Graduate software engineer (Madrid)

About Bending Spoons

At Bending Spoons, we are driven by the ambition to build an exceptional company that serves a vast customer base, fosters employee potential, operates with unparalleled effectiveness and efficiency, generates extraordinary value for shareholders, and upholds high ethical standards.

Our strategy involves acquiring and long-term operating digital businesses, implementing deep transformations to accelerate innovation, benefit customers, and enhance business performance. We maintain a flat hierarchy with small, talent-dense teams, operating established products with startup-like agility and urgency. Artificial intelligence is deeply integrated into our workflows, merging human judgment with machine intelligence.

For individuals who are talented, driven, and collaborative, Bending Spoons offers a unique opportunity for rapid learning, significant impact, and accelerated career progression.

New Madrid Office Opportunity

As an early hire in our new Madrid office, you will play a crucial role in shaping its culture and energy, establishing our local working standards and collaborative spirit. You will be part of an integrated global team, contributing to our European hubs and beyond, while cultivating an environment in Madrid that mirrors our company's ambition and high standards.

Key Responsibilities

• Build impactful software: Take full ownership from conception to deployment, developing systems used by millions and scaling them into robust products.
• Leverage AI for amplification: Integrate advanced AI tools into your development lifecycle—design, implementation, testing, and documentation—to boost speed and maintain high standards for correctness, reliability, and maintainability.
• Master diverse technologies: Work across varied technology stacks with end-to-end responsibility, selecting the optimal tools for each challenge. You will apply technologies like monoliths, microservices, gRPC, REST, Kubernetes, Docker, Python, and Rust with thoughtful consideration for depth and purpose over fleeting trends.
• Relentless simplification: Critically evaluate all layers of complexity, enhancing architectures, pipelines, and codebases to create simpler, more scalable, and maintainable systems.

What We Look For

• Reasoning Ability: Demonstrate the capacity to solve complex problems with acquired knowledge, think from first principles, structure ideas clearly, resist biases, and identify crucial details.
• Drive: Exhibit extreme ambition, matching initiative, effort, and tenacity to your goals. Take deep responsibility for your work and consistently aim for a high standard.
• Team Spirit: Be a generous contributor without expectation of return, supporting the best ideas. Be willing to assist your team, demonstrating reliability, honesty, and transparency.
• English Proficiency: Possess strong reading, writing, and speaking skills in English.

What We Offer

• Talented Teams: Collaborate in small, results-oriented, autonomous teams with exceptionally bright individuals.
• Exceptional Growth: Benefit from an environment designed for individuals of outstanding potential, prioritizing their thriving. Our early-career Spooners lead products valued at hundreds of millions, with opportunities for significant roles in major projects.
• Competitive Compensation: Receive competitive pay and equity. Typical starting salaries are €66,065 elsewhere in Europe. Experienced candidates can expect €107,837–€188,848. Compensation is location- and impact-dependent, increasing with experience. Exceptional performers may receive offers beyond typical ranges. Participate in company value creation through discounted equity options. Potential 50% tax cut for relocation to Italy.
• Comprehensive Benefits: Enjoy flexible hours, remote work options, unlimited learning and training support, top-tier health insurance, a generous relocation package, parental support, and an annual retreat.
• Flexible Start & Part-Time: Flexible start dates and part-time options are available, even before graduation. Transition to full-time as you complete your studies, with arrangements that accommodate your education.

Commitment & Contract

Permanent or fixed-term. Full-time.

Location

Madrid, Spain.

The Selection Process

We prioritize verifiable signals of excellence over seniority. If you are passionate about the role and believe you can excel, don't hesitate to apply, even if you feel you lack experience or have an unconventional CV.

Successful candidates will undertake challenging tests that may cover unfamiliar subjects and require significant time investment.

We maintain high standards and only extend offers to candidates who meet our criteria, which may lead to extended hiring periods or reposting of the job.

We provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. Please inform us through the designated form.

Before You Apply

If you have applied previously without receiving an offer, we suggest reapplying after at least one year.

Bending Spoons is a demanding workplace with ambitious goals and high standards, leading to exceptional learning and career growth but requiring significant commitment.

To facilitate a quick ramp-up and ensure success, we recommend an initial few months in our Milan office, regardless of your long-term location. This immersion aids in rapidly absorbing our culture and building team trust. We provide relocation assistance. Post-immersion, you can choose to work from our Milan or London offices, or remotely from approved countries, as agreed during the offer stage.

If this role resonates with you and you are eager to contribute your best, apply now. We look forward to meeting you.

Key Skills/Competency

• Graduate Software Engineer
• Software Development
• AI Integration
• Technology Stacks
• System Design
• Problem Solving
• Ambitious
• Teamwork
• English Proficiency
• Ownership