Software Engineer (Rust / C++), Desktop

Why Thunderbird?

MZLA Technologies Corporation (MZLA) is a wholly-owned, for-profit subsidiary of the Mozilla Foundation and the home of Thunderbird. Thunderbird is a global, free, and open-source email and productivity app, which has experienced significant growth in revenue, staff, and aspirations since its launch 20 years ago. Our revenue comes from our dedicated users around the world who generously fund our work. As we continue to expand our team and enhance our products and services, we remain dedicated to providing best-in-class productivity solutions independent of big tech. Operating as a small but dynamic team of 40 + staff across seven countries and time zones, we are part of the larger Mozilla family but maintain our distinct and independent identity from both the Mozilla Foundation and Mozilla Corporation.

Our organizational culture is driven by our mission. We are committed to fostering openness and transparency as a member of the open-source community. We lean into collaboration, creativity, and diversity. We bring a hearty dose of scrappy grit and resilience to our lively and spirited team. Our operating principles leverage data informed decisions, ownership, speed and efficiencies to elevate our work and deliver innovative and impactful solutions to our users.

The Opportunity:

As a Software Engineer on the Desktop team, this is your opportunity to help bring Rust into our legacy codebase, deliver impactful features, and improve performance for a global user base—all while working alongside a passionate team of experts.

This role joins 13 talented front and back-end engineers who make up the Desktop team, and bring deep expertise to the development and maintenance of our 20-year-old flagship application, cherished by millions of users worldwide.

As we work to modernize and enhance the product, this role plays a vital role in implementing new features and transitioning legacy code to Rust and C++. This role requires a solid background in back-end software development and proficiency in both languages. 

You will work closely within and across MZLA teams and collaborate with engineers of various specializations and levels throughout the US, Canada, Europe and New Zealand. The Software Engineer is an individual contributor and will report directly to the Senior Manager, Desktop Engineering. 

We’re committed to creating an amazing experience for our users, and you’ll play a key part in this effort. You will be working with our existing staff and community members from all over the globe to support the mission and objectives of MZLA Technologies Corp and the Thunderbird Project.

This is a remote, full time position. We require strong written communication skills to facilitate effective work coordination across various virtual communication platforms such as email and video conferencing.

What you’ll do: 

• Maintain and improve the back-end codebase of the Thunderbird application.
• Code feature improvements across major areas, including the calendar and mail components.
• Implement and refactor mail protocols, converting legacy code to more efficient low-level languages such as Rust or C++.
• Develop tests to assess operational performance and address performance bottlenecks across the application.
• Build prototypes and tackle complex problems with no clear solutions, collaborating closely with engineers, designers, and other cross-functional teams.
• Participate in technical decision-making, conduct code reviews (both receiving and providing feedback), and engage with contributors to improve development practices.
• Debug and fix issues to enhance the overall quality of the codebase and improve the user experience.
• Take ownership of projects, driving improvements and making a significant impact on the design and development of Thunderbird's back-end architecture.
• Share the responsibility of monitoring and managing the codebase by reviewing automated test results, triaging regressions, backing out problematic changes, and ensuring the successful integration of patches to uphold project standards and stability.

What you’ll bring: 

• 3+ years of experience in back-end software development, with demonstrated experience in Rust and C++.
• Strong understanding of software engineering best practices, including version control, testing, and documentation.
• Proficiency in Mercurial or Git and experience with version control workflows, including branching, merging, and pull requests.
• Experience with performance optimization techniques and addressing bottlenecks in back-end systems.
• Familiarity with front-end technologies and the ability to collaborate with front-end engineers.
• Familiarity with Agile methodologies and iterative development cycles.
• Knowledge of continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) processes.
• Familiarity with web technologies and frameworks, and a willingness to transition legacy code to modern technologies.
• Excellent problem-solving and debugging skills with a strong analytical mindset.
• Great communication skills (both written and verbal), documentation skills, and the ability to work with a multi-disciplinary, geographically distributed team.
• Deep respect for the different skills and perspectives that people of varied technical and non-technical backgrounds bring to a team.
• Proven ability to deliver and maintain complex software projects.
• Adaptable and able to handle shifting priorities and frequent changes with grace, while continuously seeking improvement.
• Resilience and a positive mindset, with the ability to recover quickly from setbacks and persist through challenges.

Bonus points for:

• Experience implementing and working with mail protocols (IMAP, SMTP, POP3) and related technologies.
• Experience contributing to open-source projects or engaging with open-source communities.
• French, German, Japanese, or any language proficiency in addition to English.

What you’ll get:

We benchmark our base salaries to local markets and target the 60th percentile of the peer market. The salary ranges for this role are:

• UK: 50,000-60,000 GBP

In addition to competitive salaries, we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your whole self.

Work & Career

• Fully remote work & schedule flexibility
• Latest Laptop and accessories 
• Annual Remote Work Stipend
• Monthly Internet Stipend
• Professional Development Stipend
• Industry Conferences

Rest & Play

• 24 days PTO per year (prorated) 
• Your Birthday
• Year-end Company Shutdown
• Pilot 4 Day Work Week (July & August 2024)
• Public Holidays
• Other Paid Leave
• Wellbeing Allowance for Personal / Family Activities

Health & Family

• Pension Contributions
• Health, Dental, & Vision Insurance
• Disability/Income Protection Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program 
• Paid Parental Leave
• Paid Sick Days 

*Applicants must reside in and have work authorization for the country location(s) specified above. We are unable to consider applicants outside of these markets at this time. And we are unable to provide visa sponsorship

Please apply directly for the job here.

MZLA Technologies Corporation (MZLA) Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion

MZLA believes in the value of diverse creative practices and forms of knowledge, and knows diversity, equity and inclusion are crucial to and enrich the company’s core mission. We encourage applications from everyone, including members of all equity-seeking communities, such as (but not limited to) women, racialized and Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, persons of all sexual orientations, gender identities and expressions.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race (including hairstyle and texture), religion (including religious grooming and dress practices), gender, gender identity, gender expression, color, national origin, pregnancy, ancestry, domestic partner status, disability, sexual orientation, age, genetic predisposition, medical condition, marital status, citizenship status, military or veteran status, or any other basis covered by applicable laws. Mozilla will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics or any other unlawful behavior, conduct, or purpose. 

We will ensure that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, as appropriate. Please contact us at [email protected] to request accommodation.

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