[Remote] Staff Software Engineer, Ads+Promos at WhatNot

Kraków, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland

WhatNot Logo
Not SpecifiedCompensation
Senior (5 to 8 years)Experience Level
Full TimeJob Type
UnknownVisa
E-commerce, AdvertisingIndustries

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, a related field, or equivalent work experience
  • 8+ years (for Staff) or 10+ years (for Senior Staff) of backend/distributed systems engineering experience
  • Strong mastery of distributed systems fundamentals: consensus, partitioning, replication, coordination, sharding, state management, etc
  • Deep experience with high-throughput, low-latency services and stream processing (e.g., Kafka, Flink, etc.)
  • Strong software design, algorithmic, and data-structure skills
  • Proficiency in one or more languages (e.g., Python, Go) and scripting
  • Experience with messaging, caches (e.g., Redis, RocksDB), time-series stores, and data pipelines
  • Proven track record of leading architecture and scaling core systems under high load, especially in an ads, ranking, or ML context
  • Ability to make sound product decisions, navigate new domains seamlessly, take extreme ownership, and ship high-quality products fast
  • Low ego, growth mindset, and high-impact drive
  • Within commuting distance of our Kraków, Poland hub

Responsibilities

  • Architect, design, and lead the implementation of high-throughput, low-latency distributed systems that power ad delivery, ranking, signal pipelines, and attribution
  • Own core foundational services (e.g., storage, attribution, streaming pipelines, APIs) and drive their evolution, performance tuning, resilience, and scalability
  • Define and enforce architectural patterns, service contracts, fault-isolation, and capacity planning across teams that build on top of the Ads Foundation stack
  • Lead cross-functional initiatives to integrate new ad features or experiments into the foundational layers without sacrificing performance or safety
  • Mentor and guide senior engineers, lead code reviews, design reviews, and promote best practices in system design, testing, observability, and deployment
  • Participate in incident response, root-cause analysis, and post-mortem processes for critical system failures
  • Evangelize reliability, scalability, and simplicity across product-oriented ad teams; drive technical roadmap, trade-offs, and de-risking strategies
  • Understand buyer and seller experiences and become an expert in helping them effectively scale their business through ads & monetization products

Skills

Distributed Systems
High-Throughput Systems
Low-Latency Systems
Ad Delivery
Ranking
Signal Pipelines
Attribution
Storage Systems
Streaming Pipelines
APIs

WhatNot

Online marketplace for authentic collectibles

About WhatNot

Whatnot.com operates as an online marketplace dedicated to collectibles, particularly focusing on items like Funkos and FiGPiNs. The platform ensures that every collectible listed is 100% authentic through a rigorous verification process that includes hand authentication, providing trust and security for both buyers and sellers. It caters to collectors and enthusiasts who seek a reliable space to buy and sell rare and exclusive items from popular franchises such as Marvel Comics and Star Wars. Whatnot.com distinguishes itself from competitors by charging low fees on sales and offering seller protection, which guarantees prompt and secure payments. The company's goal is to create a trusted environment for the growing community of collectible enthusiasts, facilitating safe and easy transactions for unique items.

Marina del Rey, CaliforniaHeadquarters
2019Year Founded
$728.7MTotal Funding
SERIES_ECompany Stage
Consumer Software, Consumer GoodsIndustries
501-1,000Employees

Benefits

Competitive base salary and stock options
Unlimited Vacation Policy and No Meeting Holidays
Health Insurance options including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life, Short term disability & Long term Disability
Work From Home Support
Up to $500 monthly to spend within Whatnot App
Care benefits

Risks

Increased competition from TikTok Shop may impact Whatnot's market share.
The collectibles market's volatility could affect Whatnot's sales and inventory.
Expansion into new categories may dilute Whatnot's specialized brand identity.

Differentiation

Whatnot offers a unique marketplace for 100% authenticated collectible items.
The platform integrates live shopping with entertainment, enhancing user engagement.
Whatnot's partnerships with major franchises like Marvel boost its market appeal.

Upsides

Whatnot's $265M funding round supports expansion and new product categories.
The platform's collaboration with PSA enhances trust through integrated authentication services.
Rising interest in live shopping among younger demographics drives Whatnot's growth.

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