Senior Backend Software Developer - Order Execution

As a Senior Backend Software Developer - Order Execution at Wealthsimple, you will be pivotal in leading projects that enhance our client's trading experience. Your responsibilities include planning and scoping these projects, ensuring timely communication with stakeholders, and optimizing our code for better performance. You'll collaborate closely with product and design teams, work on delivering reliable features, and improve our development processes by keeping up with industry trends.

Wealthsimple seeks candidates with strong programming skills in Java or Kotlin, backed by proven experience in delivering robust APIs for various applications. A deep understanding of relational databases and performance tuning are crucial, along with a collaborative spirit and an ability to communicate effectively across teams. Experience in mentorship is also valued, as you'll help empower junior developers.

At Wealthsimple, the team culture emphasizes collaboration, humility, and continuous learning. You will be part of a small team focused on shared knowledge and innovation, ensuring you have the support you need to excel in your role. Additionally, the company's commitment to diversity and inclusivity provides an enriching environment for all team members.

The Order Execution team at Wealthsimple is unique due to its crucial role in delivering fast and accurate trading experiences for clients. We are a team committed to further enhancing our systems to ensure reliability during market openings and adapting as our product offerings evolve. Our focus remains on transparency and simplicity in trading, which sets us apart in the fintech landscape.

Wealthsimple provides remarkable opportunities for professional growth, including a budget for wellness and development. As a Senior Backend Software Developer - Order Execution, you will not only be tackling exciting projects but also participating in mentorship and ongoing education to keep you at the top of your field, all while working in a supportive remote environment.

When discussing your experience with Java or Kotlin, focus on specific projects where you successfully implemented APIs. Highlight your problem-solving abilities, any challenges you encountered in working with databases, and how you optimized code. It’s crucial to demonstrate your understanding of best practices and articulate how you keep your skills up to date.

Share your approach to code performance by discussing techniques such as profiling and performance tuning, along with any tools you utilize. Emphasize the importance of writing clean, maintainable code and any experiences you've had working with performance monitoring systems. Real-life examples will strengthen your response.

Discuss specific instances where you effectively collaborated with product and design teams. Share how your communication style aided in translating technical concepts into understandable terms for non-developers, and illustrate how you ensure alignment on project goals. Effective communication is key here!

Pick a project that showcases your technical skills and leadership abilities. Describe the project's objectives, your contributions, the technologies utilized, and how you navigated any challenges to successfully deliver results. It's an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to manage complexity effectively.

Explain your beliefs about mentorship and its importance in a development team. Talk about your past experiences mentoring others, how you've helped junior developers grow, and the skills or values you focus on instilling in them. Consider also mentioning the mutual learning that occurs during mentorship.

Share the resources you utilize, such as blogs, conferences, or online courses focused on backend development. Discuss how this continuous learning impacts your work and how you implement new tools or practices to improve team efficiency and product quality.

Describe your approach to task prioritization, using methods like agile principles or project management tools. Highlight your organizational skills and how you balance urgency with long-term goals to ensure effective delivery of features while maintaining high quality.

Reflect thoughtfully on potential challenges, such as meeting the dynamic demands of a growing client base or keeping systems scalable. Discuss how your skills and problem-solving mindset equip you to tackle these challenges and contribute positively to the team.

Describe your systematic approach to debugging, including outlining steps you follow to identify and reproduce bugs, how you use logging and monitoring tools for insights, and any collaborative elements of your process with other team members. Show that you have a logical and methodical mindset.

Share what excites you about joining Wealthsimple, particularly in the context of the Order Execution team. Be authentic—whether it’s the commitment to innovation, the chance to impact users, or the remote-first work culture. Personal passion will demonstrate your motivation and enthusiasm for the role.