TikTok

Senior Backend Software Engineer - Innovative Growth

TikTok • $218K — $387K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field
  • 3+ years in backend engineering or distributed systems
  • Experience with large-scale backend services or consumer platforms
  • Background in content, growth, or experimentation systems
  • Proficiency in Go, Python, Java, or C++
  • Strong system design and software engineering skills
  • Good collaboration and communication skills

Responsibilities

  • Design and develop backend systems for content optimization
  • Drive growth initiatives in search and discovery traffic channels
  • Create AIGC solutions for content optimization and automated workflows
  • Enhance core growth systems focusing on scalability and reliability
  • Lead projects from design to production rollout, ensuring quality and business impact
  • Collaborate with product, data, and design teams on technical solutions
  • Contribute to engineering excellence through quality design and operational practices

Benefits

  • Day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance
  • 401(k) savings plan with company match
  • Paid parental leave and short/long-term disability coverage
  • Life insurance and wellbeing benefits
  • 10 paid holidays and 10 paid sick days annually
  • 17 days of Paid Personal Time per year, increasing with tenure
Full Job Description
Responsibilities We are building the next generation of growth and content optimization systems for TikTok, powered by AIGC technologies and innovative search and discovery strategies. Our mission is to drive user growth and improve user experience through intelligent content optimization, scalable backend systems, and new growth opportunities across evolving digital ecosystems. Our team operates at the intersection of product, data, engineering, and AI-driven content technologies, turning new ideas and technical advances into scalable, real-world growth solutions used by millions of users. We work closely with product, algorithm, data, and design partners to ensure that advanced technologies translate into measurable business impact and intuitive user experiences across TikTok surfaces such as Web, Lite, and other emerging platforms. Responsibilities - Design and develop backend systems that power user growth and content optimization across TikTok platforms - Drive innovative growth initiatives across search, discovery, and other emerging traffic channels - Develop AIGC-powered solutions and scalable systems for content optimization, experimentation, and automated workflows - Build and improve core growth and content systems with strong ownership of scalability, reliability, and performance - Lead complex projects end-to-end, from technical design to production rollout, with strong ownership of quality and business impact - Partner closely with product, data, algorithm, and design teams to deliver cross-functional technical solutions - Contribute to engineering excellence through strong technical design, code quality, operational best practices, and system reliability Qualifications Minimum Qualifications - Bachelor's degree or above in Computer Science or a related field - 3+ years of industry experience in backend engineering or distributed systems - Strong experience designing and building large-scale backend services or consumer-facing platforms - Experience working on content, growth, recommendation, experimentation, or search-related systems - Proficiency in one or more of the following languages: Go, Python, Java, or C++ - Strong system design, problem-solving, and software engineering skills - Good communication skills and the ability to collaborate effectively across teams Preferred Qualifications - Experience with AIGC, LLM applications, agent frameworks, AI coding tools, or workflow automation systems - Experience building data-driven optimization or experimentation platforms - Experience delivering user-facing products from concept to production in a fast-paced environment - Interest in search, discovery, and growth ecosystems, including areas such as SEO, GEO, or emerging AI-driven traffic channels - Experience with AI agents or agentic workflows, and interest in applying them to engineering efficiency and product development Job Information [For Pay Transparency]Compensation Description (Annually) The base salary range for this position in the selected city is $218400 - $387600 annually. Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies and experience, and location. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work, and this role may be eligible for additional discretionary bonuses/incentives, and restricted stock units. Benefits may vary depending on the nature of employment and the country work location. Employees have day one access to medical, dental, and vision insurance, a 401(k) savings plan with company match, paid parental leave, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, wellbeing benefits, among others. Employees also receive 10 paid holidays per year, 10 paid sick days per year and 17 days of Paid Personal Time (prorated upon hire with increasing accruals by tenure). The Company reserves the right to modify or change these benefits programs at any time, with or without notice. For Los Angeles County (unincorporated) Candidates: Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers and the California Fair Chance Act. Our company believes that criminal history may have a direct, adverse and negative relationship on the following job duties, potentially resulting in the withdrawal of the conditional offer of employment: 1. Interacting and occasionally having unsupervised contact with internal/external clients and/or colleagues; 2. Appropriately handling and managing confidential information including proprietary and trade secret information and access to information technology systems; and 3. Exercising sound judgment.

About TikTok

TikTok is a social media app that allows users to create and share short videos. The app was launched in 2016 by Chinese tech company ByteDance. TikTok has become one of the most popular social media apps in the world, with over 1 billion active users. The app has been downloaded over 2 billion times worldwide. TikTok has faced controversy over its data privacy practices and its potential ties to the Chinese government. In 2020, the app faced a potential ban in the United States, but a deal was reached with Oracle and Walmart to create a new company called TikTok Global.
Learn more about TikTok
Size
1,750 employees
Industry
Founded
2012

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