Software Engineer, Fanatics
More information about location
3 days a week in office (San Mateo, CA)
Sports merchandise retailer
Job no longer available
Sports merchandise retailer
1001+ employees
Job no longer available
More information about location
3 days a week in office (San Mateo, CA)
1001+ employees
Company mission
Fanatics' mission is to ignite and amplify the passion of global fans across their digital sports journey, and maximize the presence and reach for hundreds of partners worldwide.
Role
Who you are
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Data Science, or equivalent practical experience
- 3 – 5 years of experience in software development with a strong focus on backend systems, data engineering, or data platform development
- Mastery of at least one modern programming language (e.g. Go, Python, Java) with deep understanding of algorithms, data structures, concurrency, and optimization
- Expertise in building RESTful/GraphQL APIs, microservices architecture, and event-driven systems (Kafka, SNS/SQS)
- Strong understanding of data modeling (dimensional, relational, graph), schema evolution, and data governance practices including master data management concepts: entity resolution, data stewardship, golden record creation, and cross-system data synchronization
- Strong knowledge of SQL (PostgreSQL, MySQL) and NoSQL databases (Cassandra, MongoDB, Redis), with experience in data warehousing platforms (Snowflake, Redshift, BigQuery) and data lake architectures
- Experience with AWS (or other cloud providers) utilizing services such as EC2, S3, Lambda, Step Functions, Glue, EMR, and ECS/EKS. Understanding of infrastructure-as-code (Terraform, CloudFormation) and CI/CD pipelines
- Proficiency using AI-powered development tools (Claude Code, GitHub Copilot) for code generation, refactoring, and documentation. Understanding of prompt engineering and LLM integration patterns for building AI-augmented data workflows
- Experience in retail, ecommerce, or consumer goods industries preferred. Strong problem-solving and debugging skills across distributed backend systems, data pipelines, and integration layers
- At Fanatics, we value transparency and honesty. If you don’t meet every single requirement, that’s okay – we still want to hear from you!
What the job involves
- We’re seeking a Software Engineer III to design and build scalable backend services, data pipelines, and master data management (MDM) solutions that power our next-generation e-commerce platform
- You’ll play a key role in developing the foundational data and services layer that enables reliable, consistent, and high-quality data across the enterprise—driving business growth, operational excellence, and AI-powered innovation
- As a Software Engineer III, you’ll work independently on complex backend and data engineering problems and produce high-quality code with minimal oversight
- You’ll triage production issues, contribute to root cause analysis, and maintain comprehensive technical documentation
- Your expertise in distributed systems, data modeling, integration patterns, and AI-augmented development will be instrumental in delivering reliable, scalable solutions
- You consistently demonstrate technical excellence, take ownership of your work, and communicate effectively with cross-functional teams. You’re proactive in identifying and resolving issues, passionate about data quality and governance, and committed to raising the quality bar
- Design and build scalable backend microservices, data pipelines, and integration services with minimal oversight, ensuring high code quality, reliability, and performance
- Develop and maintain master data management solutions that ensure consistency, accuracy, and governance of core business entities across the enterprise
- Write modular, testable, resilient, production-grade code with strong attention to edge cases, idempotency, and data integrity
- Design and implement data models, schemas, and APIs that support domain-driven design principles and composable, event-driven architectures
- Leverage AI/ML tools (Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, etc.) to enhance developer productivity, automate data quality checks, and integrate intelligent capabilities into data workflows
- Implement and optimize RESTful/GraphQL APIs and event-driven integrations (Kafka, message queues) with internal and third-party systems
- Effectively debug and resolve production issues across distributed systems. Identify and communicate potential risks. Participate in Root Cause Analysis (RCA) sessions
- Collaborate effectively with architects, data engineers, product managers, and domain stakeholders. Clearly communicate technical information to both technical and non-technical audiences
Our take
Fanatics is a sports-based eCommerce company that offers teams and leagues a convenient online platform through which to sell licensed apparel and merchandise. As well as the Fanatics online store, it runs the online stores of dozens of teams and leagues including the MLB, NHL, NBA, and NASCAR. They've also signed a number of exclusive deals to become the sole vendors of officially licensed merch for top athletes across multiple leagues.
It operates using a Cloud Commerce sales system which tracks clicks and purchases on the site as well as sports and player news and updates to inform retail and marketing decisions in real time. The company was first established as Football Fanatics, a chain of bricks-and-mortar stores in malls across Florida. Since then, it has been bought out by GSI Commerce and expanded.
Looking ahead, while its commerce business remains its biggest source of revenue for now, Fanatics has expanded into livestreamed shopping around collectibles and trading cards, acquiring Tops and hiring Snap and Alphabet executive to launch this new business. It also has an NFT arm in Candy Digital, of which it’s the majority owner, as well as a fledgling betting and gaming division.
Kirsty
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
20% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 9 rounds)
Dec 2022
$700m
GROWTH EQUITY VC
Apr 2022
$1.5bn
GROWTH EQUITY VC
Total funding: $4.8bn
Company benefits
- At Fanatics we place our focus on results and empowerment and encourage you to enjoy your time on and OFF the field with our competitive time off policies
- Fanatics values our internal fans too! Our programs are designed to thank and reward Fanatics athletes for their hard work and commitment to winning as a team
- From breakfast to happy hour and every hour in between – Fanatics employees can enjoy time together at one of our many company events.
- As an employee you will receive a special discount on all of your favorite sports merchandise and memorabilia
- Fanatics cares about the fans around us. We encourage you to partner up with your teammates in giving back and serving the communities where we work and play
- You never know who will show up to the office. You might just meet one of your all-time favorite athletes
- Here at Fanatics we want you to accomplish your goals. We offer tuition reimbursement
- Fanatics cares about helping and supporting our teams in their busy lifestyles. Through wellness relationships with fitness and weight management partners we are here to support you in whatever your lifestyle goals
Company HQ
West Village, New York, NY
Leadership
Michael Rubin
(CEO)Michael founded GSI Commerce in 1998, before co-owning New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers since 2011. They also founded Fanatics in 2011 alongside roles at ShopRunner, Rue La La, Reform Alliance and Kynetic.
Doug Mack
(Vice Chairman and Board Director, not founder)Previously served as CEO for One Kings Lane. Co-founded and acted as CEO and Director of Scene7.
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