Senior Software Engineer, Wikidata Platform

Das ist der Job

You'll implement high‑scale, production‑grade services while ensuring performance, reliability, and maintainability.

Darum lohnt es sich

SummaryThe Wikimedia Foundation is seeking a Senior Software Engineer to join the team supporting the Wikidata Platform - the structured data backbone of Wikimedia projects and a key part of the global open knowledge ecosystem.

Working closely with the technical and product leads, you'll contribute to shaping the future of how the world queries and interacts with structured, linked data.Important : We are a fully remote team. Your working hours will need to overlap with UTC+1 to UTC-5 time zones to accommodate members of your team around the world.

With 14:00 UTC to 17:00 UTC being the team's overlapping hours.What You’ll DoDesign, build, and maintain backend systems and APIs that power Wikidata’s query infrastructureImprove reliability, observability, and automation of the Wikidata Query Service and data pipelinesIntegrate Wikidata Platform services with other systems and data sources across WikimediaCollaborate with SRE, data engineers, and product teams to ensure stability and scalability under growing usageMonitor production systems, respond to operational incidents, and proactively identify and resolve bottlenecksSupport platform migrations and system upgrades (e.g., triple stores, streaming ingestion)Contribute to deployment automation, CI/CD workflows, and service instrumentationParticipate in code reviews, design discussions, and technical planningDocument systems and share knowledge with team members and Wikimedia’s broader technical communitySkills and Experience We’re Looking For5+ years of experience as a backend or platform engineer working on distributed systems or data platformsDeep understanding of database and/or knowledge graph representation technologies and standardsProficiency in Java, C++, or other systems languages.

Ability to set up, scale, and investigate systems is more important than expertise in a particular language.Experience building and operating production‑grade services with SLOs – good appreciation of scalability, performance, reliability and other non‑functionalsFamiliarity with modern observability tools (metrics, logging, tracing)Experience in data processing systems such as graph databases, search indexes, or data processing pipelinesAbility to work collaboratively across disciplines and communicate clearly across technical and non‑technical audiencesA commitment to learning, resilience, and contributing to a mission‑driven engineering cultureNice to HaveExperience working with knowledge graphs or RDF/SPARQLFamiliarity with streaming data systems (e.g., Kafka, Flink)Comfort with CI/CD pipelines and containerization tools (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes)Experience in open source or open knowledge communitiesFamiliarity with Wikimedia technologies, Wikidata, or MediaWikiAs an equal opportunity employer, the Wikimedia Foundation values having a diverse workforce and continuously strives to maintain an inclusive and equitable workplace.

You'll help scale and sustain the Wikidata Query Service (WDQS) and related platform services that power tools, features, communities, and research efforts across Wikimedia projects and beyond.This role combines backend engineering and operations ownership. We encourage people with a diverse range of backgrounds to apply.

We do not discriminate against any person based upon their race, traits historically associated with race, religion, color, national origin, sex, pregnancy or related medical conditions, parental status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, genetic information, or any other legally protected characteristics. #J-18808-Ljbffr