Founding Engineer - Backend & Data Platform ($175k-$225k + Equity) at Fintech startup trusted by Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan
Jack & Jill · United States
- Hybrid
- Full-time
- $225,000 / year
- United States
Job highlights
- Architect core infrastructure for fintech mortgage lending.
- Own end-to-end data lifecycle and ML pipelines.
- Shape product trusted by major financial institutions.
- Founding team member with significant influence.
- High-agency, fast-paced startup environment.
About the role
Founding Engineer - Backend & Data Platform
This is a job that Jill, our AI Recruiter, is recruiting for on behalf of one of our customers. She will pick the best candidates from Jack's network. The next step is to speak to Jack.
Job Description
As the founding backend and data platform engineer, you will architect the infrastructure that powers non-traditional mortgage lending. You'll own the end-to-end data lifecycle—from ingesting banking and tax data via Plaid and Finicity to building canonical models and ML-ready pipelines. This high-agency role involves shaping the core product used by major global financial aggregators.
Company Description
Fintech startup automating mortgage lending for self-employed borrowers, backed by industry leaders and trusted by Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley.
Location
San Francisco, Austin, NYC, Remote
Why this role is remarkable
- Significant architectural influence as a founding team member, building greenfield infrastructure for a product already trusted by Goldman Sachs, JPM, and Morgan Stanley.
- High-agency environment led by a team from Airtable and Opendoor, operating with a flat structure where engineers participate in the entire product lifecycle.
- Aggressive equity upside in a fintech solving a massive market gap for 76 million self-employed Americans who are currently underserved by traditional lenders.
What You Will Do
- Design and operate resilient data ingestion and normalization pipelines for complex financial sources including banking, tax transcripts, and accounting platforms.
- Build core platform infrastructure including authentication, webhooks, rate limiting, and vendor-agnostic abstraction layers to ensure system reliability and scalability.
- Develop in-house feature extraction pipelines and productionize ML models for income categorization, anomaly detection, and automated financial insights.
The ideal candidate
- Senior or Staff-level engineer with deep experience building data-centric products from infancy, specifically involving complex Postgres schema design and SQL migrations.
- Practical experience consuming ML models via APIs/SDKs and building the supporting feature pipelines, though this is an engineering rather than research-focused role.
- Proficient in TypeScript and modern backend architectures, with a strong bias toward shipping and experience working in fast-paced, early-stage startup environments.
Key skills/competency
- Founding Engineer
- Backend Development
- Data Platform
- Fintech
- Infrastructure
- Postgres
- SQL Migrations
- TypeScript
- ML Pipelines
- Startup Environment
Skills & topics
- Founding Engineer
- Backend Engineer
- Data Platform Engineer
- Fintech
- Mortgage Lending
- Infrastructure
- Postgres
- TypeScript
- Machine Learning
- Startup
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight experience with data-centric products, Postgres, SQL migrations, and TypeScript.
- Showcase startup experience: Emphasize your ability to ship and thrive in fast-paced environments.
- Prepare for technical interviews: Brush up on backend architecture, data pipelines, and ML integration.
- Understand the company: Research fintech, mortgage lending, and their key partners like Goldman Sachs.
- Engage with Jack & Jill: Utilize their AI network for introductions and interview support.
Technical preparation
Master Postgres schema design and SQL migrations.,Build resilient data ingestion and normalization pipelines.,Develop TypeScript backend architectures.,Integrate ML models and feature pipelines.
Behavioral questions
Describe building a data platform from scratch.,How do you handle ambiguity in early stages?,Share an experience of influencing architecture.,How do you collaborate across product lifecycle?
Frequently asked questions
- How does the Jack & Jill recruiting process work for the Founding Engineer role at Jack & Jill?
- The Jack & Jill process involves Jill, an AI Recruiter for the company, identifying suitable candidates from Jack's network. If there's a match, Jack will facilitate an introduction to the company for the Founding Engineer position.
- What is the expected salary and equity for the Founding Engineer - Backend & Data Platform role?
- The Founding Engineer role offers a competitive salary range of $175,000 - $225,000, plus significant equity. This reflects the crucial founding team position and the startup's growth potential.
- What specific technical skills are most important for the Founding Engineer at Jack & Jill?
- Key technical skills for this Founding Engineer role include deep experience with complex Postgres schema design and SQL migrations, proficiency in TypeScript, modern backend architectures, and building data-centric products and ML-ready pipelines.
- Can I apply for the Founding Engineer role if I am not in San Francisco, Austin, or NYC?
- Yes, the Founding Engineer position is listed as Remote, offering flexibility in location for qualified candidates.
- What kind of impact will I have as a Founding Engineer at this Fintech startup?
- As a founding engineer, you will architect the core infrastructure, own the end-to-end data lifecycle, and shape the product used by major financial institutions, playing a pivotal role in the company's success.
- Is experience with ML models required for the Founding Engineer role?
- Practical experience consuming ML models via APIs/SDKs and building supporting feature pipelines is beneficial for this Founding Engineer role. However, the focus is on engineering rather than research.
- What does it mean to have 'high-agency' in this Founding Engineer role?
- 'High-agency' means you'll have significant autonomy and influence in architectural decisions, product lifecycle, and shaping the core technology as a founding team member.
- What type of company culture should I expect as a Founding Engineer at this Fintech startup?
- Expect a high-agency environment with a flat structure, led by experienced individuals from companies like Airtable and Opendoor. Engineers participate in the entire product lifecycle, fostering a collaborative and impactful culture.