Staff Backend Engineer - Databases Tempo
Core
Architecting and operating Tempo, the distributed tracing backend for Grafana Cloud, evolving it from a SaaS database into a platform enabling AI-driven observability products.
Role type
Staff Backend Engineer (Distributed Systems/Database)
Builds
Tempo (open-source distributed tracing backend), Grafana Cloud Traces, and next-gen observability platforms.
Domain
Observability, Distributed Systems, High-scale Data Infrastructure
Deliverable
production ML models | product features | infrastructure
Required skills
Distributed systems architecture, Go, Systems programming (Rust/C++), Production SRE/On-call ownership, Technical leadership, API design, Performance optimization
Preferred skills
Tracing/OpenTelemetry, Query language design, Columnar storage (Parquet), Kubernetes multi-tenant operations, AI/LLM interface design
Technologies
Go, Kubernetes, TraceQL, OpenTelemetry, Parquet
Responsibilities
Lead multi-quarter technical initiatives (e.g., trace aggregation, autoscaling), Own architecture of core components (ingestion, storage, query), Drive operational excellence and SLO ownership, Mentor engineers and conduct design reviews, Contribute to open source community
Seniority
Staff, hands-on IC with strategic scope