Senior Software Architect

Recollective is a SaaS web application looking to dominate the online research space through innovative features and industry-leading usability. If you're passionate about web applications and like small agile teams—where you can make a significant impact—then Recollective is for you.

We are currently seeking a senior software architect with significant experience in overseeing complex web application development with a strong appreciation for the entire software development lifecycle. The ideal candidate is ready to help grow and mentor a hybrid team of in-house developers, remote team members and offshore talent.

Overview

We are looking for a Senior Software Architect to make educated high-level technical decisions and help us evolve and scale the Recollective platform. We are seeking someone to create innovative architectural and software designs, and guide our development team to promote consistent architectural principles. We are seeking a dynamic individual passionate about working with state-of-the-art technologies in backend/frontend software, databases, DevOps, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and more.

As a software architect, you will be collaborating with the Chief Technical Officer, head of product, engineering team members, external consultants, security experts and other stakeholders to gather architecture and system requirements, develop architecture designs, and conduct/supervise proofs-of-concepts as required. This role reports to the CTO and is open to remote employees with a preference for individual located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Background

We love building solutions that bring people together to connect, engage and collaborate with intuitive ease and reliability. The company was founded in 1998 but we pivoted to build and launch Recollective in 2010 and have been iterating it ever since.

Recollective has now been deployed by over 1000 of the world's top research agencies and brands to conduct qualitative research in nearly every industry from automotive, apparel, banking, beverages, consumer packaged goods, e-commerce, education, energy, entertainment, financial services, food, government, gaming, healthcare, hospitality, insurance, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, publishing, real-estate, retail, services, telecommunications, transportation, toys and technology.

We guarantee that you've used a product or service that has been studied on Recollective.

With support for over 25 languages, Recollective is hosted globally via Amazon Web Services. The application is built primarily in Java and runs on the MySQL database. Its intuitive interface is built in HTML5, JavaScript, CSS3 with new components built in Vue and Typescript.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain a deep understanding of Recollective by participating in all high-level decisions regarding the technical foundation and evolution of the platform
• Actively participate in the definition of a architectural and technology roadmap with a focus on the platform architecture, APIs, data stores, and user experiences
• Support the engineering team in achieving a high level of technical excellence and stability
  
• Help evolve and promote a modern tech stack to accelerate growth, while adhering to the business objectives and ensuring high productivity while lowering the cost of ongoing maintenance
  
• Actively participate in code and design reviews
  
• Assist the team with regard to security and compliance including data privacy, data security, internal and 3rd party compliance requirements (e.g adherence to OWASP)
• Assist the broader team in analyzing complexity, simplifying workflows, and identifying the right problems to solve
• Collaborate with QA, product management, UX, development, customer support, and other stakeholders to quickly understand their design needs and any business, product, or technical limitations that need to be considered for a scalable architecture and effective operations
• Support the engineering team as they deliver products that implement new solutions
• Develop high-level product specifications with attention to system integration and feasibility
• Provide technical guidance and coaching to developers and engineers

Required competencies

• Technical Skills: Experience with defining and scaling cloud-native web application software architectures.
• Problem Solving: Proactive in anticipating and resolving problems. Strong analytical and problem-solving skills to meet the requirements of the project are required.
• Interpersonal Skills: Ability to effectively communicate and work with various team members both internally and externally. Excellent verbal and written communication skills are required.
• Initiative: Seeks, accepts, and completes new tasks using own initiative; work independently with little supervision.
• Innovation: Continued exploration of the latest technology trends and promote their utilization where applicable.

Required skills and experience

• 10+ years of experience in a lead development role
  
• 5+ years experience with design architectural patterns
• Master’s/ Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/ Engineering or equivalent
• Extensive experience with Web technologies included but not limited to HTML, CSS, Java, JavaScript, Typescript, Vue, AWS services and MVC patterns
  
• Strong understanding of software quality assurance principles
• Experience with Database modeling, MySQL experience is considered an asset
  
• Experience in Cloud scalability, SaaS platform infrastructure cost optimizations, and best DevOps practices an asset
• Professional experience analyzing code for weaknesses and errors, and overseeing plans to improve them
  
• Understanding of AI and machine learning fundamentals
• Experience with global footprint: multi-region, legal compliance, and localization
  
• Experience with IT compliance and risk management requirements (experience with SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, etc). is an asset
• High-quality organizational and leadership skills
  
• Outstanding communication skills

Location

This position is open to candidates in all remote locations. The existing engineering team is located at beautiful new headquarters in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (World Exchange Plaza, 100 Queen St). Preference will be given to candidates in Ottawa and to those in time zones that are conducive to collaboration with the core team.

Benefits

We welcome you to join a fun but driven culture that promotes diversity and growth through an open and transparent approach to business. We offer competitive compensation, superior health benefits, RRSP matching, employee referral bonuses and many extras such as snacks, coffee and more.

Apply now

Qualified applicants are invited to submit a resume with a cover letter outlining how your skills and experience meet the above requirements.