Staff Software Engineer (Trading Services)

Our Mission

At NinjaTrader, our mission is to become the #1 retail trading platform in the world. Since 2003, we've empowered millions of traders with award-winning software and brokerage services, enabling them to navigate financial markets with confidence. We are constantly evolving, pushing boundaries, and modernizing the futures industry through innovation, real-time support, and a vibrant community.

Why Work at NinjaTrader?

Join a dynamic team that's redefining trading technology. We foster a culture focused on social connection, professional development, and employee recognition, empowering you to reach new heights in your career. Be part of a movement that advocates for customers and drives the future of retail trading.

What You'll Do:

As a Staff Software Engineer on the Trading Services team, you will be instrumental in evolving our advanced trading system. Your work will directly influence our core high-throughput, low-latency trading application, impacting the company's bottom line.

• Design, develop, and maintain our Scala and Akka-based trading system deployed on Kubernetes in the cloud.
• Architect, deploy, and manage backend services within a Kubernetes environment, ensuring scalability, availability, and resilience.
• Implement and enhance our services architecture for trading applications, promoting modularity and maintainability.
• Develop distributed systems to meet the high-performance and low-latency requirements of trading platforms.
• Implement robust monitoring and logging solutions for real-time performance analysis.
• Integrate backend systems with market data feeds for accurate and timely trading data.
• Collaborate with cross-functional engineering teams and Product Managers to deliver comprehensive customer solutions.

What You'll Need:

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
• 8+ years of software development experience with reactive, message-driven, distributed near real-time applications, preferably in a high-performance, low-latency environment.
• 5+ years of professional experience with Scala (or similar JVM-based languages) backend software development.
• Familiarity with functional programming principles.
• Experience with Kubernetes and cloud services (e.g., Google Cloud Platform), focusing on scalability and high availability.
• Familiarity with CI/CD tools (e.g., Jenkins, GitHub Actions).
• Exceptional troubleshooting, debugging, and diagnostic skills for cloud and web-based technologies using industry-standard observability tooling.
• Deep understanding of modern distributed systems and protocols (HTTP/HTTPS, WebSockets, TLS, DNS, TCP/IP).
• Dependable team player with a strong work ethic, accuracy, and analytical problem-solving skills, emphasizing performance analysis and optimization.
• Ability to take full ownership of projects from design through maintenance.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with a collaborative approach and a drive for continuous improvement.

Compensation:

• Salary Range: $160,000.00 - $200,000.00 USD per year.
• Annual Target Bonus: 12%, based on 50% individual performance and 50% company/team performance.
• 401(k) Plan: Company match up to 3.5% of employee contributions through ADP.
• Paid Time Off: 23 days of annual PTO accrual plus seven paid holidays.

Location:

• Chicago, IL (Hybrid work schedule: In-office Tuesdays-Thursdays, remote Mondays and Fridays).
• Remote flexibility may be available for exceptional candidates in CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, IN, MN, MO, MT, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OR, PA, SC, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, DC, WI.
• Additional Remote Flexibility: 20 additional flex remote days annually and 5 Company Wide Office-Optional weeks.

Core Benefits:

• Generous PTO
• 7 Paid Holidays Annually + 5 Conditional Holidays Annually
• 1 Service Day Annually
• 401k with 3.5% Company Match
• Paid Parental Bonding Leave
• Health, Vision, Dental Coverage
• Life and Disability Insurance (100% covered by NinjaTrader)