaction with the CEO and co-founders.

About the Role

We are looking for a Staff Software Engineer who operates with urgency and a "multiplier" mindset. This is an AI-native role: you should have fundamentally evolved your development workflow using LLMs and AI agents. The ideal candidate uses AI to bypass manual boilerplate, accelerate debugging, and ship clean, simple functionality at a pace traditional methods can't match. You'll be one level below Principal, but the expectations for technical leadership and architectural influence are high.

Key Responsibilities

• Partner with product, exec leadership, design, sales, and marketing to build the right things, as simply as possible

• Champion AI development practices and mentor the engineering org on using AI to increase sprint velocity and code quality

• Build and run systems that operate robustly at scale with the highest level of security

• Work with leadership to build a unified technical direction and a culture of excellence and speed

• Review PRs and design the future architecture of systems, including the evolution of legacy monolithic architecture toward a modern stack

What You Need to Succeed in This Role

• Mastery of large-scale services using Ruby, Python, JavaScript/TypeScript and PHP

• Deep knowledge of distributed systems, relational databases (MySQL/Postgres), and AWS infrastructure (Aurora, RDS, SQS)

• AI-native workflow: you treat AI (Cursor, Claude Code, etc.) as your primary partner in the development lifecycle — using it to bypass boilerplate and focus on deep architectural work

• Ability to represent the engineering team in high-stakes discussions with non-technical stakeholders

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Computer Science or a related field

Our Team

We strive to create an inspiring and growth-oriented environment where everyone feels valued, heard, and empowered. We promote both personal and professional development, with individualized support for your needs and concerns. We aim to build a space where everyone can thrive.

What We Offer

• 100% remote work

• Competitive payment in USD

This position is available for candidates based in LATAM.

• Highlight any AI‑focused full‑stack projects (e.g., React/Next.js front‑end + Python/Node back‑end with TensorFlow or OpenAI APIs) in your résumé and include a short demo link; South Geeks’ client values “AI‑native” expertise more than generic JavaScript experience.
• Build a one‑page “Excel for AI” showcase: a spreadsheet that pulls data from an API, runs simple model predictions via Power Query or Office Scripts, and visualizes results. Attach the file and a brief video walkthrough to demonstrate the exact Excel skill the posting mentions.
• Prepare a case‑study slide deck (2–3 slides) describing how you scaled a high‑traffic education platform, focusing on performance, security, and data privacy—areas South Geeks emphasizes for ed‑tech clients. Mention metrics (e.g., 30% latency reduction, 99.9% uptime).
• During the technical interview, be ready to discuss remote‑team collaboration tools (e.g., GitHub Actions, Slack, Notion, Miro) and show a concrete example of how you used them to coordinate AI model releases across time zones in Latin America.
• When negotiating salary, reference South Geeks’ 8‑year track record and the market premium for senior AI‑full‑stack engineers in remote Latin America (typically 15‑20% above US “remote‑first” benchmarks). Ask for a performance‑based equity or bonus tied to AI product milestones to align with the client’s growth goals.