Staff Software Engineer - Metadata

Company Mission and Overview

Since inception, Fivetran has been dedicated to simplifying data accessibility and reliability, akin to the simplicity of electricity. Their technology automates the delivery of clean, query-ready customer data into warehouses without requiring engineering effort or maintenance. Fivetran recently joined forces with dbt Labs to provide comprehensive data infrastructure that supports modern data analytics, AI, and decision-making.

Role Summary

The Staff Software Engineer will serve as a technical lead on the Metadata team, responsible for the metadata layer of the dbt platform. This includes crucial services such as the discovery API, catalog, data lineage, and run history, which empower customers to understand, trust, and utilize their data effectively.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate complex, multi-engineer projects across Metadata services.
• Architect and develop new subsystems, taking full ownership of team-level system components.
• Utilize AI tools and agents within development and software lifecycle documentation and processes.
• Perform design and code reviews to ensure high-quality solutions and identify potential design flaws early.
• Drive initiatives related to discovery API, catalog, lineage, and run history services.
• Establish and maintain best practices in design, architecture, coding, and documentation standards.
• Mentor and coach engineers to raise code quality across the team.
• Maintain operational excellence through incident management, optimization, and performance improvements.
• Engage periodically in the on-call rotation to support system reliability.

Required Qualifications

• Over 8 years of professional experience in software engineering with proven leadership on significant team projects.
• In-depth knowledge of distributed and cloud-based system design and ownership.
• Demonstrated capability to set technical direction and manage multi-engineer initiatives.
• Exceptional architectural and design judgement, identifying and resolving deficiencies with clear trade-offs.
• Produces exemplary, well-tested code consistently and delivers on sprint commitments reliably.
• Strong history of elevating code quality through comprehensive reviews, peer mentoring, and enforcement of engineering standards.
• Experience collaborating with quality engineering teams on test strategies, and ownership of operational health including incidents and post-mortems.
• Proficient in modern backend or systems programming languages such as Python, Java, C++, or C#.
• Practical experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), containerization technologies (Docker, Kubernetes), and development infrastructure management.
• Advanced user of AI-assisted coding tools and conversational AI for authoring and reviewing software development lifecycle artifacts.

Preferred Skills

• Background in data processing workflows such as ETL/ELT and cloud-based data platforms.
• Experience designing metadata, catalog, lineage, or discovery/search systems.
• Familiarity with GraphQL APIs and high-throughput multi-tenant data services.
• Knowledge of analytics engineering practices and the dbt ecosystem.

Compensation and Benefits

The salary range for Ontario is CAD $162,157 to $198,877 annually. Compensation may include sales incentives or bonuses depending on the role. Additional benefits include 100% employer-paid medical insurance; generous paid time off policies including vacation, sick leave, parental leave, holidays, global rest weeks, and volunteer days; stock grants; professional development opportunities; virtual team events and free food; monthly cell phone stipends; and access to mental health support platforms offering therapy, coaching, and mindfulness resources for employees and dependents.

Diversity and Inclusion

Fivetran is committed to cultivating diverse, equitable, inclusive, and supportive work environments. They welcome applicants from all backgrounds and provide reasonable accommodations during the recruitment process, ensuring a fair and accessible experience.