Software Backend Engineer

Requirements

• 3+ years of backend software engineering experience
• Proven ability to build and scale distributed systems that serve millions of users in real-time or gaming environments
• Strong proficiency in one or more backend languages (e.g., Go, Python, Node.js, Java), and an understanding of trade-offs between them
• Solid knowledge of databases (both SQL and No
  
  SQL), caching strategies, and message queues (e.g., Kafka, Rabbit
  
  MQ, Pub/Sub)
• Comfortable designing and maintaining RESTful and/or graphql APIs, data models, and internal tooling
• Cloud experience (AWS, GCP, or similar), with familiarity with containers (Docker) and orchestration (Kubernetes a plus)
• Strong product mindset—you care about the why, not just the how, and you build with users in mind
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills
• Bonus:
  Proficiency in Elixir
• Bonus:
  Passion for sports, gaming, or building multiplayer or real-time systems

• We're looking for a Software Engineer - Backend to help us scale the core systems behind our fantasy sports and DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) offerings
• In this role, you'll build and own critical backend services, and collaborate with fellow engineers as we scale to support tens of millions of passionate sports fans
• You'll collaborate cross-functionally to bring innovative features to life—from real-time contest engines and game logic to personalized content and secure, seamless payments
• You'll own significant parts of the backend stack and help raise the bar for performance, scalability, and reliability at Sleeper
• Design and build core backend systems that power Sleeper's games and real-time user experiences—fantasy contests, Sleeper Picks, user profiles, leaderboards, and more
• Build scalable, distributed systems capable of handling millions of concurrent users with low latency and high availability
• Own backend initiatives from concept to deployment, ensuring clean interfaces, well-documented services, and resilient infrastructure
• Optimize system performance and proactively address bottlenecks through monitoring, profiling, and capacity planning
  
  Collaborate cross-functionally with product, design, and frontend teams to deliver features that users love
• Contribute thoughtful code reviews and help strengthen backend engineering best practices and standards