As a Senior Software Engineer - Backend & Infrastructure at Privy, your primary responsibilities include leading cross-functional teams to design and build software, solving complex business problems, mentoring other engineers, and contributing to an inclusive environment. You'll also be involved in incident management and will help improve our codebase by prioritizing high-urgency issues that add the most value.

Privy seeks candidates for the Senior Software Engineer position who have at least five years of professional experience, extensive knowledge of Ruby on Rails, and strong relational database skills, especially with PostgreSQL. Additional qualifications include a solid understanding of object-oriented design, the ability to lead projects, and strong communication skills for interacting with non-technical stakeholders.

As a Senior Software Engineer - Backend & Infrastructure at Privy, you will primarily work with Ruby on Rails for the backend, TypeScript, and React for the frontend. You'll also engage with PostgreSQL and various specialized database technologies like Redis, along with tools such as Docker and AWS for deployment.

Privy fosters collaboration by creating small empowered teams where engineers and designers work closely without dedicated product managers. This structure enhances communication and ensures that everyone contributes to decision-making and project development, creating an inclusive and supportive environment.

At Privy, a Senior Software Engineer can expect to lead projects that involve rearchitecting existing systems, developing new features, and implementing solutions for complex business problems. You’ll also have opportunities to influence the direction of high-impact projects that significantly affect our product and users.

When answering this question, focus on specific projects where you used Ruby on Rails. Discuss the challenges you faced, the solutions you implemented, and the outcomes. Highlight your ability to write clean, efficient code and your familiarity with best practices in Rails, showcasing how these contributed to the success of your projects.

In your response, mention techniques you’ve used such as indexing, query optimization, and data modeling strategies. Discuss how optimizing database performance can impact the overall system and provide examples of how you successfully implemented these strategies in previous roles.

During the interview, explain your troubleshooting process, including how you prioritize urgent issues, investigate root causes, and collaborate with team members to rectify errors. Providing an example of a bug you resolved effectively can reinforce your problem-solving skills and ability to handle pressure.

Highlight your leadership style by discussing how you planned, organized, and executed the project. Include how you involved team members, communicated with stakeholders, and ensured the project met its objectives. Real-life examples can illustrate your capability to lead effectively and manage teams successfully.

Demonstrate your commitment to continuous learning by discussing the resources you follow, such as blogs, podcasts, or conferences. Share specific examples of how staying informed about new technologies has positively influenced your work or decisions in previous roles.

Discuss your philosophy on mentorship and provide examples of how you've helped others grow technically and professionally. Highlight any structured mentorship programs you've led or informal coaching sessions that resulted in noticeable improvements in performance and skills.

Share a particular instance where you faced a steep learning curve, explaining your strategies for self-learning, researching, and applying new skills. Your ability to adapt and be resourceful in acquiring new knowledge will present you as a proactive and versatile engineer.

Discuss your experience with agile methodologies or others you've utilized in your previous roles. Explain how these methodologies enhance collaboration and productivity, and provide examples of successful projects completed under such frameworks.

Highlight your familiarity with AWS services you've used in past projects, such as EC2, S3, or RDS. Discuss how leveraging these services can improve application performance and scaling, showcasing specific situations where you implemented cloud solutions successfully.

Sharing personal projects can illustrate your passion for technology and eagerness to learn. Discuss any projects that showcase relevant skills, technologies, or frameworks and how they’ve helped you grow as a developer, showing your initiative and commitment to self-improvement.