Principal Backend Engineer, Collaboration Platforms

About ClickUp

At ClickUp, we’re not just building software; we’re architecting the future of work! In a world overwhelmed by work sprawl, we saw a better way. That’s why we created the first truly converged AI workspace, unifying tasks, docs, chat, calendar, and enterprise search, all supercharged by context-driven AI, empowering millions of teams to break free from silos, reclaim their their time, and unlock new levels of productivity. At ClickUp, you’ll have the opportunity to learn, use, and pioneer AI in ways that shape not only our product, but the future of work itself. Join us and be part of a bold, innovative team that’s redefining what’s possible! 🚀

ClickUp is a high-growth SaaS company building an all-in-one productivity platform. We've unified project management, document collaboration, chat, and more to help over 20 million users and thousands of teams work more efficiently. With over $300 million in ARR, we're scaling rapidly and solving complex technical problems to support our global user base.

The Opportunity: Principal Backend Engineer, Collaboration Platforms

At ClickUp, our real-time collaborative surfaces are at the heart of our product. We are looking for a pivotal technical visionary to own the architectural vision for these tools and set a new standard of performance and reliability for our enterprise customers.

This is fundamentally a distributed systems problem. You will be accountable for the core architecture that allows millions of concurrent users to collaborate with ultra-low latency. Your work will require a deep understanding of these real-time systems, including state consistency, concurrency models, and the trade-offs of CRDTs and operational transforms.

This isn't a role for a whiteboard architect. This is a hands-on stewardship opportunity to transform a complex, mature architecture into a world-class, unified platform. You will diagnose deep, cross-cutting root problems, design a pragmatic path to overhaul our core systems, and guide by doing. Your success will be measured by the tangible improvement in our product's performance and the lasting, positive impact you have on ClickUp’s engineering culture.

What You’ll Do:

• Own the long-term technical strategy for ClickUp’s core collaboration platforms, including real-time editing (RTE), live canvases, file uploads, and media streaming.
• Solve our most ambiguous architectural puzzles by diving deep across our full stack (Angular, Quill, WebSockets, Yjs, NodeJS, PostgreSQL, AWS).
• Cultivate operational excellence across the organization by implementing architectural patterns that improve the reliability of all our systems.
• Ship complex, multi-quarter initiatives that unify our collaborative surfaces and provide an innovative advantage in the enterprise market.
• Mentor the next generation of technical guides and elevate ClickUp's engineering culture through your guidance and influence.

Who You Are:

• You are a hands-on technical guide who thrives on solving complex problems that span frontend, backend, and infrastructure boundaries.
• You are a T-shaped engineer with deep expertise in at least one complex technical domain (e.g., real-time collaboration, media pipelines, distributed systems) and a proven ability to apply that depth to new areas.
• You don't just modernize legacy systems; you know how to transform them incrementally into scalable and maintainable platforms.
• You guide through influence, not authority. Your technical credibility and pragmatic communication allow you to align diverse stakeholders around a shared vision.
• You see a complex architecture not as a blocker, but as an opportunity to deliver transformative, lasting improvements.
• You have specific experience with collaborative technologies, which is a significant plus.
• You consistently solve the problems that others can't and are a catalyst for the teams you work with.

What We're Building Together:

As a rapidly scaling company, we are actively maturing our engineering practices. We are not looking for someone to simply fit into our culture; we are looking for a leader to help us build it.

• We build with intention. We believe that moving fast is about being iterative, pragmatic, and focused. You will advocate for clear engineering roadmaps and thoughtful planning to shield your teams from whiplash and create a stable environment for deep work.
• We trust our engineers with deep ownership and the empowerment to manage their work and time. We are looking for guides who can help us define and measure what truly matters: the impact we deliver to our users.
• You will foster a culture where quality and long-term value are prized above all else.
• You will be a key player in technical and professional growth in our teams. Your stewardship will be critical in creating a high-trust environment where engineers can take smart risks, have candid conversations, and learn from failures without fear of blame.

Key skills/competency

• Distributed Systems
• Real-time Collaboration
• Backend Architecture
• Node.js
• PostgreSQL
• AWS Cloud
• System Design
• State Consistency
• Concurrency Models
• Technical Leadership