Senior Software Engineer, iOS
Wikimedia Foundation · United States
- Hybrid
- Full-time
- $175,000 / year
- United States
Job highlights
- Lead iOS feature delivery and system design.
- Enhance mobile Wikipedia experiences globally.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams.
- Mentor engineers and elevate standards.
- Remote role with flexible UTC hours.
About the role
Senior Software Engineer, iOS
The Wikimedia Foundation is seeking a Senior Software Engineer, iOS to join the App Growth team within the Core Experiences engineering group. This role is integral to achieving the team's ambitious goal: making the apps the premier destination for knowledge enthusiasts and growing our active readership. The team is responsible for the cross-platform feature framework for the app, making critical decisions about feature placement and value unlocking.
Important: This is a fully remote position within a global organization. To facilitate effective communication, candidates must be available to work at least four hours per day between 14:00 UTC and 21:00 UTC.
Responsibilities
- Delivery and Enablement: Consistently lead the team in delivering medium-complexity initiatives, from technical discovery to final delivery, with appropriate support. This includes breaking down initiatives into features, driving estimations, and managing scope. You will identify risks early and help the team make pragmatic trade-offs concerning quality, velocity, maintainability, and user impact.
- Implementation: Enhance the mobile Wikipedia product experiences for a global, multilingual audience on iOS. You will lead system design for medium-sized projects and build accessible, adaptable, and scalable components.
- Quality, Testing, and Observability: Build and improve systems and software that are easy to test, observe, and debug. Instrument features to enable deeper analysis by Product Analysts.
- Cross-functional Collaboration: Partner with product managers, designers, analysts, and native app engineers to devise pragmatic solutions that balance user needs, technical constraints, platform expectations, and delivery timelines.
- Prioritization: Proactively identify high-impact technical opportunities and risks across a quarter, collaborating with the team to shape priorities and sequencing. Ensure the team remains aligned on outcomes, capacity, and shared goals.
- Mentorship: Actively support the growth and success of others by mentoring engineers through code reviews, technical designs, pairing, delegation of ownership, and modeling strong engineering judgment. Encourage team members to ask questions and raise concerns.
- Culture and Standards: Elevate team standards in code review, technical design, testing, documentation, accessibility, observability, and decision-making, fostering transparency, empathy, and collaboration.
- Operational Awareness: Plan work with an understanding of downstream and upstream effects. Actively contribute to hiring and onboarding processes.
Important Qualities
- Clear Communicator: Ability to explain ideas simply and adapt communication to diverse audiences (engineering, product, non-technical) across synchronous and asynchronous channels.
- Autonomy: Operate with high autonomy within a team setting and foster cross-team autonomy. Own work end-to-end and help establish a culture of responsibility.
- Feedback: Create a feedback-friendly environment, modeling constructive giving and receiving of feedback. Help resolve misunderstandings productively.
- Builds Strong Relationships: Proactively involve the right people in discussions, identify process improvements, and facilitate team ceremonies.
- Comfortable with Ambiguity: Thrive in ambiguous situations and collaborate to solve complex problems with pragmatic solutions, balancing trade-offs across related domains.
- Knowledge Sharing: Strengthen team knowledge-sharing practices and help others understand and apply shared knowledge. Enjoy collaborative problem-solving and are open to feedback.
- Outcome-Oriented: Prioritize work that delivers user value and aligns with organizational goals, balancing ideal solutions with constraints like legacy systems, user expectations, and delivery needs.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree and 5+ years of related professional experience, with significant experience building iOS applications.
- Strong professional experience and proficiency with Swift, SwiftUI, UIKit, and familiarity with iOS architectural patterns.
- Experience with iOS performance optimization techniques to ensure smooth, responsive, and high-performing applications.
- Experience working in a self-driven, lean environment.
- Commitment to the Foundation's Mission and Values.
Additionally, We Would Love It If You Have
- Experience adding webview-wrapped experiences to existing native mobile apps (iOS or Android).
- Experience in maintaining cross-platform mobile applications.
- Experience building mobile games or other interactive mobile experiences.
- Experience with data science, machine learning, and/or AI (e.g., prompt engineering, Jupyter notebooks).
- Familiarity with Wikipedia/wikitext/markdown editing or content management systems (e.g., MediaWiki, Drupal, WordPress).
- Experience leveraging agentic coding to scale the work of small engineering teams.
- Bachelor's, master's, or doctorate degree in computer science, management information systems, or a STEM field (or equivalent certification).
- Prior experience with MediaWiki or Wikimedia projects.
- A history of open-source contributions.
About The Wikimedia Foundation
The Wikimedia Foundation is the nonprofit organization operating Wikipedia and other Wikimedia free knowledge projects. Our vision is a world where everyone can freely share in the sum of all knowledge. We believe in empowering individuals to contribute to shared knowledge and ensuring free access to it. We host Wikipedia and Wikimedia projects, develop software for reading, contributing, and sharing content, support volunteer communities and partners, and advocate for policies that foster free knowledge.
As a charitable, not-for-profit organization funded by donations, the Wikimedia Foundation operates as a U.S. 501(c)(3) tax-exempt entity with offices in San Francisco, California. We welcome diverse workforces and foster an inclusive and equitable workplace, prohibiting discrimination based on various protected characteristics.
The Wikimedia Foundation is a remote-first organization with staff in over 40 countries. Salaries are competitive, equitable, and aligned with our values. The anticipated annual pay range for this position within the United States is US$113,082 to US$175,725, with exact compensation determined by factors such as cost of living, skills, experience, and location. For international hires, the pay range will be adjusted accordingly. Salary history is not considered. We are currently able to hire in specific U.S. States and Countries, listed on our careers page. Non-US employees are hired through a third-party Employer of Record (EOR) and require current work authorization in their location. All applicants can discuss specific pay ranges with their recruiter.
For applicants requiring assistance or accommodation due to a disability, please contact recruiting@wikimedia.org or +1 (415) 839-6885.
Key skills/competency
- iOS Development
- Swift
- SwiftUI
- UIKit
- Performance Optimization
- System Design
- Cross-functional Collaboration
- Mentorship
- Agile Methodologies
- Problem Solving
Skills & topics
- iOS Engineer
- Senior Software Engineer
- Swift
- SwiftUI
- UIKit
- Mobile Development
- App Growth
- Remote
- Nonprofit
- Tech
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight Swift, SwiftUI, UIKit, and iOS performance optimization experience. Emphasize your commitment to Wikimedia's mission and values.
- Craft a compelling cover letter: Articulate your passion for knowledge sharing and how your skills align with the Senior iOS Software Engineer role.
- Showcase open-source contributions: If applicable, provide links to your GitHub profile or other repositories demonstrating your contributions and coding style.
- Prepare for technical interviews: Be ready to discuss iOS architectural patterns, performance tuning, and system design scenarios.
- Emphasize remote work readiness: Demonstrate your ability to work autonomously and collaborate effectively in a distributed team, meeting UTC time requirements.
Technical preparation
Behavioral questions
Frequently asked questions
- What is the expected work arrangement for the Senior iOS Software Engineer role at Wikimedia Foundation?
- This Senior iOS Software Engineer position at the Wikimedia Foundation is a fully remote role. While remote, candidates must be available to work at least four hours per day within the 14:00 UTC to 21:00 UTC time window to ensure effective team collaboration across different time zones.
- What are the primary responsibilities of the Senior iOS Software Engineer at Wikimedia Foundation?
- The Senior iOS Software Engineer will lead the delivery of iOS features, enhance mobile Wikipedia experiences, and improve app performance. Responsibilities also include system design, cross-functional collaboration with product and design teams, mentoring other engineers, and upholding team standards in code quality and testing.
- What technical skills are essential for the Senior iOS Software Engineer role?
- Essential technical skills include strong proficiency in Swift, SwiftUI, and UIKit, along with a solid understanding of iOS architectural patterns. Experience with iOS performance optimization techniques is also crucial for ensuring responsive and high-performing applications.
- Does Wikimedia Foundation consider candidates with experience in cross-platform mobile development for the Senior iOS Software Engineer position?
- Yes, while the role is specifically for iOS, experience in maintaining cross-platform mobile applications is considered a plus for the Senior iOS Software Engineer position. Familiarity with Android development or webview integration can be beneficial.
- How does Wikimedia Foundation handle compensation for remote employees in different locations for the Senior iOS Software Engineer role?
- The Wikimedia Foundation adjusts compensation for the Senior iOS Software Engineer role based on the candidate's location. While the US-based range is provided, international salaries will be adjusted to the country of hire, considering factors like cost of living, skills, and experience. Salary history is not a factor in determining compensation.
- What is the importance of collaboration and communication in the Senior iOS Software Engineer role at Wikimedia Foundation?
- Collaboration and clear communication are highly valued. The Senior iOS Software Engineer will partner closely with product managers, designers, analysts, and other engineers. The ability to adapt communication to various audiences and foster a feedback-friendly environment is essential for success.
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