Fullstack Job: Full Stack Engineer

Reach’s new customer value strategy puts our customers and their experience at the heart of everything we do.

We are looking for a Software Engineer to join an agile development team that supports our infrastructure which is in Amazon Web Services and as such we make great use of the different capabilities it provides. Our editorial Content Management System (CMS) is entirely browser based. Our frontend stack is mainly in vanilla JavaScript and utilises various editorial web services exposed by CMS. Our supporting services are built with the appropriate tool as decided by the team. As some examples, we have services in Node.js running on AWS technologies such as AWS Lambda, DynamoDB and ECS. We are strong believers in DevOps principles and infrastructure as code, and we are continuously trying to improve in that direction.

Structure and reporting relationship

Reports to a Technical Engineering Manager. Works with other software engineers, project managers, designers and QA team members.

The ideal candidate for this position should have strong full stack development experience. You will have experience working collaboratively within a content management team with a non-hierarchical structure, be self-directed and happy to work on your own initiative.

This a fully remote role with the UK/Ireland.

So, who are we?

We are Reach Plc, you might not have heard of us but we have probably met without you even realising it. As the fifth-largest digital platform in the UK, our National and Regional publications already reach audiences countrywide. We're aiming to revolutionise the world of online news for our 10 million+ daily online users.

We are home to the UK and Ireland’s most iconic digital platforms, magazines and newspapers. From the Mirror, Daily Express and OK!, to our regional titles such as the Liverpool Echo, BirminghamLive and the Manchester Evening News (plus lots more), our brands and the stories we cover are as varied as our people. We help all kinds of people share experiences through our stories because we believe this is what makes us human.

Here at Reach PLC, we have big ambitions.

Our portfolio of award-winning news brands serve their communities as champions, campaigners and change-makers, and is relied upon by millions of people for news, entertainment and sport.

• Support existing functionality of CMS and maintain quality of code.
• Features that support editorial staff to complete their jobs as easily as possible.
• Features that encourage users of Reach plc's digital news products to interact with editorial staff and each other.
• Commenting on articles and interactive web chats but with the potential to expand into related features.
• Tools to enable our editorial team to build relationships with users via two-way conversations, encouraging user loyalty and increasing return visits.
• Tracking and understanding user journeys across different areas of CMS and editorial tools.
• Optimising the work process of managing contents.
• Writing maintainable, tested and compliant code.
• Provide secure, scalable solutions with proper monitoring and logging.
• Provide information by analysing and summarising business and development needs.
• Participate in code reviews and guide software engineers to implement the latest programming techniques and tools.
• Mentor junior software engineers

Must have:

• For Frontend developer: Experience with frontend technologies - HTML, CSS and preprocessors, templating, client-side JavaScript (including vanilla JavaScript or React)
• For Backend developer: Development experience with server side coding. (we mainly use NodeJs and Javascript)
• An understanding of HTTP, caching and how the web works
• Understanding of the different JavaScript versions. Main features of ES6.

Should have:

• Working understanding of front end build tools. e.g. Babel, Gulp, Grunt, Webpack
• Familiarity with automated testing at different parts of the test pyramid

Could have:

• Optimising performance to scale to handle large quantities of content data and high volumes of traffic across numerous websites
• Familiarity with Database (we mainly use DynamoDB, PostgreSQL and MySQL)
• Java experience would be a plus
• A confident and articulate communicator capable of inspiring strong collaboration within an organisation and between teams.
• A self-starter with a can-do, will-do attitude

Qualifications & Experience

• Professional development experience (most relevant experience with Javascript / Node.js)
• Experience of automated testing at different levels of the test pyramid
• Ideally, we are looking for a Fullstack developer, but a Frontend or
• Backend developer with aspirations to become Full Stack is also welcome to apply.
• An understanding and preference for Functional Programming is highly desirable, however again we are happy to teach you this otherwise.
• We use AWS extensively, and we provision our own resources (using Cloudformation), so some knowledge of AWS will help. We expect to mentor you in this aspect though.

We are offering a competitive salary & benefits including;

• Help saving for your retirement - join our pension scheme & we’ll match contributions up to 6%
• 25 days’ holiday per year when you join. After three, five & ten years’ service with Reach, you’ll accrue one additional day of annual leave. We also have a Holiday Purchase Scheme
• Giving back day - an additional day’s leave each year to support a cause close to your heart
• Enhanced family leave - including maternity, paternity & adoption - & you’ll be eligible after just six months’ employment
• Private Healthcare Cash Plan - free health cash plan so you can claim back cash for a range of medical expenses
• As one of the UK’s top 50 Inclusive Employers everyone’s invited to join our events, programmes & networks to celebrate diversity & build an environment where all our people can thrive
• Wellbeing support - including a 24/7 assistance programme for you & your nearest & dearest, a free subscription to mindfulness app
  Headspace & access to free mental health coaching through Sanctus
• Awesome career opportunities - you’ll have support from your line manager & a range of learning & development programmes
• We are also a member of the 30% Club, a global campaign aimed at increasing gender diversity at board & senior management levels

Interested? Want to find out more? Start your application today & see what Reach can offer you.

Reach plc believes diversity brings benefits for our customers, our business and our people. This is why we are committed to being an inclusive employer and encourage applications from all suitable applicants irrespective of background, circumstances, age, disability, gender identity, ethnicity, religion or belief and sexual orientation.