Staff Software Engineer

Company Name: tastytrade 
Role: Staff Software Engineer – Web Platform Team 
Location: Chicago, IL - Hybrid 

As a Staff Software Engineer on our web trading platform, you'll be a technical architect and influencer—owning large-scale initiatives that shape the future of our client-facing applications. You'll partner closely with product, design, infrastructure, and risk teams to drive strategic decisions, mentor across squads, and ensure our platform remains performant, resilient, and innovative.  

What you'll do:  

• Lead the design of end-to-end solutions for our Svelte based trading client and core Java trading logic library, balancing modularity, performance, and maintainability.  
• Set coding standards, tooling choices, and best practices. Evaluate emerging frameworks, languages, and patterns—owning proof-of-concepts to validate fir for tastytrade. 
• Perform deep profiling of front end and back-end components; identify bottlenecks and guide major refactors or platform upgrades to support millions of daily trades with sub 100ms latency. 
• Collaborate with Product, UX, Infrastructure, and other teams to align on roadmaps, define release strategies, and ensure compliance with regulatory and risk requirements.  
• Provide hands-on technical mentorship to Senior and Principal Engineers. Lead architecture forums, brown-bag sessions, and design reviews that elevate the entire engineering organization. 
• Champion a "shift-left" mindset; driving test automation, CI/CD pipeline enhancements, and production observability (logging, tracing, metrics) to minimize incidents and accelerate feedback loops.  

Who you are:  

• Seasoned Architect: 8+ years of professional experience building and scaling complex web applications, with a track record of designing large scale, low latency systems.  
• Polyglot Proficiency: Mastery of modern web technologies (JavaScript/TypeScript, Svelte, HTML, CSS) plus strong backend fundamentals in Java, C++, or Ruby.  
• Strategic Thinker: Able to translate ambiguous business goals into clear technical roadmaps, balancing short term deliverables with long term platform vision.  
• Influencer & Mentor: Proven ability to drive consensus across teams, lead design discussions, and cultivate technical talent through direct coaching and code reviews.  
• Performance Obsessed: Deep understanding of front-end performance profiling, critical rendering path, and browser optimization techniques.  
• Quality Advocate: Committed to test driven development, robust CI/CD practices, and continuous improvement—always looking for ways to raise the bar.  
• Growth Mindset: Eager to learn new languages and frameworks, comfortable diving into unfamiliar stacks, and quick to ramp up on cutting edge technologies.  

Nice to Have  

• Experience in financial technology or trading systems 
• Contributions to open source projects or public speaking at technical conferences 
• Previous work with Svelte/Svelte Kit, Tailwind CSS 

Team Perks:

• Performance Bonuses
• Stock Purchase Options
• Medical/Dental/Vision Benefits
• Annual educational / conference stipend
• Sustainable workday with minimal on-call responsibilities
• 401k Plan
• 20 Paid Vacation Days (plus an additional paid vacation day the month of your birthday!)
• 10 Paid Sick Days
• Gym Membership Reimbursement
• Commuter Benefits
• Pet Insurance
• Wellness & Mental Health Programs
• Charitable Donation Matching
• Two Paid Volunteer Days Off
• Daily catered lunch when in the office
• Full kitchen with snacks and beverages
• In-building gym
• Shuttle to/from Metra
• Office located in the West Loop - Chicago's growing center of tech, great cuisine, and high-end bars

Salary Range: $200,000 - $225,000
The actual salary offered will be based on the candidate's level of experience and qualifications

About Us:

The tasty house of brands empowers individual traders differently. tastylive, founded in 2011, is an online financial media network, tastytrade (previously known as tastyworks) is a self-directed retail brokerage firm that launched in 2017, tasty Software Solutions and tastyfx, is a registered Forex broker-dealer. In 2021, London-based IG Group acquired tastylive, Inc. (previously known as tastytrade) and assigned it to lead business in North America. tastyfx is the fastest-growing forex broker in the US over the past few years. Changing the IG US name to tastyfx marks the next chapter, in aligning with the tasty brand family and offering a more forex-focused experience. This combined team has years of experience like institutional brokers, but also a passion for disrupting the entire trading industry.

Our dream is simple: we want more people to find more success with a better trading experience. That’s why we’re investing heavily in the right people, technology, and media to make that happen in the US and across the globe.

Location: Our office is in the West Loop - Chicago's growing center of tech, great cuisine, and high-end bars.

tastytrade | tastylive | tastyFX | tastycrypto
1330 W Fulton Market, Chicago, IL 60607

*Don't meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs unless they have every single qualification. Our team is dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!