Software Engineer

Overview
Azavea is a civic technology firm based in Philadelphia that uses geospatial data to build software and data analytics for the web. As a B Corporation, our mission is to use advanced geospatial technology for civic, social, and environmental impact. Most of our work deals with local governments, non-profit organizations, and academic or federal research projects.  We build custom web applications, perform geospatial analysis, and contribute to open source projects. Our engineers work across the technology stack, from modern browser-based front-ends to robust service-based backends residing on scalable infrastructure. Find out more about careers at Azavea here.

We are looking for a Software Engineer at the Engineer II or III level (mid-level) who is passionate about building applications that will have a positive impact.

  • An individual at the Engineer II level will take on tasks of increasing complexity without sacrificing efficiency or quality, demonstrate understanding of how their work fits into the bigger picture, exhibit a growth mindset by being responsive to feedback, and are capable of leading features or projects.
  • At the Engineer III level, an individual demonstrates expert competency within their primary area of expertise; owns large, cross-cutting features or entire projects with minimal oversight; builds relationships with and consensus amongst various stakeholders; and clearly communicates complex technical concepts to a wide range of audiences. 

Ideal candidates are interested in public service, but not necessarily in working for a government or a non-profit organization. We are interested in hiring someone located in Philadelphia (working full time in the office) or in the Mid-Atlantic region in order to support periodic trips to the office. Compensation aligns with the Philadelphia metro region. We’re excited about what we do, we’re growing, and we hope you will join us.

Skills & Requirements
As a Software Engineer on the Civic Applications team, you’ll be working alongside other engineers, project managers, and user experience designers to develop custom web software for our clients. Lately, we’ve been developing tools to model national water quality, monitor honeybee health across the country, and bring transparency to supply chains in the global apparel industry. 

Our applications are mostly written in JavaScript (React), Python (Django) and C# (.NET WebAPI). Almost all of our work revolves around maps and geospatial data. If you haven’t worked with geospatial technology before, don’t worry, many of our colleagues hadn’t when they joined us.

What you will do:

  • Write code to create APIs and web applications based on visual designs.
  • Create interactive data visualizations in our applications using maps, charts, and graphs.
  • Model relational data and develop data processing pipelines.
  • Engage in multidisciplinary work that applies an agile process.
  • Contribute to both a growing company and to the open source communities that support our work.

You should:

  • Have experience building applications using a modern web backend framework like Django, Rails, or Express.
  • Demonstrate proficiency with core web technologies (HTML/CSS/JS) and a contemporary web frontend framework like React, Vue, or Angular.
  • Be familiar with using and querying relational databases like PostgreSQL or MySQL.
  • Have a growth mindset and be excited to learn new technologies and skills.
  • Be comfortable with the command line and working in a UNIX environment.
  • Have excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
  • Be interested in working with small teams on meaningful projects.

Additional experience we find valuable (but not required):

  • Familiarity with open source or commercial GIS software like Leaflet, Mapbox GL JS, PostGIS, or ArcGIS Server.
  • Experience with a GitHub based workflow that includes pull requests and code reviews.
  • Delivering and operating applications using cloud platforms like AWS, GCP or Heroku.
  • Working with virtualization technology or containers.
  • Making technical decisions and owning outcomes.

You’ll notice that we don’t cite N years of experience or a Computer Science degree as requirements. Formal credentials like these are valuable, but we are primarily looking for people who have gained real-world experience successfully building sophisticated web applications. If you think this description fits you, even if your experience doesn’t match up perfectly with the technologies we’ve listed, we encourage you to apply. We do not use automated resume screening technology, and our employees review all applications that we receive.

A note on hiring during the COVID-19 pandemic 
Due to regulations in Philadelphia and our concern for the health and safety of our team, we will be conducting all interviews remotely for the foreseeable future. The majority of our colleagues generally work out of our Philadelphia office, but we have transitioned the entire company to remote work. If the office remains closed at the time of hiring, we have made arrangements for remote on-boarding, including shipping relevant materials and a laptop to yours home. We are fortunate to have invested in meaningful work-from-home tools and processes over the years, and have been able to continue providing a secure, flexible, and safe work environment for all of our colleagues. We ask for your patience as we adapt our hiring process as well, and are happy to answer any questions or concerns about the process.  

Office and Benefits
Our Philadelphia headquarters is located in a brightly lit office on the 5th floor of a converted factory building in the Callowhill neighborhood, a short walk from Center City, the Reading Terminal Market, and SEPTA subway and regional rail stations. For bicyclists, we have in-house bike parking, showers, and lockers. The office itself is assembled as an open office plan with several smaller rooms for team meetings and concentration time. You get your own desk with a high-end Linux workstation or Apple laptop and extra monitors. We have flex-time to deal with personal stuff, and most people work a 40 – 45 hour week on a regular schedule. After the first six months, our staff can also spend up to 10% of their time on an open source, professional development, or R&D project. Recent 10% time projects include experiments with machine learning, React Native, and various forms of serverless processing with Amazon Lambda.

We offer a salary commensurate with skills and experience and a benefits package that includes:

  • Fully subsidized health care, dental care, prescription plan, including for spouse/partner and children
  • Fully subsidized life and long-term disability insurance, plus voluntary short-term disability insurance
  • Medical reimbursement plan to cover what the health insurance does not
  • Retirement plan with matching percentage
  • Almost 4 weeks paid vacation plus additional paid sick/personal time off
  • Family and medical leave
  • Flexible work schedule
  • Paid maternity and paternity leave
  • Child care subsidy
  • Paid time off for voting and volunteering
  • Education assistance plan
  • Student loan assistance
  • Public transit and biking reimbursement plans
  • Monthly guest lectures with lunches on the company
  • 10% time for research or learning projects
  • Profit-sharing bonus plan
  • Financial transparency through an open book policy
  • Kind, capable and thoughtful colleagues

The deadline for this application is March 21, 2021.

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