Senior Staff Engineer
Job description
About the role
Freshworks is seeking a Senior Staff Engineer to contribute to their software platform based in Chennai. This position focuses on building and improving scalable, resilient systems that serve a global customer base across multiple industries. The engineer will collaborate closely with product teams and other engineers to define technical direction and implement critical features that impact millions of users. They will be expected to mentor junior team members, uphold engineering standards, and drive continuous improvement throughout the development lifecycle.
Key facts
What you'll do
Design and develop high-performance backend services that successfully support Freshworks product offerings
Lead the architectural planning for new features and existing system improvements
Collaborate with product managers to translate business requirements into technical specifications
Write clean, maintainable code and enforce coding standards across the engineering team
Conduct thorough code reviews and provide constructive feedback to fellow engineers
Troubleshoot and resolve production issues to ensure system reliability and uptime
Provide mentorship to junior engineers through pair programming and knowledge-sharing sessions
Evaluate new technologies and tools that can meaningfully improve development efficiency
Actively participate in on-call rotations to support critical services in production
Contribute to comprehensive documentation and technical design documents for future reference
Partner with quality assurance teams to identify and address performance bottlenecks
Drive refactoring initiatives to improve code quality and reduce technical debt
Coordinate with other engineering teams to ensure consistent implementation standards across products
Participate in sprint planning and estimation meetings to help prioritize the engineering backlog
Requirements
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related technical field is required
Strong hands-on experience with backend development and distributed systems design
Proficiency in at least one modern programming language such as Java or Python
Solid understanding of database systems including SQL and NoSQL technologies
Practical experience working with RESTful APIs and microservices architecture patterns
Practical familiarity with cloud platforms and containerization technologies in production environments
Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced and highly collaborative environment
Strong demonstrated track record of delivering complex projects on schedule
Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to communicate technical concepts clearly
Experience leading cross-functional engineering initiatives and managing competing project priorities effectively
Strong communication skills with the ability to present technical proposals to stakeholders
Willingness to travel occasionally to other offices or customer sites as needed
Nice to have
Prior experience working at a SaaS company or similar product organization is highly valued
Knowledge of event-driven architectures and message queue systems such as Kafka or RabbitMQ
Hands-on experience with automated testing frameworks and continuous integration pipelines is beneficial
Familiarity with agile development methodologies and sprint planning practices in a team setting
Experience contributing to open-source projects or publishing technical articles is a plus
Skills & tools
Proficiency in multiple programming languages such as Java, Python, or Scala
Deep understanding of distributed systems and modern microservices design patterns
Database management expertise with both SQL and NoSQL database solutions
Hands-on experience with major cloud infrastructure and container orchestration platforms
Experience with API design and integration with third-party external services
Experience with version control systems and collaborative development workflows in teams
Practical familiarity with monitoring and observability tools for production environments
Working knowledge of security best practices and application authentication protocols
Practical notes
This role is based in the Chennai office and requires regular on-site presence each working week
The position reports directly to the senior engineering leadership team within Freshworks
Candidates should be prepared for regular collaboration across global time zones with distributed engineering teams
The hiring process includes multiple technical interviews and a comprehensive system design evaluation round
Freshworks offers a supportive work environment with opportunities for professional growth and career advancement
About the company
Freshworks provides business software for customer support, IT service management, CRM, and marketing automation. Founded by Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy in Chennai, India in 2010, Freshworks went public on NASDAQ in September 2021.