Staff Software Engineer, Compute

About Dbtlabsinc

dbt Labs is the pioneer of analytics engineering, helping data teams transform raw data into reliable, actionable insights. Since 2016, we’ve grown from an open source project into the leading analytics engineering platform, now used by over 50,000 teams every week. As of February 2025, we’ve surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR) and serve more than 5,400 dbt Cloud customers, including JetBlue, HubSpot, Vodafone New Zealand, and Dunelm. We’re backed by top-tier investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, and Altimeter. At our core, we believe in empowering data practitioners: Code-based data transformations unlock transparency, flexibility, and collaboration Analysts should adopt software engineering best practices to build trusted data products Core analytics infrastructure should be open source and user-controlled Analytic code—not just tools—should be shared and community-driven dbt is now synonymous with analytics engineering, defining the modern data stack and serving as the data control plane for enterprise teams around the world. And we’re just getting started. We’re growing fast and building a team of passionate, curious people across the globe. Learn more about what makes us special by checking out our values.

Job Summary

At dbt Labs, we’re building the future of the modern data stack—and we need your help. We’re looking for a Staff Software Engineer to play a key role in building our platform from zero to one. You’ll partner across teams and disciplines to design and deliver solutions that shape the future of data, while mentoring others and influencing our technical direction. This position is a unique opportunity to shape the future of dbt’s Compute platform —a new type of analytical query engine. By leveraging dbt’s ability to anticipate and optimize query execution from ingestion to consumption, you’ll help build a truly differentiated system that sets us apart from other database technologies. This role is perfect for engineers who are excited about query engines, database systems, and large-scale distributed compute —and who want to make a meaningful impact on how data practitioners work every day.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain the Compute layer that powers dbt’s ability to optimize queries across ingestion, transformation, and consumption.
• Lead technical architecture discussions with a focus on query engines, storage systems, and distributed database design.
• Collaborate with Product, Design, Operations, and Security to deliver well-architected, scalable compute solutions.
• Build services, APIs, and experiences that support user delight, quality, high availability, and performance.
• Tackle ambiguous, open-ended technical challenges with strategic thinking, balancing technical constraints with user needs and product goals.
• Define and drive best practices in testing, observability, and system reliability.
• Mentor engineers across the company, fostering technical growth and collaboration.