Senior Software Development Engineer, UTA
Backend
$160-190k
Talent & entertainment agency
Be an early applicant
Talent & entertainment agency
1001+ employees
Be an early applicant
$160-190k
1001+ employees
Company mission
To shape talent, build careers, and tell stories.
Role
Who you are
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field; or equivalent experience
- 8+ years of professional software engineering experience, with at least 3+ years in a senior or staff-level backend role
- Proven expertise in Node.js, GraphQL, MongoDB, Postgres, and search platforms (Algolia or equivalent)
- Strong track record of architecting distributed systems and microservices that scale to high volumes
- Hands-on experience with AWS cloud services, Kubernetes, Infrastructure as Code (Terraform), GitHub Actions (CI/CD), and API management platforms
- Deep understanding of system design, data modeling, performance optimization, and security best practices
- Experience leading teams through design reviews, code reviews, and technical strategy discussions
- Strong communication and collaboration skills, able to influence both technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Ability to balance hands-on coding with technical leadership, driving both execution and long-term vision
What the job involves
- UTA seeks a Senior Software Development Engineer- Backend to drive the design, development, and scalability of our backend systems that power UTA’s digital platforms
- In this role, you will provide technical leadership across engineering teams, ensuring our systems are built for performance, resiliency, and long-term growth
- You will architect and deliver backend services leveraging Node.js, GraphQL, MongoDB, and Postgres, while shaping engineering standards, mentoring developers, and collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders
- Lead the architecture and development of backend services using Node.js, GraphQL, and modern frameworks, ensuring scalability, reliability, and maintainability
- Design and optimize data models across MongoDB and Postgres to support large-scale, high-availability applications
- Drive API strategy, creating GraphQL and RESTful APIs that ensure secure, efficient, and intuitive integration between systems
- Architect and optimize search systems leveraging Algolia to deliver fast, relevant, and reliable search experiences
- Implement and oversee cloud infrastructure using Azure, Kubernetes, and Terraform, ensuring deployments are automated, resilient, and cost-efficient
- Lead incident response and root cause analysis, driving long-term solutions that improve system reliability
- Champion engineering excellence by establishing coding standards, code review practices, and test automation frameworks
- Mentor and guide junior and mid-level engineers, providing technical direction, feedback, and career development support
- Partner with product managers, designers, and business leaders to align technical direction with strategic goals
- Evaluate and adopt emerging technologies, ensuring UTA stays ahead of industry trends in backend development, cloud, and API management
Our take
Founded in 1991, UTA represents some of the world’s most acclaimed and recognised figures - from actors and athletes to writers and digital influencers. These include Lizzo, The Coen Brothers, Bad Bunny and Timothee Chalamet.
The entertainment landscape is in a permanent state of flux, but the boom of digital and social media has brought rise to new kinds of talent. To remain on the cultural pulse, UTA has expanded its business into gaming, digital media and influencers, as younger consumers spend more time playing games or watching social content over traditional media.
With the acquisitions of Fletcher & Company and Curtis Brown, UTA took on the estates of esteemed literary figures like John le Carré and Ian Fleming. This reflects a larger competition between agencies to acquire intellectual property to develop into content. In doing so, UTA hopes to find competitive edge over other dominant agencies, WME and CAA.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
10% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Company HQ
Beverly Hills, CA
Leadership
Jeremy Zimmer
(Co-Founder & CEO)Has served as CEO for UTA since 1991.
Jim Berkus
(Co-Founder & Chair)Served as a partner at Leading Artists Agency, which merged with Bauer-Benedek Agency to form UTA.
Peter Benedek
(Co-Founder & Owner)Also served as a partner at Bauer-Benedek Agency.
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