Amazon Web Services (AWS), Architectural Services, Code Reviews, Communication Skills, Computer Programming, Continuous Deployment/Delivery, Continuous Integration, Cross-Functional, Distributed Computing, Engineering, Gradle, Hubs, Leadership, Mentoring, Power Amplifier, Problem Solving Skills, Process Improvement, Product Engineering, Programming Tools, Python Programming/Scripting Language, Reliability Engineering, Ruby, Sales Pipeline, Scalable System Development, Software Development, Software Engineering, Systems Scalability, Team Building, Team Lead/Manager, Technical Leadership, Technical Strategy, Testing
The Build Systems team within Figma's Developer Experience organization owns Figma's build and CI infrastructure, enabling engineers to ship changes to production quickly and safely. We build and operate core platforms across our polyglot monorepo, including build systems, artifact repositories, merge queues, test frameworks, and CI pipelines.
We're looking for an experienced technical leader to help shape these platforms, uplevel the team, and deliver high-impact platforms that accelerate engineering velocity. The ideal candidate has deep experience with large monolithic codebases, builds durable and scalable systems, and is motivated by solving high-leverage problems that amplify productivity across the engineering organization.
This is a full-time role that can be held from one of our US hubs or remotely in the United States.
Job Summary
Drive technical roadmap and strategy for the Build Systems team. Partner with cross-functional teams and leadership to identify developer pain points and design elegant, scalable solutions. Lead complex, multi-quarter initiatives reducing build/test times and improving CI reliability, all while balancing technical excellence with pragmatic delivery.
Responsibilities
- Drive technical roadmap and strategy for the Build Systems team
- Partner with cross-functional teams and leadership to identify developer pain points and design elegant, scalable solutions
- Lead complex, multi-quarter initiatives reducing build/test times and improving CI reliability
- Design, build, and maintain modern developer tools including scalable build systems, distributed CI platforms, and test frameworks that serve thousands of engineers
- Architect and implement large-scale infrastructure on AWS that powers our entire build pipeline to ensure reliability, performance, and cost-efficiency
- Mentor and uplevel the team through technical guidance, code reviews, and architectural leadership, leading by example and actively investing in your teammates' growth
- Collaborate with product engineers, infrastructure teams, and executive stakeholders, and communicate technical decisions clearly to audiences ranging from individual contributors to senior leadership
Requirements
We'd love to hear from you if you have:
- 8+ years of engineering experience, including 4+ years on Infrastructure, Platform, or Developer Experience teams
- Deep expertise in build systems (e.g., Bazel, Buck, Pants, Gradle) and operating large-scale monorepos
- Experience optimizing CI/CD, building developer tooling at scale, and designing reliable, high-performance distributed systems
- Hands-on experience with AWS, CI platforms (e.g., Buildkite), Infrastructure as Code, and strong coding skills in languages such as Go, TypeScript, Python, or Ruby
- Proven technical leadership, with a track record of setting technical direction, driving cross-team initiatives, and communicating effectively across a wide range of stakeholders
Nice to Have
While it's not required, it's an added plus if you also have:
- Experience migrating large codebases to modern build systems (especially Bazel)
- Experience building test frameworks and improving test infrastructure
- Excellent problem-solving skills, using a systematic and thorough approach grounded in first principles, with a bias for action and a strong focus on impact
- Willingness to work on grungy problems when they have a high impact on the business or the health of our platform
- Care deeply about the quality of the software and systems you build, with an artisan mentality and a constant drive to improve your craft, while striking the right balance between idealism and pragmatism
About Figma
Figma is a close-knit company with a strong culture that promotes inclusivity and collaboration, taking ambitious goals and having fun doing so. You deeply value these traits and see yourself actively contributing to it. At Figma, one of our values is Grow as you go. We believe in hiring smart, curious people who are excited to learn and develop their skills. If you're excited about this role but your past experience doesn't align perfectly with the points outlined in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.