Senior Staff Engineer, Query Optimization

MongoDB’s mission is to empower innovators to create, transform, and disrupt industries by unleashing the power of software and data. We enable organizations of all sizes to easily build, scale, and run modern applications by helping them modernize legacy workloads, embrace innovation, and unleash AI. Our industry-leading developer data platform, MongoDB Atlas, is the only globally distributed, multi-cloud database and is available in more than 115 regions across AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure. Atlas allows customers to build anywhere—on the edge, on premises, or across cloud providers. With offices worldwide and over 175,000 developers joining MongoDB every month, it’s no wonder that leading organizations, like Samsung and Toyota, trust MongoDB to build next-generation, AI-powered applications.

Join the MongoDB Server Query Optimization team, and help us build a world-class distributed open-source query optimizer. Our team plays a crucial role in the experience and performance of data processing. We are responsible for the MongoDB Query Language and the lifecycle of each query, through parsing, optimization and plan selection.

We have an office presence across the US and Europe including New York, Dublin, Seattle, and Palo Alto. We support office-based and remote work.

We have tons of interesting problems to solve with a direct impact on customers for transactional, time-series, and analytical workloads. The team is endeavoring to systematically rewrite every major component of our optimization and execution systems. We need your help to design and build the brain of a distributed document database that meets the demands of enterprise workloads.

One of the unique challenges is to provide a world-class query experience for modern applications developers, who need to combine structural predicates, aggregation functions, and search/vector search components in one query, which requires innovations for new optimization techniques on top of the state of the art.

Candidate Profile

• 15+ years of experience in data management systems, including extensive experience in query optimization
• Experience with building production-level code with a large user base, robust design structure and rigorous code quality. Extensive coding knowledge of C++ is preferred or another system level language is required
• Degree in Computer Science or similar field, or equivalent practical experience, with strong competencies in data structures, algorithms, and software design/architecture
• Passion for the theory and practice of database query engines, as well as hands-on or academic experience in the domain
• Leadership qualifies to communicate effectively and thrive in a highly collaborative teamwork environment

Position Expectations

• Innovate in the area of flexible schema databases; Help us build a world-class query optimization system
• Research state-of-the art query systems to inform our design
• Leverage deep knowledge of the strength and weakness of the product and the industry trends to provide technical vision and direction
• Set initiative level strategy, architect plan and lead team towards successful execution
• Advise management on decisions related to roadmap, processes, architecture and design
• Identify, design, implement, test, and support new features related to query performance and robustness, query language enhancements, diagnostics, and integration with other products and tools
• Extend influence to Engineering organization in forming product vision, long-term roadmap and proposing changes to engineering practices
• Influence and grow team members through active mentoring, coaching and leading by example

Success Measures

• In three months you’ll have learned the query optimization component at a sufficient level of detail to write small enhancements or make bug fixes for the system
• In six months, you’ll have developed enough code knowledge to take on code review responsibilities and are playing an active role in drafting and reviewing the design for new features;You have expanded the team's horizons by presenting a favorite paper or system architecture related to query systems
• In twelve months, on the basis of your extensive past experience in the query space, you have contributed to the long-term technical roadmap of the MongoDB Query team; And you will have started to collaborate with teams outside Query to extend your organizational influence

To drive the personal growth and business impact of our employees, we’re committed to developing a supportive and enriching culture for everyone. From employee affinity groups, to fertility assistance and a generous parental leave policy, we value our employees’ wellbeing and want to support them along every step of their professional and personal journeys. Learn more about what it’s like to work at MongoDB, and help us make an impact on the world!

MongoDB is committed to providing any necessary accommodations for individuals with disabilities within our application and interview process. To request an accommodation due to a disability, please inform your recruiter.

MongoDB, Inc. provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type and makes all hiring decisions without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

MongoDB’s base salary range for this role is posted below. Compensation at the time of offer is unique to each candidate and based on a variety of factors such as skill set, experience, qualifications, and work location. Salary is one part of MongoDB’s total compensation and benefits package. Other benefits for eligible employees may include: equity, participation in the employee stock purchase program, flexible paid time off, 20 weeks fully-paid gender-neutral parental leave, fertility and adoption assistance, 401(k) plan, mental health counseling, access to transgender-inclusive health insurance coverage, and health benefits offerings. Please note, the base salary range listed below and the benefits in this paragraph are only applicable to U.S.-based candidates.

MongoDB’s base salary range for this role in the U.S. is:$151,000—$297,000 USD