The YouVersion Platform Staff Engineer designs and builds the APIs and backend services that power a growing ecosystem of third-party developers. This role takes an active hand in both writing production code and shaping technical direction - balancing hands-on engineering with mentorship and code review.
Deeply invested in the developer experience of external partners, this role brings API-first thinking and a commitment to quality that makes YouVersion Platform a joy to build on. Beyond the technical work, it is grounded in YouVersion's mission to help people engage with the Bible - and the conviction that a great platform multiplies that impact exponentially.
What You'll Do- Design, build, and evolve public API contracts with a focus on developer experience, scalability, and long-term maintainability.
- Write production-quality Python across backend services and APIs; JavaScript experience a plus, particularly for Apigee gateway scripting.
- Develop and maintain Apigee proxy configurations, shared flows, and gateway policies.
- Build and operate backend services in containerized, distributed cloud environments on Google Cloud Platform.
- Manage and optimize edge caching and traffic routing through Fastly.
- Monitor system health, diagnose issues, and drive resolution using New Relic.
- Drive PostgreSQL performance, query optimization, and scalability initiatives.
- Mentor engineers and provide guidance on best practices, code quality, and technical direction.
- Review, test, and approve code contributions, ensuring quality and consistency across the codebase.
- Evaluate task complexity and provide realistic estimates on level of effort and delivery timelines.
- Research and evaluate emerging technologies and industry best practices for potential adoption.
- Partner directly with external developers to gather feedback and improve developer experience.
Skills Needed to Succeed- Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills to maintain relationships and partnerships.
- Maintain a systematic and organized approach to completing assignments accurately, thoroughly, and timely.
- Clearly explain complicated and detailed processes in a concise and simple way.
- Ability to self-motivate, take initiative, make independent decisions, and problem-solve.
- Ability to collaborate in a team environment and work independently.
- Ability to maintain composure during stressful situations.
- Own technical design for projects and understands, and articulates, the tradeoffs in creating high-quality software.
- High School Diploma or GED.
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science required.
- 7+ years of related work experience.
Benefits We Offer- Paid parental leave, including maternity, paternity, and adoption leave.
- Generous employer-paid leave for the use of vacation, sick time, and other qualifying reasons.
- Innovative and comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance that provides team members with useful resources and savings to navigate their holistic health.
- Life insurance policy provided for all staff members at 2x annual salary at no cost. Additional life insurance coverage is available to purchase.
- Short-Term and Long-Term disability is covered at 100% for full-time qualified staff members.
- Comprehensive wellness and mental health benefits allow staff to proactively invest in their physical and emotional health.
- Generous 401(k) retirement plan allowing a team member to have up to 12.5% (including employee contribution, employer match, and employer discretionary contribution) contributed into their account in their first year. It doesn't stop there-the more years on staff, the greater the investment!
- $160 annually in development dollars for team members to invest in their professional growth.
- Casual dress and work environment.
- And much more!
All data collected in our application process, from resume collection to application questions, is used for recruitment purposes only.
