Summary 

Wikipedia is where the world turns to understand almost any topic — The Wikimedia Foundation is the small nonprofit that operates the infrastructure behind Wikipedia.  We are looking for a great software engineer with a strong focus on data who wants to modernize the infrastructure underlying Wikipedia with distributed storage, services and REST interfaces.  If this excites you, we welcome you to join us.

Description 

• Collaborate with Product Owners, Engineers and stakeholders on product discovery and improvements of our existing systems
• Design and implement effective storage solutions and data models with reusability in mind.
• Articulate and curate the flow of information across our diverse range of systems
• Recommend solutions to improve new and existing storage and delivery systems
• Monitor system performance and identify, define, and implement internal process improvements and SLOs
• Analyse and determine service discoverability, capacity plans, and  availability
• Change the world for more than half a billion people every month ;)

Skills and Experience

• You have experience analysing, reasoning about, optimising and implementing complex systems, for example, large messaging platforms.
• You have experience with NoSQL and traditional databases.
• You have experience with Java and/or Scala and the willingness to use the right tool for the job, we use Nodejs, Python and Go where it makes sense.
• You enjoy writing unit tests, reviewing code, responding to code reviews and discussing architectural approaches.
• You have experience working with an engineering team, and can communicate effectively with other stakeholders.
• You have a track record of combining a solid long-term architectural strategy with short-term progress.
• With freedom comes responsibility. You direct your own work and are proactive in asking for input.
• You have a scientific mindset and empirically test your hypotheses.
• BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, or a related field or equivalent work experience

Pluses

• Experience working with microservice architectures
• Familiar with Streaming paradigms and Big Data Technologies (Kafka, Hadoop, Storm, Flink, Spark, etc)
• Experience with open source technology and free culture, and have contributed to open source projects
• Experience working remotely
• You know what it means to be a volunteer or to coordinate the work of volunteers
• Big ups if you are a contributor to Wikipedia
• Please provide us with information you feel would be useful to us in gaining a better understanding of your technical background and accomplishments

Show us your stuff! If you have any existing open source software that you've developed (these could be your own software or patches to other packages), please share the URLs for the source. Links to GitHub, etc. are exceptionally useful.

The Wikimedia Foundation is... 

...the nonprofit organization that hosts and operates Wikipedia and the other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world in which every single human can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe that everyone has the potential to contribute something to our shared knowledge, and that everyone should be able to access that knowledge, free of interference. We host the Wikimedia projects, build software experiences for reading, contributing, and sharing Wikimedia content, support the volunteer communities and partners who make Wikimedia possible, and advocate for policies that enable Wikimedia and free knowledge to thrive. The Wikimedia Foundation is a charitable, not-for-profit organization that relies on donations. We receive financial support from millions of individuals around the world, with an average donation of about $15. We also receive donations through institutional grants and gifts. The Wikimedia Foundation is a United States 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with offices in San Francisco, California, USA.

As an equal opportunity employer, the Wikimedia Foundation values having a diverse workforce and continuously strives to maintain an inclusive and equitable workplace. We encourage people with a diverse range of backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate against any person based upon their race, traits historically associated with race, religion, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy or related medical conditions, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or any other legally protected characteristics.

If you are a qualified applicant requiring assistance or an accommodation to complete any step of the application process due to a disability, you may contact us at recruiting@wikimedia.org or (415) 839-6885.

U.S. Benefits & Perks*

• Fully paid medical, dental and vision coverage for employees and their eligible families (yes, fully paid premiums!)
• The Wellness Program provides reimbursement for mind, body and soul activities such as fitness memberships, baby sitting, continuing education and much more
• The 401(k) retirement plan offers matched contributions at 4% of annual salary
• Flexible and generous time off - vacation, sick and volunteer days, plus 19 paid holidays - including the last week of the year.
• Family friendly! 100% paid new parent leave for seven weeks plus an additional five weeks for pregnancy, flexible options to phase back in after leave, fully equipped lactation room.
• For those emergency moments - long and short term disability, life insurance (2x salary) and an employee assistance program
• Pre-tax savings plans for health care, child care, elder care, public transportation and parking expenses
• Telecommuting and flexible work schedules available
• Appropriate fuel for thinking and coding (aka, a pantry full of treats) and monthly massages to help staff relax
• Great colleagues - diverse staff and contractors speaking dozens of languages from around the world, fantastic intellectual discourse, mission-driven and intensely passionate people

*Please note that for remote roles located outside of the U.S., we defer to our PEO to ensure alignment with local labor laws.

More information

Wikimedia Foundation
Blog
Wikimedia 2030
Wikimedia Medium Term Plan
Diversity and inclusion information for Wikimedia workers, by the numbers
Wikimania 2019
Annual Report - 2018 
This is Wikimedia Foundation 
Facts Matter
Our Projects
Fundraising Report