Senior Backend Engineer

Mondly by Pearson

English Language Learning Division

Spain - Madrid OR remote

Mondly by Pearson:

At Pearson, we’re committed to a world that’s always learning and to our talented team who makes it all possible. We are bold thinkers and standout innovators who motivate each other to explore new frontiers in an environment that supports and inspires us to always be better. With a rich heritage that combines 150 years of experience in publishing with the latest learning technology and digital services, we help people learn whatever, wherever and however they choose.

Job Summary:

As a Senior Backend Engineer, you will work on the Mondly by Pearson's core products alongside one of the most capable teams of professionals in the app development world. You will have full ownership of your projects, covering responsibilities from software architecture to development, testing, maintenance, and deployment. You will gather and document software requirements and then develop, test and implement tools and applications used by internal stakeholders or millions of users worldwide.

The Employee will report to the Backend Lead and operate as part of the Technology team, unless the Employer determines otherwise.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop medium to high-complexity features for the Mondly by Pearson’s web apps and implement back-end functionality that will reach millions of users.

• Collaborate efficiently with the web development and design teams to implement, adapt and deploy design templates.

• Collaborate with product owners and UI/UX designers to create prototypes for new and enhanced features.

• Work with designers, backend engineers and product owners to deliver an optimized product and exceptional user experience.

• Conduct A/B and other testing strategies to optimize performance.

• Produce quality code that is robust, efficient, reliable, and maintainable, using different technologies like Yii2 (PHP framework), Ember.js (Javascript framework), MySQL, AWS, Redis, MongoDB.

• Evaluate emerging technologies to identify opportunities, trends and best practices and leverage those that would strengthen our applications.

• Demonstrate ability to multitask, manage and own concurrent project efforts, and work with minimal supervision in a team environment.

• Collaborate with product delivery team to ensure technical feasibility for new features and enhancements to the existing features.

• Collaborate with product delivery team to define, design, and ship new features.

• Choose the best technical solutions, perform database migrations when needed, test the apps and develop bug fixes.

• Ensure that any new feature has a back-end and a database architecture that can support a large volume of users (100 million and growing).

• Optimize and improve current tools and applications to meet dynamic business requirements.

• Scale the backend processes; improve release pipeline, build automation and monitoring. Work with team members to improve the overall system.

• Be able to mentor new coming and more junior engineers in the team. Organize peer code- reviews to spot problems and ensure quality of the product.

• Ensure data quality and integrity.

• Test and debug the tools and applications performance.

• Research and stay up-to-date on the latest trends and techniques in web software development.

• Monitor and ensure performance, scaling capacity and cost optimization for cloud services and infrastructure

• Ensure that agreed product performance metrics are available and ready to be consumed as these are key for the platform to remain operational, optimized, and available to end users.

• Promote a culture of partnership, teamwork, innovation and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Participate in a highly collaborative, customer-centred, data-driven culture that challenges norms with a bias for action and defending it; supports the diversity of thought, experiences, and approaches to problem-solving.

• Duly observe all applicable health and safety laws and regulations.

Qualifications & Skills :

• Degree (or equivalent) preferred ideally in Computer Science or equivalent experience

• Proficiency with back-end programming languages and related frameworks. We use a PHP stack currently, and in the long term we want to migrate to a JVM stack, potentially Kotlin.

• Nice to have but not mandatory front-end skills and experience.

• Commitment to creating and fostering excellent engineering practices & processes

• Strong communication skills and ability to seamlessly collaborate with several different teams

• Ability to recall & apply proven testing principles like unit testing, integration testing etc…

• Considerable experience in building and maintaining digital products (e.g. websites, supporting mobile apps, AR/VR solutions, etc.) .

• Good understanding of the whole development lifecycle including code reviews, pipelines, software delivery, etc.

• Strong understanding of software quality assurance principles and execution

• A problem-solving mind-set with great attention to detail .

• Strong customer empathy and ability to translate customer insights into winning product management strategies

• Robust decision making - based on evidence and data

• Passion for education and learning

• Possesses a global outlook and approach

• Operates as a self-aware, effective team player

• Experience of working and thriving in a global matrix organization is a plus

• Proficiency in English, both spoken and written.

Our Tech Stack:

Our main tech stack, but not limited to is:

• Backend

• PHP 8

• Yii2 Framework

• MySQL 8

• Elasticsearch 8.x

• MongoDB 5.x

• Redis 6.2

• AWS

• ElasticBeanstalk

• SQS

• SNS

• Frontend

• EmberJS 3.16+ ReactJS

• NextJS

Why join Mondly by Pearson?

Opportunity to work on impactful projects that reach millions of users worldwide.

Collaborative and inclusive company culture that values diversity and innovation.

Competitive salary and benefits package.

Flexible work arrangements, including remote work options.

What to expect from Pearson

Did you know Pearson is one of the 10 most innovative education companies of 2022?

At Pearson, we add life to a lifetime of learning so everyone can realize the life they imagine. We do this by creating vibrant and enriching learning experiences designed for real-life impact. We are on a journey to be 100 percent digital to meet the changing needs of the global population by developing a new strategy with ambitious targets. To deliver on our strategic vision, we have five business divisions that are the foundation for the long-term growth of the company: Assessment & Qualifications, Virtual Learning, English Language Learning, Workforce Skills and Higher Education. Alongside these, we have our corporate divisions: Digital & Technology, Finance, Global Corporate Marketing & Communications, Human Resources, Legal, Strategy and Direct to Consumer. Learn more at We are Pearson.

We value the power of an inclusive culture and also a strong sense of belonging. We promote a culture where differences are embraced, opportunities are accessible, consideration and respect are the norm and all individuals are supported in reaching their full potential. Through our talent, we believe that diversity, equity and inclusion make us a more innovative and vibrant place to work. People are at the center, and we are committed to building a workplace where talent can learn, grow and thrive.

Pearson is an Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity Employer and a member of E-Verify. We want a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills. The more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. All employment decisions are based on qualifications, merit and business need. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status or any other group protected by law. We strive for a workforce that reflects the diversity of our communities.

To learn more about Pearson’s commitment to a diverse and inclusive workforce, navigate to: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Pearson.

If you are an individual with a disability and are unable or limited in your ability to use or access our career site as a result of your disability, you may request reasonable accommodations by emailing TalentExperienceGlobalTeam@grp.pearson.com.

Note that the information you provide will stay confidential and will be stored securely. It will not be seen by those involved in making decisions as part of the recruitment process.

Job: TECHNOLOGY

Organization: English Language Learning

Schedule: FULL_TIME

Workplace Type: Remote

Req ID: 16364