Software Engineer - DevOps

About MotherDuck

Don’t let the quirky name fool you! We’re on a mission to radically transform the data analyst user experience. We empower and delight analysts using a novel cloud architecture built on top of DuckDB, an open source foundation with a vibrant community. Our team is a diverse mix of passionate, collaborative and empathetic data industry veterans from Google, Amazon, Meta, Snowflake, Looker, SingleStore, Databricks, and the like.

DevOps At MotherDuck

We are a small but mighty team of globally-distributed engineers responsible for building and maintaining the infrastructure, CI/CD, monitoring and observability, and assorted internal tools that keep the MotherDuck development lifecycle running smoothly. We are scrappy and responsive; we value agency, bias to action, and willingness to learn new things when necessary. We are looking for a solutions-oriented, collaborative, creative teammate who is excited to roll up their sleeves and get to work.

Core Responsibilities

At MotherDuck, we're redefining the future of cloud-based data analytics by building innovative solutions that transform the way businesses manage and analyze data. As we continue to scale, we're looking for a talented DevOps Software Engineer to join our flock and help streamline and support our existing infrastructure, ensuring reliability, scalability, and efficiency across all of our platforms.

This role is a hybrid role that can be based out of our Amsterdam or New York City office and requires minimal travel for team and company events and responsibility for a 24 hour on-call shift approximately 3 weeks each year.

Responsibilities:

• Design, implement, and manage scalable infrastructure using cloud-native technologies (our stack is primarily deployed in AWS, but multi-cloud is on the horizon)
• Maintain, troubleshoot, and continuously improve existing CI/CD pipelines to ensure seamless integration and deployment processes
• Collaborate with development, security, and operations teams to implement best practices in automation, monitoring, and performance tuning
• Manage infrastructure as code (IaC) using Terraform
• Automate routine tasks to reduce manual effort and minimize downtime
• Monitor system performance, troubleshoot issues, and ensure high availability of services
• Implement robust security practices and ensure compliance with industry standards
• Assist with incident response and ensure effective post-mortem analysis to continuously improve system reliability
• Participate in on-call rotation staffed by engineers across development and operations teams
  
  

Requirements

• Proven experience as a DevOps Engineer, Site Reliability Engineer, Systems Administrator, or related role
• Experience with at least one major cloud provider (AWS, Google Cloud Platform, or Azure) and confidence in your ability to quickly familiarize yourself with another
• Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines and automation tools (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI, CircleCI)
• Solid understanding of containerization technologies like Docker and orchestration tools like Kubernetes
• Experience with infrastructure-as-code tools such as Terraform, Ansible, or CloudFormation
• Experience with monitoring tools like Prometheus, Grafana, Datadog, or similar
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong scripting skills in Python, Bash, or similar languages
• Familiarity with security best practices, including IAM, VPC configurations, and data encryption
• Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to thrive in a collaborative, fast-paced environment
  
  

Nice to Have:

• Experience with large-scale distributed systems, multi-region and multi-cloud a plus
• Experience with or interest in testing and testing strategies
• Knowledge of database systems and optimization
• Direct experience building, maintaining, and supporting infrastructure tools and mission-critical systems
• Experience working and collaborating with an internal customer such as a development team, support team, or similar
  
  

What we provide

• Feather-ruffling compensation – competitive salary and stock options so you have a stake in our flock’s success.
• Top-notch healthcare coverage – 100% paid medical, dental, and vision for employees, plus 80% coverage for dependents (because we care about your whole nest).
• Unlimited PTO – take the time you need to recharge, explore, or just have a lazy day by the pond.
• 401k plan – because even ducks need to plan for the future.
• Legendary company events – we bring the whole flock together twice a year for unforgettable summits in fun locations, plus 1-2 team gatherings a year to keep our bonds strong.
• Hybrid work environment – Spend three days a week in the office collaborating with the flock, and work from wherever you’re most productive the rest of the time—whether that’s your home office, a coffee shop, or a peaceful lakeside retreat.
  
  

Please Apply

Does this role sound appealing to you, but you’re missing some of the requirements or don’t quite think you’re qualified? Please apply anyway. Research has shown that underrepresented groups in technology often shy away from roles which aren’t a 100% match. We aim to build a diverse team and will strongly consider applicants who bring many of the requirements plus have other experiences which round out their qualifications.

MotherDuck is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. MotherDuck is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and mental disabilities.

Compensation Range: $140K - $206K

MotherDuck is on a mission to radically transform the data analyst user experience. They empower and delight analysts using a novel cloud architecture built on top of DuckDB, an open source foundation with a vibrant community.