Be Part of What's Next
We're looking for a Lead Engineer to help build and scale the next generation of our Audience Targeting and Contextual Intelligence Platform–a system that enables privacy-safe, contextually relevant advertising and deeper insights into audience engagement.
You’ll be the technical owner of one or more applications in this ecosystem, designing scalable backend services, building data pipelines, and integrating with Hearst’s core publishing platform. This is a full-stack engineering role where you’ll collaborate with dedicated frontend engineers, data scientists, and platform teams to deliver impactful, AI-enabled advertising technology.
About Hearst Magazines (Why Us?)
Hearst Magazines’ portfolio of more than 30 iconic brands in the U.S.—including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Harper’s BAZAAR, and Popular Mechanics — inspires, entertains, and builds new and bold experiences for an engaged and growing audience across digital, video, social and print, reaching nearly 130 million readers and site visitors each month. With sophisticated content creation, cutting-edge technology, and industry-leading data capabilities, we make media and products that move people across all platforms. We are a global media company that publishes nearly 200 magazine editions and 175 websites around the world—and together, we are shaping what’s next.
Key Responsibilities (What You Are Doing)
- Lead the design and implementation of backend services and pipelines supporting contextual and audience targeting, taxonomy creation, and data ingestion.
- Architect APIs, data models, and streaming workflows for real-time classification, recommendations, and audience insights.
- Build and maintain Python-based (Quart/FastAPI) applications integrated with PostgreSQL, Redis, and event-driven architectures (AWS SNS/SQS).
- Collaborate with and guide frontend engineers on full-stack development using React and modern web frameworks.
- Integrate with core platform services for identity, metadata, and analytics to ensure seamless interoperability.
- Design and manage multi-cloud infrastructure (primarily AWS, with GCP integrations for ML/data workflows).
- Implement robust CI/CD, testing, and deployment pipelines.
- Implement observability using Datadog, Sentry, and other monitoring tools.
- Use modern AI development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Codex, Claude) to accelerate delivery and improve code quality.
- Partner with product managers and data scientists to evolve contextual AI and embedding models for privacy-safe, high-performance targeting.
Qualifications (What We’re Looking For)
- 8+ years of software engineering experience, with strong Python backend and full-stack development skills.
- 3–5 years leading technical design or architecture for scalable, data-intensive applications.
- Proficiency in PostgreSQL (including pgvector) and Redis for performance and caching.
- Hands-on experience cloud-based development, primarily AWS (S3, RDS, SNS/SQS, Lambda); exposure to GCP (Pub/Sub, BigQuery).
- Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and modern CI/CD workflows.
- Comfortable using AI-assisted development tools for productivity, testing, and documentation.
- Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills across technical and non-technical partners.
- Hybrid role based in NYC, with 4 days a week in-office.
Nice to Have
- Experience in building and maintaining taxonomy management systems.
- Knowledge of contextual or audience targeting, ad-tech systems, or recommendation platforms.
- Understanding of privacy-safe advertising, first-party data frameworks, and data-compliance standards (GDPR, CCPA).
- Exposure to machine-learning workflows or AI-based personalization systems.
- Experience with GraphQL, Elasticsearch.
- Experience with observability stacks (Datadog, Sentry).
Benefits (What We Offer)
- Work with the Best: Collaborate with top-tier professionals across media, advertising, tech, fashion, lifestyle, and publishing, shaping the future of these dynamic industries.
- Grow Your Skills: Unlock your potential with access to innovative training programs, immersive workshops, and exclusive industry events.
- Work-Life Harmony: Enjoy the flexibility of hybrid work, empowering you to balance professional success with personal priorities.
- Foster Connection & Belonging: Join our Employee Resource Groups and help create a welcoming workplace where everyone feels valued and empowered.
- Wellness First: Prioritize your well-being with a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, and vision insurance from Day 1.
- Plan for Your Financial Future: Enjoy competitive financial perks, including a 401(k) plan with a generous company match.
The base salary for this role is between $168,000 - $204,000. The actual base pay offered is dependent upon many factors, such as: transferable skills, work experience, business needs and market demands. The base pay range is subject to change and may be modified in the future.
Hearst is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
Skills Required
- 8+ years of software engineering experience with strong Python backend and full-stack development skills.
- 3-5 years leading technical design or architecture for scalable, data-intensive applications.
- Build and maintain Python-based applications (Quart/FastAPI) integrated with PostgreSQL and Redis.
- Proficiency in PostgreSQL (including pgvector) for vector search/embeddings.
- Experience with event-driven architectures and AWS SNS/SQS.
- Hands-on cloud development primarily on AWS (S3, RDS, SNS/SQS, Lambda); exposure to GCP (Pub/Sub, BigQuery).
- Familiarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and modern CI/CD workflows.
- Experience designing APIs, data models, and streaming workflows for real-time classification and recommendations.
- Implement observability and monitoring (Datadog, Sentry) and robust testing/deployment pipelines.
- Experience collaborating across frontend, data science, and platform teams; strong communication skills.
- Hybrid role based in NYC, with 4 days a week in-office.
- Comfortable using AI-assisted development tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Codex, Claude).
- Experience with React and guiding frontend engineers on full-stack development.
- Experience building taxonomy management systems.
- Knowledge of contextual or audience targeting, ad-tech systems, or recommendation platforms.
- Understanding of privacy-safe advertising, first-party data frameworks, and data-compliance standards (GDPR, CCPA).
- Exposure to machine-learning workflows or AI-based personalization systems.
- Experience with GraphQL and Elasticsearch.
- Experience with observability stacks (Datadog, Sentry).
Hearst Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Hearst and has not been reviewed or approved by Hearst.
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare coverage is described as comprehensive, including medical plan choice, full in-network preventive coverage, dental and vision, telemedicine, prescription coverage, and fertility resources. Mental-health resources and other wellbeing services (e.g., therapy sessions, crisis support, virtual physical therapy, and chronic-condition programs) further strengthen the health offering.
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Retirement Support — Retirement support is positioned as meaningful through a 401(k) plan with company matching and Hearst covering plan administration fees. Performance bonuses are also noted as available in some roles, adding an additional rewards component beyond base pay.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off benefits include paid holidays, paid sick days, and vacation time with a commonly cited annual range, alongside paid parental leave and family medical leave. A remote work program and flexibility signals are also included as part of the overall rewards experience.
Hearst Insights
What We Do
Hearst is a leading global, diversified media, information and services company with more than 360 businesses. Its major interests include ownership in cable television networks such as A&E, HISTORY, Lifetime and ESPN; global financial services leader Fitch Group; Hearst Health, a group of medical information and services businesses; transportation assets including CAMP Systems International, a major provider of software-as-a-service solutions for managing maintenance of jets and helicopters; 33 television stations such as WCVB-TV in Boston and KCRA-TV in Sacramento, California, which reach a combined 19 percent of U.S. viewers; newspapers such as the Houston Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle and Times Union (Albany, New York); more than 300 magazines around the world, including Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Men's Health and Car and Driver, and digital services businesses such as iCrossing and KUBRA; and investments in emerging digital entertainment companies such as Complex Networks.
