Software Engineer - Backend (Python)

Overview

About The Company : At Scribd (pronounced “scribbed”), our mission is to spark human curiosity. We aim to create a world of stories and knowledge, democratize the exchange of ideas and information, and empower collective expertise through our products : Everand, Scribd, Slideshare, and Fable.

We foster a culture where employees can be real and bold, debate and commit, and take action with customer focus. Scribd Flex lets employees choose a daily work-style with their manager; however, occasional in-person attendance is required for all Scribd employees, regardless of location.

We look for team members who demonstrate GRIT : the combination of passion and perseverance toward long-term goals. The acronym GRIT outlines our standards : Goals, Results, Innovation, and Team through collaboration and attitude.

Role Overview

We’re seeking a Software Engineer II with deep experience building event-driven, distributed, and scalable systems in Python. You will design and optimize large-scale data and service pipelines on AWS to support Scribd’s content enrichment and metadata systems. You’ll collaborate with cross-functional teams to design reliable backend services that integrate machine learning models and LLM-based components when needed. This role offers the opportunity to work on cutting-edge generative AI and metadata enrichment problems at a global scale.

Tech Stack

Backend systems are primarily Python-based, leveraging AWS services such as Lambda, ECS, SQS, and ElastiCache for event-driven and distributed processing. Other tools include Airflow, Spark, Databricks, Terraform, and Datadog for orchestration, data processing, and observability.

Key Responsibilities

Design and implement event-driven, distributed systems to extract, enrich, and process metadata from large-scale document and media datasets.

Build and maintain scalable APIs and backend services for high-throughput content processing.

Leverage AWS services (ECS, Lambda, SQS, ElastiCache, CloudWatch) to design and deploy resilient, high-performance systems.

Collaborate with cross-functional teams to deliver backend solutions that power ML-driven features.

Optimize and refactor existing backend systems for scalability, reliability, and performance.

Ensure system health and data integrity through monitoring, observability, and automated testing.

Requirements

5+ years of professional software engineering experience on Python or distributed systems development.

Strong proficiency in Python (3+ years). Experience with Scala is a plus.

Proven experience designing and building event-driven, distributed, and scalable systems.

Hands-on experience with AWS services (ECS, Lambda, SQS, SNS, CloudWatch, etc.).

Experience with infrastructure-as-code tools like Terraform.

Solid understanding of system performance, profiling, and optimization.

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or equivalent professional experience.

Bonus : Familiarity with data processing frameworks (Spark, Databricks) and workflow orchestration tools.

Bonus : Experience integrating ML or LLM-based models into production systems.

Salary and Benefits : This role offers a compensation package with a base salary that varies by location. See below for approximate ranges by region. This position is eligible for a competitive equity ownership and a comprehensive benefits package.

Salary Ranges

United States (non-California) : $103,500 – $186,500; California : $126,000 – $196,000. Canada : $131,500 CAD – $174,500 CAD. Salary ranges reflect local labor benchmarks and may vary by level and location. The final offer accounts for experience, skills, and organizational needs.

Working at Scribd

Are you based in a location where Scribd can employ you? Primary residence must be in or near one of the following cities, including surrounding metro areas within typical commuting distance : United States (Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Dallas, Denver, Chicago, Houston, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C.), Canada (Ottawa, Toronto, Vancouver), and Mexico City.

Benefits, Perks, and Wellbeing

Healthcare Insurance Coverage (Medical / Dental / Vision) : 100% paid for employees

12 weeks paid parental leave

Short-term / long-term disability plans

401k / RSP matching

Onboarding stipend for home office peripherals + accessories

Learning & Development allowance and programs

Quarterly stipends for Wellness, WiFi, etc.

Mental health resources

Free Scribd product subscriptions

Referral bonuses and book benefits

Sabbaticals and company-wide events

Team engagement budgets and flexible time off

Volunteer days and inclusive Employee Resource Groups

Access to AI tools to boost productivity

Want to learn more about life at Scribd? See Scribd on LinkedIn. We strive to make our interview process accessible and welcome reasonable accommodations at any point in the process by emailing accommodations@scribd.com.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity of thought and experience. We encourage applicants from all backgrounds to apply and are committed to an inclusive workplace.

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