Staff Software Engineer, AI & Strategy
Toast · United States
- Hybrid
- Full-time
- $242,000 / year
- United States
Job highlights
- Build 0-to-1 AI tools for sales teams.
- Develop backend services and ML models.
- Integrate quoting software with Salesforce.
- Solve complex architectural challenges.
- Mentor junior engineers.
About the role
Staff Software Engineer, AI & Strategy
Toast creates technology to help restaurants and local businesses succeed in a digital world, helping business owners operate, increase sales, engage customers, and keep employees happy.
Toast is looking for a hands-on Staff Software Engineer to join the AI & Strategy Engineering team. In this role, you will be a primary builder of 0-to-1 tools designed to revolutionize how our sales teams operate. This isn't about maintaining legacy systems; it’s about writing the code and building the intelligence models that eliminate friction across the Go-To-Market stack.
Working under a Senior technical leader, you will be responsible for the "heavy lifting" of backend engineering and Machine Learning implementation. You will bridge our custom quoting software and Salesforce with intelligent, agentic workflows that allow sales users to make faster, data-backed decisions.
A Day In The Life (Responsibilities)
- Hands-on Execution: Spend the majority of your time "hands-on-keyboard," architecting and coding high-performance backend services and ML pipelines.
- 0-to-1 Development: Build and prototype new internal products from scratch that leverage LLMs and Agentic AI to automate account research, lead prioritization, and complex quoting logic.
- Core Intelligence Models: Design and implement ML models that provide real-time recommendations to sales users, reducing manual entry and increasing deal velocity.
- Infrastructure Integration: Develop the backend connective tissue between our custom quoting engine, Salesforce, and internal data lakes to ensure a seamless, low-latency end-to-end experience.
- Technical Problem Solving: Act as a domain expert to solve complex synchronization and architectural challenges across the GTM stack, ensuring systems are scalable and resilient.
- Quality & Mentorship: Drive engineering excellence through rigorous code reviews, automated testing, and by modeling best practices for SE1-SE3 engineers on the team.
- Build Great Products: Deliver significant core capabilities that have broad impact; take high-level goals and turn them into sequenced, production-ready code.
- Problem Solve: Anticipate shifts in product needs and build flexible, decoupled backend systems that can evolve with our AI strategy.
- Deliver Quality: Ensure the reliability of GTM tools by building deep observability into every service you ship.
What You'll Need To Thrive (Requirements)
- Deep Backend Expertise: Extensive experience in backend languages (Java, Go, Python) with a track record of building complex, distributed systems.
- Applied AI/ML Skills: Practical, hands-on experience deploying Machine Learning models and building with LLMs (e.g., LangChain, RAG architectures, or Model Fine-tuning) in a production environment.
- Technical Complexity: Experience building or deeply integrating with complex enterprise software, specifically custom quoting engines or CRM internals (Salesforce Apex/LWC).
- Systems Architecture: Ability to design event-driven architectures and manage data flow across disparate systems with high integrity.
- Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, or a related technical field.
What will help you stand out (Nonessential Skills/Nice to Haves)
- Experience building internal "Sales Tech" or "Fintech" tools that directly impact revenue.
- Familiarity with AWS data services (SageMaker, Lambda, SQS).
- A passion for removing "human-in-the-loop" friction through intelligent automation.
AI at Toast
At Toast, one of our company values is that we're hungry to build and learn. We believe learning new AI tools empowers us to build for our customers faster, more independently, and with higher quality. We provide these tools across all disciplines, from Engineering and Product to Sales and Support, and are inspired by how our Toasters are already driving real value with them. The people who thrive here are those who embrace changes that let us build more for our customers; it’s a core part of our culture.
Our Total Rewards Philosophy
We strive to provide competitive compensation and benefits programs that help to attract, retain, and motivate the best and brightest people in our industry. Our total rewards package goes beyond great earnings potential and provides the means to a healthy lifestyle with the flexibility to meet Toasters’ changing needs. Learn more about our benefits at https://careers.toasttab.com/toast-benefits.
The base salary range for this role is listed below. The starting salary will be determined based on skills, experience, and geographic location. In addition to base salary, our total rewards components include cash compensation (overtime, bonus/commissions if eligible), equity, and benefits. You can learn more about how we pay aligns with local labor markets in our Geographic Pay Zone Philosophy.
Zone A: $193,000—$309,000 USD
Zone B: $168,000—$269,000 USD
Zone C: $151,000—$242,000 USD
How Toast Uses AI In Its Hiring Process
Throughout the hiring process, our goal is to get to know you. We use AI tools to support our recruiters and interviewers with tasks like note-taking, summarization, and documentation of interviews to ensure they can be fully focused on your conversation. All hiring decisions are made by people. To learn more: https://careers.toasttab.com/ai-in-hiring
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is Baked into our Recipe for Success
At Toast, our employees are our secret ingredient—when they thrive, we thrive. The restaurant industry is one of the most diverse, and we embrace that diversity with authenticity, inclusivity, respect, and humility. By embedding these principles into our culture and design, we create equitable opportunities for all and raise the bar in delivering exceptional experiences.
We Thrive Together
We embrace a hybrid work model that fosters in-person collaboration while valuing individual needs. Our goal is to build a strong culture of connection as we work together to empower the restaurant community. To learn more about how we work globally and regionally, check out: https://careers.toasttab.com/locations-toast.
Apply today!
Toast is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive hiring process. As part of this commitment, we strive to provide reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities to enable them to access the hiring process. If you need an accommodation to access the job application or interview process, please contact candidateaccommodations@toasttab.com.
For roles in the United States, it is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.
Key skills/competency
- Staff Software Engineer
- AI & Strategy
- Backend Engineering
- Machine Learning
- LLMs
- Agentic AI
- Salesforce Integration
- Distributed Systems
- Systems Architecture
- ML Pipelines
Skills & topics
- Staff Software Engineer
- AI
- Machine Learning
- Strategy
- Backend Development
- LLM
- Agentic AI
- Salesforce
- Distributed Systems
- Python
- Java
- Go
- Cloud Computing
- Software Engineering
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight backend and AI/ML experience relevant to Toast's needs.
- Showcase practical skills: Emphasize your experience with LLMs, Salesforce, and distributed systems.
- Prepare for technical interviews: Be ready to discuss system design and ML implementation challenges.
- Research Toast's culture: Understand their AI-first approach and values for a strong fit.
- Network within Toast: Connect with engineers to gain insights into the team and projects.
Technical preparation
Behavioral questions
Frequently asked questions
- What is the salary range for a Staff Software Engineer, AI & Strategy at Toast?
- Toast offers competitive compensation with salary ranges varying by geographic location (Zone A, B, C). For example, Zone A salaries range from $193,000 to $309,000 USD, with the final offer based on skills, experience, and location. Benefits and equity are also part of the total rewards package.
- Does Toast use AI in their hiring process for the Staff Software Engineer role?
- Yes, Toast utilizes AI tools to assist recruiters and interviewers with note-taking, summarization, and documentation. This allows them to focus more on the candidate's conversation. However, all hiring decisions are ultimately made by people.
- What kind of AI/ML experience is most valuable for this Staff Software Engineer position?
- The role requires practical, hands-on experience deploying Machine Learning models and building with LLMs, specifically mentioning LangChain, RAG architectures, or model fine-tuning in a production environment. Experience with AI for sales tech is a plus.
- What are the main responsibilities of a Staff Software Engineer on the AI & Strategy team at Toast?
- The primary responsibilities include hands-on coding of backend services and ML pipelines, developing 0-to-1 internal products using LLMs and Agentic AI, designing ML models for sales recommendations, and integrating systems like custom quoting software and Salesforce.
- What are the required technical skills for the Staff Software Engineer role at Toast?
- Key requirements include extensive experience in backend languages (Java, Go, Python), practical AI/ML deployment with LLMs, experience with complex enterprise software like Salesforce, and strong systems architecture design skills, particularly for event-driven architectures and data flow.
- How does Toast approach hybrid work for their engineering teams?
- Toast embraces a hybrid work model that balances in-person collaboration with individual needs, aiming to build a strong culture of connection while empowering the restaurant community. Specific details on global and regional work models can be found on their careers site.
- What is the educational requirement for the Staff Software Engineer position?
- A Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, or a related technical field, is required for this role.
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