Distinguished Software Engineer

Job Description

<p><h3>Overview</h3><p><b>Affirm is reinventing credit to make it more honest and friendly, giving consumers the flexibility to buy now and pay later without any hidden fees or compounding interest.</b></p><p>In this role, you will be a senior member of Affirm’s Architecture Group, reporting directly to the Head of Architecture. You will own the architecture, technical roadmap, and delivery outcomes for the Decisions Foundations Engineering Group, which includes the Purchasing, Credit Underwriting, and Machine Learning domains. You will also shape Affirm’s broader technical direction through leadership within the Architecture Group, driving innovation and architectural coherence across the company.</p><p>You will serve as the accountable technical leader for three critical domains :</p><ul><li>Purchasing, which powers Affirm’s checkout platform and is focused on optimizing the consumer experience during checkout and prequalification.</li><li>Credit Underwriting, which manages credit risk and drives conversion through pricing and credit levers.</li><li>Machine Learning Infrastructure, which supports Affirm’s credit and fraud models through scalable ML systems, including model training, inference, and feature serving.</li></ul><h3>What You’ll Do</h3><ul><li>Drive the long-term technical vision for Affirm’s Purchasing, Credit Underwriting, and ML infrastructure domains.</li><li>Lead architectural strategy and roadmap definition in collaboration with domain tech leads and the broader Architecture Group.</li><li>Champion scalable, performant, and user-centric solutions across Affirm’s engineering organization.</li><li>Define and uphold standards for design and code quality through reviews, mentoring, and hands-on architectural guidance.</li><li>Partner with Product and Engineering leadership to influence product direction and ensure strong alignment between business goals and system architecture.</li><li>Guide cross-functional teams to deliver end-to-end solutions across service boundaries and external dependencies.</li><li>Mentor and support a team of senior technical leaders, helping them grow as architects and stewards of Affirm’s long-term systems health.</li><li>Foster a culture of rigor, curiosity, and technical excellence across engineering.</li></ul><h3>What We Look For</h3><ul><li>Proven success leading technical architecture for large-scale consumer systems, ideally across multiple domains or product lines.</li><li>Deep experience guiding engineering strategy and delivery at both high-growth startups and mature technology companies.</li><li>Ability to distill complex technical problems and trade-offs into clear decisions that influence product and platform evolution.</li><li>Effective communicator, capable of engaging both engineers and executives to drive alignment and clarity.</li><li>Track record of mentoring senior engineers and developing the next generation of technical leaders.</li><li>Extensive experience building and operating large-scale, highly available systems.</li><li>15+ years of software engineering experience, with prior experience in technical leadership roles.</li><li>Experience in Fintech or retail (consumer and merchant-facing systems) is a plus.</li><li>Experience with Machine Learning infrastructure (e.g. feature stores, training pipelines, low-latency inference) is a plus.</li><li>JVM experience at scale is a plus.</li><li>Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field, or equivalent practical experience.</li></ul><h3>Compensation and Benefits</h3><p>Pay Grade - V</p><p>Equity Grade - 13</p><p><b>Base pay range (Canada) per year : $270,000 - $310,000</b></p><p>Affirm is remote-first. The majority of roles are remote and you can work almost anywhere within the country of employment. A limited number of roles remain office-based due to the nature of their job responsibilities.</p><p>Base pay is part of a total compensation package that may include equity rewards, stipends for health, wellness and tech spending, and benefits (including 100% subsidized medical coverage, dental, and vision for you and your dependents).</p><p>For U.S. positions that could be performed in Los Angeles or San Francisco, Affirm will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records per the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance and Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance.</p><p>By clicking Submit Application, you acknowledge that you have read Affirm's Global Candidate Privacy Notice and hereby give informed consent to the collection, processing, use, and storage of your personal information as described therein.</p><h3>Seniority level</h3><p>Mid-Senior level</p><h3>Employment type</h3><p>Full-time</p><h3>Job function</h3><p>Engineering and Information Technology</p><p>J-18808-Ljbffr</p></p>
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