Senior Software Engineer

About the role

This role owns the backend systems that power in-game chat and messaging at global scale. Success requires balancing platform scalability with safety and reliability for global users.

Software engineers turn product ideas into working code. Engineers work in small teams, review each other's work, and ship in small batches. Most teams follow agile practices such as sprints and daily standups. Engineers also write tests, fix bugs, and improve performance. The field values clear communication as much as technical skill. Engineers spend part of every week on planning, code review, and debugging, not just writing new code. The ability to explain a technical decision in plain words separates strong engineers from the rest.

Key facts

What you'll do

Reliable messaging infrastructure processes billions of events daily so players can communicate in real time.

Backend APIs expose functionality that lets creators build deeply integrated social experiences inside their games.

Architectural decisions define fast, safe, and reliable communication modes that do not yet exist on the platform.

Ownership of features spans discovery, implementation, deployment, and long-term reliability in production.

Cross-functional collaboration with Game Engine, Creator, and Safety teams aligns system behavior and platform policies.

Mentorship guides team growth and supports increasing communication demands across Roblox.

Requirements

The posting states a pay range of $243290 to $295250.

Candidates bring 7+ years of experience building and operating large-scale distributed systems in production.

Systems fluency covers relational databases at scale such as SQL Server, MySQL, and PostgreSQL, plus threading, memory management, networking, and storage.

Protocol knowledge spans deep experience with HTTP, UDP, gRPC, and WebSockets for communication systems.

Analytical problem-solving quantifies tradeoffs and designs solutions that balance reliability, performance, and operational complexity.

Reliability practices involve designing for failure, writing thorough tests, and building systems that stay available under load and edge conditions.

Clear design specifications align cross-functional partners and guide projects from conception through launch and ongoing maintenance.

Professional conduct treats colleagues with respect, assumes good intent, and proactively supports peers to achieve shared outcomes.

A bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience is required for this role.

Nice to have

Experience with communication products, C++, ML model integration, or big data tools such as Spark, Airflow, and Hive is valued.

Practical notes

The company provides equal employment opportunity and may require work authorization checks related to U.S. visa categories for this role at this time.

Typical interview steps

Hiring for engineering roles usually starts with a recruiter screen, followed by one or two technical rounds. Candidates often solve a coding problem, discuss past projects, and answer system design questions. Some loops include a take-home task. Final rounds typically cover team fit and give candidates a chance to ask questions. Interviewers look for how you break down an unfamiliar problem, not just whether you reach the answer. Practicing a few problems aloud and reviewing your own past projects are the best preparation.

Good to know

The role centers on backend communication systems that handle high message volume at global scale.

Developers use languages and tools common in large distributed systems, including those for networking, databases, and integration with ML pipelines.

Reliability engineering, observability, and capacity planning are core to keeping communication services available.

Collaboration across game engine, safety, and creator teams ensures communication features align with platform policies and performance goals.

Work involves both deep technical design and cross-functional coordination in a fast-moving product environment.