Demo

Staff Software Engineer

kadence
San Mateo, CA Full Time
POSTED ON 4/15/2026
AVAILABLE BEFORE 5/14/2026

AI startup building a platform that helps construction teams search, compare, and select materials by consolidating specs, pricing, and vendor data from fragmented sources


Job Duties

  • Own the most complex cross-team technical problems across data models, service boundaries, performance, and security, especially where there is no clear ownership
  • Shape technical strategy by translating business goals into engineering direction and constraints
  • Stay hands-on by writing code, owning critical systems, and driving execution end to end
  • Define and scale AI-augmented development practices using tools like Claude Code and CodeRabbit, ensuring high-quality output
  • Lead long-term architectural decisions and guide system evolution as the company scales
  • Set and enforce a high quality bar through testing, code review, and direct validation of critical systems
  • Mentor and elevate engineering leads by influencing how they approach architecture and system design
  • Partner with engineering leadership and product to challenge assumptions and improve solutions
  • Establish and maintain engineering standards, workflows, and playbooks that scale across the organization


Qualifications

  • 10 years of full stack engineering experience with a track record of building and scaling production systems
  • Experience operating at Staff level or above with strong ownership across ambiguous, cross-functional problems
  • Systems thinker with deep understanding of how data models, APIs, and architecture interact
  • Strong experience using AI tools in development with clear opinions on their impact at scale
  • Proven ability to improve the performance and thinking of other engineers, especially senior and lead levels
  • Comfortable working in undefined, fast-moving environments and driving clarity from ambiguity
  • Strong product and business mindset with a focus on building impactful, scalable solutions
  • Experience shaping technical direction at a high-growth startup preferred
  • Track record of leading large-scale architectural decisions or migrations across teams

Salary.com Estimation for Staff Software Engineer in San Mateo, CA
$126,389 to $153,804
If your compensation planning software is too rigid to deploy winning incentive strategies, it’s time to find an adaptable solution. Compensation Planning
Enhance your organization's compensation strategy with salary data sets that HR and team managers can use to pay your staff right. Surveys & Data Sets

What is the career path for a Staff Software Engineer?

Sign up to receive alerts about other jobs on the Staff Software Engineer career path by checking the boxes next to the positions that interest you.
Income Estimation: 
$97,257 - $120,701
Income Estimation: 
$123,167 - $152,295
Employees: Get a Salary Increase
View Core, Job Family, and Industry Job Skills and Competency Data for more than 15,000 Job Titles Skills Library

Job openings at kadence

  • kadence San Carlos, CA
  • ABOUT THE POSITION We’re hiring a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer to help enterprise customers implement AI-powered communication workflows. This role sit... more
  • 5 Days Ago

  • kadence San Francisco, CA
  • About You You’re a strong backend engineer who thrives in environments with high ownership and high expectations. You’ve built and maintained production sy... more
  • 5 Days Ago


Not the job you're looking for? Here are some other Staff Software Engineer jobs in the San Mateo, CA area that may be a better fit.

  • Motive Software San Francisco, CA
  • Let’s face it, a company whose mission is human transformation better have some fresh thinking about the employer/employee relationship. We do. We can’t cr... more
  • 12 Days Ago

  • Beacon Software San Francisco, CA
  • Beacon Software is a permanent capital holding company which acquires and grows essential businesses. We are a profitable series B firm that combines great... more
  • 2 Days Ago

AI Assistant is available now!

Feel free to start your new journey!