Software Engineer - Frontend at Ladder

About Ladder

We saw a problem within the life insurance industry: getting covered took too long, involved too much paperwork, and required too many in-person meetings with sales agents. Having lost his father at a young age, our CEO, Jamie, was determined to make it easier for people to get the coverage they needed to provide for their families. So, we got to work. We developed a method of real-time underwriting leveraging AI and, in doing so, reduced the months-long process of applying for life insurance to minutes. Our digital experience is quick (instant decisions!), loved by users (check out our Trustpilot or Google reviews) and prolific ($74 billion+ in coverage provided).

About the role 

The Ladder engineering team is hiring a Frontend Software Engineer to join us to reimagine what Life Insurance can be. As a Frontend Software Engineer, you will work directly on user-facing features. You will leverage your software knowledge to build critical features on which customers depend. You will collaborate with cross-functional teams to understand user requirements, deliver efficient and reliable solutions, and continuously improve our product. The ideal candidate brings demonstrated experience in software engineering.

Please note, this is a hybrid role based in our Palo Alto headquarters and the successful candidate must be able to be onsite 2-3 days a week. Also, Ladder is unable to work with or sponsor Visa's (CPT/OPT/H1-B) at this time.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and test efficient and reusable front-end systems that drive complex web applications
• Collaborate with Product Designers, Product Managers, and Software Engineers to deliver compelling and high-quality user-facing products
• Explore data to provide insights into our product and business
• Mentor others in development technologies, tools, and processes
• Develop test strategies, design automation frameworks, write unit/functional tests to drive up code coverage and automation metrics

Requirements

• 1+ year of proven work experience in frontend software web development
• Proficiency in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, including advanced techniques
• Hands on experience with modern JavaScript frameworks/libraries (Preferably React & Om)
• Experience with ClojureScript & GraphQL 
• Strong understanding of algorithms and data structures—write efficient code and optimize performance
• Passion for user experience and design with an understanding of front-end architecture
• Contribute to engineering culture in terms of quality, monitoring, and on-call practices
• Passion for learning new technologies and staying up-to-date with the latest trends in front-end technologies
• Bachelor’s degree in CS/CE or equivalent practical experience

Technologies

While it's great if you're already familiar with some of these, we strongly believe general technical proficiency is more important than knowledge of specific technologies. 

• Frontend: ClojureScript, JavaScript, React, Om
• Backend: Clojure, JVM
• Infrastructure: Kafka, Docker, Kubernetes, Packer, Terraform, GCP, GraphQL
• Data: BigQuery, Tableau, BEAM

What we Offer 

Whether you work in our beautiful office in Palo Alto or remotely, Ladder is highly collaborative and fun. To support you in your role, we offer fantastic perks and benefits that reflect our mission of care and support, including:

• Excellent medical, dental, and vision coverage | We offer competitive healthcare, dental and vision plans for you and your family.
• Flexible paid time off | Take the time that you need to rest and recharge, including our week-long winter holiday closure. 
• Stock options | We offer competitive stock option packages to participate in the success of building Ladder
• A rewarding 401k match program | We'll match up to 4% of your contributions as you save for your retirement goals.
• Ladder Fit Program | Your health matters. That’s why Ladder provides a monthly reimbursement for wellness-related expenses.
• Commuter benefits | When you work from the office, you will receive pre-tax 
• benefits for your commute and free parking.
• A stocked, beautiful new office | Located in downtown Palo Alto, our office was specifically designed to accommodate all working styles. We've invested in technology to support our hybrid team, plus we provide office snacks and daily catered lunches so that team members can work well and have fun together.
• Paid parental leave | We think it's crucial that new parents have time to adjust to their new lives without worrying about work, so we provide all parents inclusive of birthing, adoption, or fostering ten weeks of paid baby bonding.
• Work-from-home flexibility and support | We recognize that everyone's home life is different and support remote and hybrid work. Upon joining, we provide a one-time remote office stipend for all team members and then a monthly stipend to cover WFH costs such as the internet.
• Fun company-wide events | Whether we work locally or remotely, we genuinely enjoy spending time together. That’s why we plan fun virtual and in-person events to let loose and laugh.

The base pay range targeted for this position is $114,000 - $134,000. This role is eligible for equity and benefits as shared above. Base pay is determined by market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Ladder is building a diverse team of talented and enthusiastic people. We are an equal opportunity workplace. At Ladder, differences are celebrated and supported to benefit our people, product, and community. Let us know why you're interested in this position and what unique contributions you can make to the Ladder team. We look forward to hearing from you.

Research shows that candidates from underrepresented backgrounds often don't apply for roles if they don't meet all the criteria – unlike majority candidates meeting significantly fewer requirements. We strongly encourage you to apply if you’re interested: we'd love to know how you can elevate our team with your unique experience!