Backend Software Engineer; Python

Overview

Backend Software Engineer (Python) at Scribd, Inc. Join to apply for the Backend Software Engineer (Python) role at Scribd, Inc.

At Scribd (pronounced “scribbed”), our mission is to spark human curiosity. We 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 support a culture where employees can be real and bold; we debate and commit as we embrace plot twists; and every employee is empowered to take action as we prioritize the customer. Scribd Flex allows employees to choose daily work-style in partnership with their manager, with occasional in-person attendance required for all employees, regardless of location.

We hire for “GRIT” — Goals, Results, Innovation, and Team collaboration and attitude.

The ML Data Engineering team powers metadata extraction, enrichment, and content understanding across Scribd brands. We process hundreds of millions of documents, billions of images, and deliver high-quality metadata for content discovery and trust. We work at scale across data types and deploy scalable ML and LLM-powered solutions in production. We are 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, collaborating with cross-functional teams to integrate ML models and LLM components when needed.

Backend systems primarily in Python, using AWS (Lambda, ECS, SQS, Elasti Cache) for event-driven processing. Additional tools include Airflow, Spark, Databricks, Terraform, and Datadog for orchestration, data processing, and observability.

• 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 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.

• 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, Cloud Watch, 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 ranges are determined by location and level. Examples include:
California: $126,000–$196,000; US (outside CA): $103,500–$186,500;
Canada: CAD 131,500–CAD 174,500. This position is eligible for equity and a comprehensive benefits package. Benefits include health insurance, parental leave, disability plans, 401k/RSP matching, home office stipends, Learning & Development allowances, wellness stipends, mental health resources, product subscriptions, and more.

Are you based in a location where Scribd can employ you? Primary residence requirements apply to listed cities in the United States, Canada, and Mexico with surrounding metro areas or typical commuting distances.

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. Mexico:
Mexico City.

• Benefits/perks vary by employment type and location.
• Health coverage (Medical/Dental/Vision) fully paid for employees.
• 12 weeks paid parental leave; disability plans.
• 401k/RSP matching; onboarding stipend for home office setup.
• Learning & Development allowances; quarterly wellness stipends; mental health resources.
• Free Scribd product subscriptions; referral bonuses; book benefits; sabbaticals; team budgets.
• Company-wide events and ERGs promoting diversity and inclusion.
• Access to AI tools to boost productivity.

We are committed to equal employment opportunity and encourage applicants from all backgrounds. For adjustments during the interview process, please email