[Remote] Staff Backend Engineer

Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. Bestow is a leading vertical technology platform serving some of the largest and most innovative life insurers. As a Staff Backend Engineer, you will own the technical architecture for IPC services and design, build, and operate backend services, while mentoring other engineers and ensuring production reliability.ResponsibilitiesOwn the technical architecture for IPC services, making design decisions that balance speed of delivery with long-term maintainabilityDesign, build, and operate backend services using Python + PostgreSQL, Go, and a Java-based Drools rules engineLead cross-team technical initiatives — coordinate with other Bestow engineering teams to plan and execute integration work across the platformDrive platform capabilities that scale with Bestow's growing partner ecosystem — new carrier onboardings, product launches, and configuration flexibilityMentor engineers on the team through code review, design review, and pairing — raise the technical bar without bottlenecking deliveryEnsure production reliability: define SLOs, improve observability, and share on-call responsibility for IPC workloadsUse agentic AI coding tools as a core part of your workflow and help the team adopt effective AI-assisted development practicesCommunicate technical decisions, trade-offs, and status clearly in writing — the team is remote-first and async-heavySkills8+ years of professional backend software development experience; you've operated at the Staff or Senior level beforeStrong proficiency in Go and Python; Java experience is a plusDeep experience with distributed systems, microservices, and API design (Protocol Buffers, OpenAPI)Comfortable with PostgreSQL or other relational databases at scaleHands-on with cloud infrastructure — Kubernetes, Docker, GCP (or equivalent)Proven track record building, deploying, and troubleshooting production services end-to-endYou seek out problems before they find you — proactively identifying risks, proposing solutions, and driving them to completionYou write maintainable, well-tested software and hold yourself and your peers to a high quality barDemonstrated experience with agentic AI coding tools (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot) integrated into your daily workflow — not occasional use, but a deliberate practiceBenefitsCompetitive salary and equity based on rolePolicies and managers that support work/life balance, like our flexible paid time off and parental leave programs100% paid-premium option for medical, dental, and vision insuranceLifestyle stipend to support your physical, emotional, and financial wellbeingFlexible work-from-home policy and open to remoteRemote and WFH options, as well as a beautiful, state-of-the-art office in Dallas’ Deep Ellum, for those who prefer an office settingEmployee-led diversity, equity, and inclusion initiativesCompany OverviewBestow is a life insurance SaaS company that utilizes advanced technology and data solutions for the insurance sector. It was founded in 2016, and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, USA, with a workforce of 51-200 employees. Its website is https://www.bestow.com.