Staff Software Engineer

Change.org is searching for a Staff Software Engineer to provide technical leadership on one of two high-impact teams at Change.org:

• Scaled Outreach – an AI-first team architecting scalable systems that match Change.org’s most powerful campaigns with journalists, media outlets, and influencers who can amplify these movements to millions.
• Decision Makers – a product-focused team building tools that help petition starters reach and influence elected officials, enabling meaningful civic engagement and policy impact.

As a Staff Engineer, you’ll lead the design and delivery of complex systems, guide engineering standards across teams, and shape how technology supports people-driven movements for change.

We’re a social impact business (a public benefit company), and the world's largest social change platform with 100 million users, 40,000+ campaigns launched on the site every month, and a 100% user-generated revenue model. Our users win campaigns for change once every hour. We’re working for a world where no one is powerless, and where creating change is a part of everyday life. We’re just getting started and hope you’ll join us!

From mobilizing over 5 million people to investigate the fires in the Amazon, to mobilizing nearly 3 million against war and famine in Yemen, to large-scale mobilizations for the people of Iran and against the war in Ukraine, and calling for Racial Justice in the US, many movements were born on Change.org. Dozens of local, national, and international victories are happening every day thanks to the strength of our members who are changing the lives of people around the world. We want to help them go even further and we need your help! 

Key Outcomes:

• Architect and scale core systems that power outreach and engagement with journalists, influencers, or elected officials.
• Drive technical strategy and architectural decisions, ensuring systems are performant, scalable, and maintainable.
• Lead cross-functional initiatives with Product, Design, and other partners to deliver impactful, data-informed solutions.
• Mentor engineers across levels, providing design feedback, coaching, and raising the technical bar across the org.
• Establish and uphold engineering best practices that support adaptability in a fast-evolving civic, media, and AI landscape.
• Contribute to system resilience and learning culture.
• This job is expected to participate in our on call rotation.

The most important core competencies for the role are: 

• Technical Leadership & Architecture – Sets and communicates architectural vision; designs robust, distributed systems with attention to scalability, observability, and long-term maintainability. Balances strategic design with timely execution.
• Full Stack Engineering – Expert in React, Next.js, TypeScript, Node.js/NestJS, and PostgreSQL. Skilled in designing GraphQL/REST APIs and integrating AI/LLM-powered features using OpenAI, Hugging Face, or LangChain.
• AI/ML Integration – Experienced in building or integrating AI-driven systems, particularly LLMs for content generation, matching, or automation. Comfortable leveraging AI for both user features and developer workflows.
• Planning & Execution – Defines technical strategy, evaluation criteria, and execution plans for complex projects. Anticipates risks, ensures resilience, and aligns deliverables with team and company goals.
• Mentorship & Coaching – Guides engineers through design, implementation, and long-term growth. Fosters a culture of quality, inclusion, and continuous learning.
• Communication & Collaboration – Communicates complex technical concepts clearly across disciplines. Partners effectively with PMs, designers, and data leads to align priorities and make trade-offs transparent.

Target experience: 

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience, with 2–3 years operating at a Staff or equivalent level.
• Proven success architecting and scaling distributed systems and production-grade APIs.
• Deep experience with frontend frameworks (React, Next.js, TypeScript) and modern backend stacks (Node.js/NestJS, PostgreSQL).
• Hands-on experience integrating AI or ML systems into production workflows.
• Track record of leading complex, cross-functional initiatives and influencing technical direction beyond their immediate team.
• Demonstrated ability to balance product impact, reliability, and technical debt in a fast-moving environment.

Interested? Great! Here's what you should know: