Staff Software Engineer

Job Description

Staff Software Engineer

Join us in our mission to transform the way people shop and eat, where impact, innovation and growth drive everything we do. Our Engineering teams tackle complex technical challenges across a global, three-sided marketplace, building and scaling systems that serve millions of customers, riders and partners every day.

From real-time logistics to resilient infrastructure and marketplace optimisation, we design, build and operate technology that powers Deliveroo’s growth at scale.

We’re looking for a Staff Software Engineer to join our London, UK - Hybrid (3 days from the office) team. In this role, you’ll help us define technical solutions for critical business problems and lead the technical direction for complex, high-scale systems.

Get to know our Engineering team — what drives us, how we work, and what you can expect.

What You’ll Be Doing

You’ll be joining a high-impact engineering group focused on solving unstructured and ambiguous challenges. You will act as a technical authority, aligning non-adjacent teams to deliver results that move the needle for the entire organisation.

Here’s what your day-to-day might look like:

• Drive Technical Excellence: Act as a subject matter expert, providing high-level reviews and technical advice across multiple teams.

• Architect Scalable Solutions: Define and design technical solutions for complex business problems within a high-traffic environment (20krpm+).

• Lead Strategic Direction: Influence the long-term technical roadmap and manage project timelines, risks, and sustainable delivery paces.

• Mentor & Coach: Support the growth of engineers across all levels and partner with up-and-coming leaders to scale our engineering culture.

• Shape the Team: Lead engineering interviews and contribute to recruiting strategy to ensure we maintain a high bar for talent.

What You’ll Need to Thrive

Our ideal candidate will bring strong expertise in some of these areas and curiosity to grow in others:

• Deep Technical Mastery: Significant experience building web-based applications at scale and a pride in writing readable, well-tested software.

• Polyglot Mindset: Proficiency in (or a strong desire to learn) languages such as Go, Ruby, Python, Scala, or Rust.

• Distributed Systems Expertise: Practical experience with relational databases (PostgreSQL) and NoSQL backends (Redis, DynamoDB, or Elasticsearch).

• High-Scale Architecture: Proven ability to design and operate systems handling massive request volumes and complex logistical workflows.

• Strategic Leadership: Strong understanding of how to align multiple disciplines and teams to resolve ambiguous technical challenges.

Why Join Us?

At Deliveroo, you’ll do work that matters—solving real-world problems in a three-sided marketplace that’s constantly evolving. We’re food lovers, problem solvers, community organisers, proud parents, and more, brought together by a shared drive to make things better. Working here you can expect to:

🔧 Solve meaningful problems at real scale Work on a complex, always-on marketplace that impacts millions every day.

🌱 See your impact, fast Ship, test and improve ideas quickly in a low-hierarchy, high-ownership environment.

🧠 Grow through challenge and ownership Take on big, ambiguous problems and accelerate your career with strong support.

🌎 A culture built for builders High standards, collaboration, flexible working and continuous learning.

​​💰 Share in the success you help create Competitive salary and equity options, so you’re rewarded for the impact you make.

➡️ Want a deeper look at how we build? Check out our Tech Blog.

We aim to create a fair process that lets your skills shine—our interview typically includes 3-4 stages. Explore our Engineering Interview Guide here to help you feel confident at each stage.

Our Global Structure

Deliveroo is now part of DoorDash, bringing together teams with even greater reach, scale, and ambition. Depending on your role, you may collaborate with teammates, systems, and leaders across DoorDash and Wolt. Together, we’re unlocking new possibilities as one global team.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

At Deliveroo, we know that a great workplace reflects the world around us and that true diversity and inclusion make us stronger, more creative, and better at what we do. We’re committed to fostering an environment where everyone can do their best work and feel they belong.

We believe in equality of opportunity and welcome candidates from all backgrounds regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion, or belief.

If you have a disability or long-term health condition and need support to apply for one of our roles, or if you require any reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process, please contact our recruitment team at accommodations@deliveroo.co.uk and we’ll be happy to help ensure you have a fair and equitable experience.

If you’re excited about solving meaningful problems at scale and growing with a supportive team, we’d love to hear from you.