Software Engineer – Back End

At Submittable, we are transforming how organizations create social impact. Our platform empowers thousands of mission-driven organizations, from nonprofits to government entities, to make a difference in their communities and beyond. In 2024, our innovative software helped organizations worldwide run 30,000 programs, welcomed 1.2 million applicants, and facilitated the distribution of more than $10 billion in funding through our products on behalf of our clients.

We are on a mission to help organizations accelerate their impact, so we are proud to partner with organizations focused on Equity & Social Justice, Children & Education, Creative & Arts, Health & Wellness, Economic Justice & Opportunity, and Environment & Climate. At Submittable, technology and purpose converge, offering a unique opportunity to contribute to meaningful change. 

We are dedicated to empowering people and organizations to discover, manage, and support their missions through our innovative software solutions. We are committed to growth, efficiency, and providing a world-class experience to our clients. At Submittable, we build software that enables our customers to drive positive change around the globe. This is a fantastic opportunity to join a growing, purpose-driven company that thrives at the intersection of philanthropy and technology

The Back-End Software Engineer will contribute to the ongoing scale of Submittable’s high-impact grantmaking solutions. In this role, you will collaborate cross-functionally with front-end engineers, product managers, designers, and QA engineers to design and deliver scalable, well-tested solutions. You’ll contribute to the evolution of our platform and be part of a team that values clarity, iteration, and thoughtful development practices.

We’re looking for dynamic and creative engineers who thrive in global cross-functional teams and are passionate about taking features from concept through delivery. 

Core Focus: Delivering seamless and scalable front-end solutions that elevate user engagement and contribute to the success of our grants management platform..

Key Responsibilities

• Quickly get up to speed on our product architecture and infrastructure.
• Implement and enhance scalable back-end features and APIs.
• Refactor legacy code and services for improved maintainability and performance.
• Identify and advocate for architectural improvements and best practices.
• Collaborate with a cross-functional team of engineers, designers, and product managers to define and ship new features.
• Drive architectural improvements and champion engineering best practices.
• Participate actively in Agile ceremonies, including sprint planning, estimation, and retrospectives, and bring a solutions-oriented mindset.
• Write clean, testable code and participate in regular code reviews.
• Meet regularly with global team members between 9-12 AM EST.

Experience Required

• 4+ years of experience in software engineering.
• Proficiency in at least one modern back-end language or framework (we use .NET Core and Postgres).
• Familiarity with modern development patterns, system design, and API architecture,
• Understanding of software engineering and Agile principles.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills, with a preference for written clarity and a knack for explaining technical concepts clearly.
• Experience working with version control systems (e.g., Git) and CI/CD pipelinesExperience with cloud-native infrastructure (we use AWS and Azure)Exposure to containerization (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes).
• Familiarity with event-driven or distributed systems.
• A collaborative nature and desire to build inclusive, high-trust teams.
• A continuous improvement mindset and a desire to elevate team practices.
• Enthusiasm for problem-solving, learning, and mentoring.

Skills & Competencies Developed 

• Backend Architecture & Design: Grow your ability to design scalable, performant, and maintainable services using modern development patterns.
• Code Quality & Testing: Hone your skills in writing clean, testable code and participating in peer reviews that help raise the quality of the team’s output.
• Technical Decision-Making: Practice making thoughtful tradeoffs between speed, scale, and simplicity—and clearly articulating the “why” behind your recommendations.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Improve your ability to work with Product, Design, QA, and other stakeholders to deliver value incrementally and iteratively.
• Mentorship: Begin guiding early-career engineers through code reviews, pair programming, and knowledge sharing.
• Documentation & Communication: Strengthen your written communication through design docs, planning notes, and pull request descriptions—key to thriving in a remote-first environment.
• System Ownership: Develop confidence in owning small to medium-sized services, including monitoring, on-call participation, and driving incremental improvements.

How to Advance to Next Level

• Take ownership of complex, high-impact projects from design through delivery with minimal oversight.
• Drive architectural conversations and improve foundational systems.
• Proactively identify and address areas of technical debt or risk.
• Act as a force multiplier by mentoring others and influencing engineering best practices.
• Communicate tradeoffs and solutions clearly across both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Expand your scope from feature-level implementation to holistic service and system-level thinking.
• Contribute to team rituals and culture in ways that increase engagement, inclusion, and learning.
• Document decisions, write thoughtful pull requests, and contribute to planning docs

Salary & Location Details: The annual salary range for this position is $110,000-$140,000. Actual compensation is based on factors such as the candidate’s skills, qualifications, and experience. We also have a location-based compensation structure; there may be a different range for candidates in other locations. We are a happy to consider remote candidates who reside in the continental United States for this role – central and eastern timezones preferred.

We are interested in every qualified candidate eligible to work in the United States; however, we cannot accommodate scholastic or employment visas at this time.

Why Submittable?

Joining Submittable means becoming part of a forward-thinking, mission-driven company that values innovation, collaboration, and growth. We empower organizations working for social good with technology that accelerates their work, amplifies their impact, and drives meaningful change.

At Submittable, you’ll find a supportive, dynamic work environment where your contributions directly influence our success. If you thrive in a fast-paced, evolving environment and are excited to be part of a company dedicated to social impact, we invite you to apply!

Benefits: We are proud to offer highly competitive benefits to our full-time employees, including:

• Comprehensive health and life insurance with optional HSA, FSA, and DCA accounts
• 401(k) plan with employer match starting day one
• Equity stock options to share in our success
• Flexible hours, remote work options, and generous vacation and sick leave
• Paid parental leave for mothers, fathers, and adoptive parents
• Professional development stipends to support your career growth
• Opportunities to participate in community outreach and volunteer programs
• Monthly company-sponsored happy hours and gatherings to connect and unwind

Our Commitment to Inclusion & Belonging 

At Submittable, we believe technology is a force for good, driving social impact and enabling corporate social responsibility on a global scale. To achieve this, we are committed to fostering a workplace that values inclusion and belonging as central pillars of our culture.

We embrace the strength of our diverse community by creating a safe space where employees feel empowered to share ideas, celebrate unique experiences, and learn from one another. By prioritizing inclusion, we aim to build an environment where everyone can bring their authentic selves to work and make innovative contributions that enable our customers to tackle complex challenges and spread more good.

As a globally used platform, we are dedicated to hiring and supporting employees who represent a range of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. This includes diversity in ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, religion, ability, culture, and socioeconomic background. 

Apply now >