One thing WordPress and Matrix.org have in common is a strong, abiding belief in the open web, a rare thing in a world that is dangerously moving towards walled gardens. Instead, both projects give users the freedom to build a website or to communicate on their own terms. No matter what the goal, or whether one uses the hosted versions like WordPress.com/Modular.im or hosts their own versions, users always own and control their data.
We’re incredibly happy that Automattic is investing in New Vector (the company behind Matrix.org) and that we’re supporting this truly open ecosystem of communication tools.
We’ll need help, though. We’re looking for a developer to bridge the two software worlds – the one of WordPress and of Matrix.org.
The opportunities for cross-pollination are endless and may include building open-source plugins for either platform, enabling real-time chat and collaboration for business websites, blogs, e-commerce stores, or communities, integration of existing infrastructure.
Enough about us, let‘s talk more about you. This position might be a good fit if you:
- Care about open protocols, open communication, data ownership, and the open web.
- Can work with a loose direction – product design and good experience instincts will be especially helpful in this integration position.
- Have production experience with several programming languages. PHP and JavaScript will be useful for most integrations, though you may need to quickly learn and adapt for a variety of environments. There are Matrix servers and clients written in Python, Go, JavaScript, Java, Kotlin, Objective-C, Swift, Rust, and more.
- Know about systems architecture.
- Are highly collaborative and you love participating in code reviews and discussions about architecture, or design.
- Are open and able to travel 3-4 weeks per year to meet up with your teammates in person.
Extra credit:
- Experience with real-time platforms (whether Matrix.org or others).
- Experience with decentralized systems and platforms.
- WordPress or Matrix programming experience.
- Open source contributions or contributions to programs designed to help underrepresented people enter the tech field.
- Data analysis experience, and understanding of how analytics can help with product decisions.
- Knowledge of tooling and build systems.
Speaking of interests and skills, here are some areas in which you can grow and have further impact in the future at the company:
- Leadership – we offer a variety of leadership options to those who have interest, including becoming a team lead and managing releases.
- Learning and development – we have a generous personal development budget and encourage you to grow your skills through courses, books and conferences.
- Architecture – we encourage developers to develop expertise in the systems they work with, guide their evolution and mentor other developers working on them.
- Engineering effectiveness – we believe in helping other developers become more effective through tools, practices, cross-team collaborations, and process improvements.
These are exciting times for the open web and you’ll have a unique opportunity to shape its future. Join us! We look forward to hearing from you.
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION AT AUTOMATTIC
We’re improving diversity in the tech industry. At Automattic, we want people to love their work and show respect and empathy to all. We welcome differences and strive to increase participation from traditionally underrepresented groups. Our D&I committee involves Automatticians across the company and drives grassroots change. For example, this group has helped facilitate private online spaces for affiliated Automatticians to gather and helps run a monthly D&I People Lab series for further learning. Diversity and Inclusion is a priority at Automattic, though our dedication influences far more than just Automatticians: We make our products freely available and translate our products into and offer customer support in numerous languages. We require unconscious bias training for our hiring teams and ensure our products are accessible across different bandwidths and devices. Read more about our dedication to diversity and inclusion.
Curious who works in engineering at Automattic? Meet our Code Wranglers – Brandon, Jeremy, Mark, Jennifer, Roy and Kat!
What to Expect
We know applying to jobs can be stressful and we want to ease the stress by giving clear expectations upfront about our process. We’ve outlined everything you need to know here including all of the steps in the process as well as how we approach hiring. We’re always iterating so if you happen to join us in the process, please feel free to offer feedback on what else we can include there!
