Staff Software Engineer, API Engineering

Are you an experienced engineer who thrives on building robust, scalable API platforms that empower developers across an ecosystem? Do you enjoy defining standards that make APIs intuitive, secure, and a delight to consume? Are you excited to leverage cutting-edge AI tools like ChatGPT and Cursor to elevate developer productivity and velocity? If so, we invite you to be a part of our innovative team.

As a Staff Software Engineer in API Engineering, you will shape the future of Ridgeline’s API platform, driving strategy, architecture, and implementation for mission-critical services. You’ll design and evolve our gateway infrastructure, define and enforce API product standards, and ensure that reliability, security, and usability are at the core of every API. Your leadership will directly impact both internal teams and external customers, empowering them to build on Ridgeline’s cloud-native investment management platform. You’ll work with cutting-edge technologies and AI tools—including ChatGPT, Claude Code, and Cursor—to accelerate development and improve code quality.

At Ridgeline, how we work matters as much as what we build. Ridgeliners act like owners, choose growth over comfort, and communicate with transparency. We assume positive intent, bias toward action, and bring solutions—not just problems. We celebrate wins, learn from setbacks, and thrive in a resilient, collaborative, high-performing culture. If Ridgeline Way excites you, we’d love to meet you.

The impact you will have:

• Lead the design and development of a Kong-based API Gateway hosting thousands of highly available, secure, and scalable APIs
• Define and codify API design standards that elevate internal, external, and agentic developer usability
• Identify and eliminate friction in API development through simplification, automation, and tooling that improve developer velocity and experience
• Establish reliability and observability practices to monitor and ensure API performance, availability, and security
• Develop and maintain API documentation using automated OpenAPI spec generation and validation tools
• Participate in API design forums to ensure alignment with Ridgeline’s architecture and developer experience principles
• Write high-quality, well-tested code and provide thoughtful peer reviews that foster growth across the team
• Apply modern engineering practices including CI/CD, infrastructure as code, and test automation
• Leverage AI tools like ChatGPT, Cursor, and Claude Code to accelerate development, improve code quality, and inspire innovative solutions
• Collaborate across teams with transparency, ownership, and resilience, driving outcomes that reflect the Ridgeline Way

What we look for:

• 8+ years of software engineering experience, including technical leadership of large-scale platform or product APIs
• Deep expertise with cloud-native distributed systems (AWS preferred), secure RESTful API design, and API management/gateway solutions (Kong or equivalent)
• Proven experience setting API design standards and delivering production-grade APIs documented with OpenAPI spec
• Strong understanding of API reliability, monitoring, and operational best practices
• Familiarity with event-driven architectures, WebSockets, and authentication/authorization models for APIs
  Excellent communication and mentoring skills with an inclusive approach to technical leadership
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field
• Creative problem-solving mindset and passion for helping others succeed

Bonus:

• Experience contributing to or defining API product strategy
• Hands-on experience with developer productivity tooling for APIs
• Exposure to financial services or investment management domain
• Practical experience with modern AI frameworks that support software development

About Ridgeline

Ridgeline is the first front-to-back system of record for investment managers. Founded by visionary entrepreneur Dave Duffield (co-founder of both PeopleSoft and Workday), the company was created to modernize an industry held back by outdated, disconnected technology. Powered by a single, real-time data set and embedded AI, Ridgeline helps firms automate complexity, accelerate collaboration, and deliver tailored client experiences at scale, without added headcount or risk. Ridgeline is headquartered in Lake Tahoe, with offices in New York, Reno, and the Bay Area, and is recognized by Fast Company as a “Best Workplace for Innovators,” by Frost & Sullivan as a “Technology Innovation Leader,” and by The Software Report as a “Top 100 Software Company.”

Ridgeline is proud to be a community-minded, discrimination-free equal opportunity workplace.

Ridgeline processes the information you submit in connection with your application in accordance with the Ridgeline Applicant Privacy Statement. Please review the Ridgeline Applicant Privacy Statement in full to understand our privacy practices and contact us with any questions.

Compensation and Benefits 

[For New York and California Based Only]

The typical starting salary range for new hires in this role is listed below. In select locations (including, the San Francisco Bay Area, CA, and the New York City Metro Area), an alternate range may apply as specified below. 

The typical starting salary range for this role is: $182,500-$228,000. 

The typical starting salary range for this role in the select locations listed above is: $200,500-$251,000.

Final compensation amounts are determined by multiple factors, including candidate experience and expertise, and may vary from the amount listed above. 

As an employee at Ridgeline, you’ll have many opportunities for advancement in your career and can make a true impact on the product. 

In addition to the base salary, Ridgeline employees can participate in our Company Stock Plan subject to the applicable Stock Option Agreement. We also offer rich benefits that reflect the kind of organization we want to be: one in which our employees feel valued and are inspired to bring their best selves to work. These include unlimited vacation, educational and wellness reimbursements, and $0 cost employee insurance plans. Please check out our Careers page for a more comprehensive overview of our perks and benefits.

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