[Hiring] Staff Software Engineer - Search @Cars Commerce

Role Description

Join us in shaping the future of Automotive Commerce. Cars Commerce builds solutions for automotive dealerships, manufacturers, and consumers. Our driving force is to deliver a single platform that simplifies everything about buying and selling cars.

As a Staff Software Engineer on our Marketplace Engineering Team, you will help revitalize our customer-facing tooling across our platform with a comprehensive technical strategy to simplify and amplify these user experiences and the capabilities they enable. This is an exceptional opportunity to shape the future of our platform and drive meaningful change at scale, making a lasting impact within the automotive industry.

This is an exciting role because as a Staff Software Engineer with the Marketplace Team, you will help tens of millions of people find their perfect car match each year, with our 4.7 star rated Android and 4.8 star rated iOS apps being a critical part of our strategy.

• Lead the technical vision and execution for our consumer-facing search capabilities within our listings marketplace.
• Design, develop, and maintain robust Server-Driven UI (SDUI) APIs using GraphQL to enable dynamic, flexible client interfaces across mobile and web platforms.
• Write high-performance and reliable backend services utilizing languages such as Elixir, NodeJS, or Python.
• Drive the technical strategy for server-driven UI approaches, enabling rapid feature deployment and A/B testing without client updates.
• Explore and integrate agentic AI technologies to enhance search relevance, personalization, and intelligent recommendations.
• Collaborate closely with product managers, designers, and other engineers to define and deliver impactful search features.
• Ensure the performance, reliability, and security of the search platform.
• Contribute to code reviews, technical documentation, and knowledge sharing within the team.
• Mentor and guide junior engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence.
• Stay up-to-date with the latest trends and advancements in search technologies, backend development, and AI.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 10+ years of professional software development experience, with a significant focus on backend systems.
• Experience being a technical leader in a 100% remote environment, influencing stakeholders across design, engineering, and technology.
• Strong proficiency in Elixir or another functional programming language (e.g., Erlang, Haskell) and a willingness to learn Elixir quickly.
• Experience designing and implementing GraphQL APIs.
• Familiarity with server-driven UI concepts and implementation approaches.
• A strong interest in and understanding of agentic AI and its potential applications in search.
• Experience with AWS cloud platforms.
• Solid understanding of software engineering best practices, including testing, continuous integration, and continuous deployment.
• Excellent problem-solving, communication, and collaboration skills.
• A proactive and ownership-oriented mindset.

Requirements

• Experience with search technologies like OpenSearch, ElasticSearch, or Solr.
• Experience with machine learning and natural language processing techniques relevant to search.
• Contributions to open-source projects.
• Experience with performance tuning and optimization of large-scale distributed systems.
• Familiarity with front-end technologies (e.g., React, Redux, Android, iOS, etc).

Benefits

• Medical, Dental & Vision Healthcare Plans
• New Hire Stipend for Home Office Set-Up
• Generous PTO
• Refuel - a service based recognition program where employees receive additional paid time away to learn, grow, and reset
• Paid Holidays, Floating Holiday, Volunteer Day, Recharge Day

Salary Range

$154,200.00-192,750.00