Backend Engineer

Summary

Join Tailscale's growing team as a full-time Software Engineer! You will contribute to the development of the Tailscale product, encompassing both open-source client code and backend services. This role involves the entire product lifecycle, from coding to strategic decision-making, and close collaboration with designers and product managers. As a fully remote, early-stage company, we seek a self-motivated individual capable of independent work and asynchronous collaboration. The ability to think critically, work with technical teams, and thrive in a dynamic environment is crucial. Tailscale offers a competitive compensation package including base salary, equity, and comprehensive benefits.

Requirements

• Experience with distributed systems
• Experience with one or more SQL databases
• Familiarity with authentication/authorization protocols and frameworks such as OAuth2, OIDC, SSO, and SAML
• Familiarity with networks (IP addressing, routing, etc.)
• Ability to give and process constructive feedback, as well as work independently
• Flexibility to adjust to the dynamic nature of a startup
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills

Responsibilities

• Work as part of a team of engineers to design, build, test, and document core software components
• Develop product features in areas that include our control plane, our relay infrastructure, and our identity integrations
• Exhibit ownership over the running services that comprise Tailscale’s product by building for observability, participating in incident response, and fielding customer support escalations
• Analyze and improve efficiency, scalability, and stability of various system resources
• Bring a security-first mindset to both design and implementation

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with Go

Benefits

• A competitive total compensation package. This includes a base salary, an equity incentive plan and variable commission (for quota-based roles)
• Comprehensive group benefits with no waiting period. Take advantage of coverage for health, vision, dental, and more for you and your family!
• All-remote with the opportunity to work from anywhere —enjoy a change of scenery wherever you can get wifi, participate in virtual and in-person social events, and leverage our corporate co-working program to visit WeWork (or other similar spaces near you)
• Connect with other Tailscalars IRL. Attend our annual company retreat, participate in team/department off-sites, or use your individual travel budget to meet up with team members in Canada, the US, or the UK
• Support for your personal and professional development. Grow your career thoughtfully with $1500 USD annually for professional development, or take advantage of mentorship, coaching, and internal promotion opportunities
• Paid time off and a healthy work-life integration. Our flexible, paid time off program supports you for any situation life throws your way, whether moving homes or travelling the world! We encourage all Tailscalars to take 4-6 weeks of vacation annually
• A build-your-own home office setup. You choose your own company-owned laptop (Mac or PC), receive a monthly home internet reimbursement, and $1000 USD to customize your workstation to make it your own
• Generous parental leave program from your first day. We care about your life outside of work and encourage new parents to take advantage of parental leave top-ups for up to 26 weeks