The Editorial Automation Software Engineer will be responsible for designing, building, and maintaining scalable software systems that power Morningstar’s data-driven markets journalism. This role focuses on creating reliable, maintainable architecture and tooling that enable editors and data journalists to produce timely, accurate content using Morningstar data.
You will work closely with data journalists, editors, product managers, and other engineers to translate editorial and business requirements into production-quality software. While the systems you build support editorial workflows, this is fundamentally a software engineering role, with a strong emphasis on scalable system design, code quality, and operational efficiency.
Location: Chicago, IL (Hybrid Policy- 4 days onsite)
Responsibilities
Design and develop scalable, maintainable architecture that transforms structured financial data into editorial outputs such as full articles, charts, and tables.
Build and maintain high-quality software that powers automated editorial workflows, including data-focused content creation and publishing integrations with internal Content Management Systems (CMS).
Write clean, well-tested, and well-documented code following Morningstar engineering standards and best practices.
Build and maintain event-driven architectures powered by Amazon Web Services such as AWS Lambda, EventBridge, and related services.
Collaborate with data journalists and editors to understand requirements and deliver tools that are reliable, intuitive, and extensible.
Improve and refactor existing systems to enhance performance, reliability, and adaptability as data sources and business needs evolve.
Implement monitoring, logging, and alerting to proactively detect, diagnose, and prevent production issues.
Ensure data quality and correctness through validation, error handling, and unit testing.
Participate in code reviews, technical design discussions, and architecture decisions.
Contribute to planning and estimation for projects supporting editorial automation and markets coverage.
Requirements
A bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering or a related field
3+ years of professional experience developing production-grade applications.
Strong programming skills in Python, R, or SQL for data analysis and transformation.
Familiarity with version control (Git) and collaborative development workflows (pull requests, code reviews).
Experience with software engineering best practices, including test-driven development, automated unit testing and functional testing, and DevOps practices such as continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD).
Ability to implement workflows that track data/API usage and automation executions. Develop reporting and dashboards to assess the reliability, performance, and operational health of automation tools.
Experience with AWS compute technologies (Lambda, ECS/ECR, EC2, API Gateway, IAM, S3) is a plus
Knowledge and practical experience with domain modeling and object-oriented design patterns and principles, such as the SOLID principles.
Experience supporting data-heavy products or internal tools.
Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple deliverables in a collaborative team environment.
Familiarity with financial markets and reporting standards, with the ability to interpret complex data sets, preferred.
Experience working within an agile environment, preferred.
Experience with data visualization tools such as Datawrapper, preferred.
We’re not considering candidates who require sponsorship now or in the future
Total Cash Compensation Range
$89,625.00-131,441.66Inclusive of annual base salary and target incentive
Compensation and Benefits
At Morningstar we believe people are at their best when they are at their healthiest. That’s why we champion your wellness through a wide range of programs that support all stages of your personal and professional life. Here are some examples of the offerings we provide:
Financial Health
100% 401k match up to 6% of salary
Stock Ownership Potential
Company provided life insurance - 1x salary + commission
Physical Health
Comprehensive health benefits (medical/dental/vision) including potential premium discounts and company-provided HSA contributions (up to $500-$2,000 annually) for specific plans and coverages
Additional medical Wellness Incentives - up to $300-$600 annual
Company-provided long- and short-term disability insurance
Emotional Health
Trust-Based Time Off
6-week Paid Sabbatical Program
6-Week Paid Family Caregiving Leave
Competitive 8-24 Week Paid Parental Leave
Adoption Assistance
Leadership Coaching & Formal Mentorship Opportunities
Annual Flex Stipend - $1000 annually to cover personal education & well-being expenses
Tuition Reimbursement
Social Health
Charitable Matching Gifts program
Dollars for Doers volunteer program
Paid volunteering days
15+ Employee Resource & Affinity Groups
Morningstar's hybrid work environment gives you the opportunity to collaborate in-person each week as we've found that we're at our best when we're purposely together on a regular basis. In most of our locations, our hybrid work model is four days in-office each week. A range of other benefits are also available to enhance flexibility as needs change. No matter where you are, you'll have tools and resources to engage meaningfully with your global colleagues.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering or a related field
- 3+ years of professional experience developing production-grade applications
- Strong programming skills in Python, R, or SQL for data analysis and transformation
- Familiarity with version control (Git) and collaborative development workflows (pull requests, code reviews)
- Experience with software engineering best practices including test-driven development, automated unit and functional testing, and CI/CD
- Ability to implement workflows that track data/API usage and automation executions and build reporting/dashboards
- Knowledge and practical experience with domain modeling and object-oriented design patterns and SOLID principles
- Experience supporting data-heavy products or internal tools
- Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple deliverables in a collaborative team environment
- Experience with AWS compute technologies (Lambda, ECS/ECR, EC2, API Gateway, IAM, S3)
- Familiarity with financial markets and reporting standards
- Experience working within an agile environment
- Experience with data visualization tools such as Datawrapper
What the Team is Saying
Morningstar Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — A recurring paid sabbatical every four years and flexible time off in North America provide substantial time away from work. A global minimum of six weeks’ paid caregiving leave further extends coverage for personal and family needs.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave sets a stated global minimum of 16 weeks for primary caregivers and up to eight weeks for secondary caregivers, with adoption assistance reimbursing eligible expenses. These policies are positioned as global standards that complement broader leave programs.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Employees can convert a portion of bonuses or commissions into RSUs with an additional company match on the converted amount. Impact RSU awards in some cases add further upside tied to strong performance.
Morningstar Insights
What We Do
At Morningstar, we believe in building great products in-house in a highly collaborative, agile environment where we focus on technical excellence, the user experience, and continuous improvement. Our technologists represent a range of skills and experience levels, but they all view their work as a craft and push technology’s boundaries.
Why Work With Us
Imagining big things is in our blood -- it's transformed us from a company with just a few employees in 1984 to a leading independent investment research company with a worldwide presence today. As of April 2020, we acquired Sustainalytics to drive long-term meaningful outcomes for investors in the ESG space. Join us on this exciting journey!
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Morningstar Offices
Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
