Founding Engineer (Python / FastAPI / Next.js) — (US Based)

Sierra Studio is managing the hiring process for an unnamed client building software for consumer goods manufacturers. The Founding Engineer will own the product’s technical foundation, turn its working v1 into production-grade software, and shape product development and the future engineering team.

Responsibilities:

• Own the codebase and architecture end to end, starting with an audit of v1 and a plan for what to keep, rebuild, and harden
• Ship full-stack features across Python, FastAPI, SQLAlchemy, PostgreSQL, WebSockets, and Next.js
• Build integrations with manufacturers' ERP systems and other third-party tools so order, inventory, and production data flow into the product without manual entry
• Design and evolve the data model as the product expands, with clean, reversible Alembic migrations
• Build the real-time layer that keeps manufacturers and brands looking at the same status, documents, and messages
• Own infrastructure, deployment, and monitoring
• Join design partner calls and turn what you hear into product decisions
• Help shape how AI shows up in the product as we build it in
• Set the engineering bar and help hire the engineers who come next

Requirements:

• Have 5+ years building production software, with real ownership of systems across the front end and back end
• Write Python and TypeScript fluently, and have built with FastAPI (or similar) and React or Next.js
• Know PostgreSQL well, from schema design to query tuning and migrations
• Have integrated with external systems and know what it takes to make them reliable: retries, idempotency, and sync conflicts
• Use AI tools every day to move faster
• Write clearly and enjoy working closely with a hands-on, detail-oriented founder
• Have shipped a product from 0 to 1, ideally as an early engineer at a startup
• Make product and prioritization decisions instead of waiting for specs
• Push back on ideas, including the founder's, and bring a better option
• Treat tests, monitoring, and clean deploys as part of shipping, not extra work
• Experience with ERP systems (e.g., NetSuite, SAP Business One, Acumatica, or QuickBooks) or with supply chain, manufacturing, or B2B operations software
• Built real-time features with WebSockets
• Shipped AI or LLM-powered features, such as document extraction or retrieval
• Side projects that show range and initiative