Staff Software Engineer

About CLEAR and the Role

CLEAR builds secure identity solutions that make physical and digital experiences safer and easier. Its platform serves more than 43 million members and a growing global partner network.

The Staff Software Engineer will help build CLEAR1, CLEAR’s enterprise identity platform. This onsite role in New York owns high-impact, cross-functional products and integrations from problem framing and architecture through implementation, rollout, adoption, and measurable outcomes.

Technology Stack

• Python, Java, React, and TypeScript.
• AWS, Docker, Kubernetes, GitHub, and CI/CD pipelines.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, test, and deploy scalable applications for CLEAR’s identity platform.
• Own projects from technical discovery and architecture through implementation, rollout, adoption, and operational support.
• Partner with Product, Design, Data, Security, and Operations to translate business problems into scalable technical solutions.
• Account for failure modes, dependencies, degradation strategies, recovery paths, and scaling limits.
• Build in test strategy, observability, alerting, safe rollouts, rollback plans, and ongoing system health monitoring.
• Influence technical direction, establish reusable patterns and standards, reduce technical debt, and improve scalability, security, and maintainability.
• Introduce appropriate engineering rigor without unnecessary process.
• Communicate tradeoffs, invite diverse perspectives, and build alignment around decisions.
• Improve engineering quality through code reviews, design reviews, collaboration, and constructive feedback.
• Mentor teammates and develop their technical skills and ownership.
• Proactively identify opportunities, influence the roadmap, and drive improvements through completion with accountability for outcomes.

Qualifications

• 9+ years of professional software engineering experience building production applications using technologies such as Python, React, and TypeScript.
• Strong fundamentals in distributed systems, APIs, cloud infrastructure, and modern software architecture.
• Experience building and operating cloud-native applications using AWS and technologies such as Docker, Kubernetes, GitHub, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Demonstrated ownership of complex, cross-functional projects from idea to production, with a bias for action.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to explain technical concepts and influence technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
• Comfort with ambiguity, thoughtful tradeoffs, and independently driving work forward.
• A collaborative mindset and enthusiasm for mentoring, improving engineering practices, and delivering measurable customer and business impact.

Interview Process

The process usually takes about three weeks:

• Recruiter call.
• Zoom technical screen.
• Onsite panel interviews.
• Final manager conversations.
• Offer.

Hiring communications will come directly from a CLEAR employee through valid CLEAR channels, such as an @clearme.com email address or verified CLEAR LinkedIn profile. Candidates are encouraged to report suspicious activity. Reasonable accommodations are available for the application process and job duties.

Compensation and Benefits

• Total compensation range: $325,000–$500,000, depending on skills and experience. This is a combined range for base salary, annual bonus incentive, and new-hire restricted stock units, not a base-salary-only range.
• Eligibility for refresh equity grants. Actual compensation depends on location, education, skills, experience, and performance; stock compensation is subject to applicable agreements.
• Comprehensive healthcare, fertility and adoption/surrogacy support, flexible time off, an annual wellness stipend, free OneMedical memberships for employees and dependents, CLEAR Plus membership, and a 401(k) with employer match.
• Daily catered lunches, stocked kitchens, and well-being and learning-and-development stipends and reimbursement programs.