Lead Software Engineer - Web

Storytelling is, and will always be, the heart of what we do at Skydance.

Our vision is to build a thriving entertainment ecosystem where stories and worlds are imagined, brought to life and experienced. We create for every age and audience, anchored by the strength of our content and experiences and the depth of our connection with fans. We are creator-first, audience-focused, tech-forward, globally scaled.

Here, you’ll work with talented teams that move fast, think boldly and collaborate with purpose to deliver results. We aim high, champion the best ideas and win together, earning the trust of our employees, creators, partners and audiences every day.

If you’re energized by the opportunity to help build the next-generation global media and entertainment company powered by creativity and technology, we’d be thrilled to welcome you aboard. LET’S GO!

Location: In-Office, New York / Los Angeles / San Francisco / Ft. Lauderdale

Overview:

Paramount is looking for a Lead Software Engineer to join our Web Engineering organization. In this role, you'll own the technical direction and delivery of frontend experiences across Paramount+ and the other brands we support. You'll lead a team of engineers, drive execution on high-impact projects, and raise the bar on code quality, performance, and developer experience - all while shipping features that millions of users interact with every day. This is a hands-on leadership role. You'll spend meaningful time in the codebase while also mentoring engineers, unblocking teams, and partnering closely with Product, Design, and Backend Engineering to deliver great user experiences. If you thrive at the intersection of technical depth and people leadership, this role is for you.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the technical planning, execution, and delivery of frontend features for Paramount+ and Pluto.tv web applications
• Build and maintain high-quality React and Next.js applications with a focus on performance, reliability, and scalability
• Own and evolve frontend architecture decisions - component design, data fetching patterns, state management, and rendering strategies
• Develop and maintain a GraphQL API layer (Apollo Server) consumed by multiple frontend applications
• Contribute to and steward shared packages across a monorepo (pnpm workspaces, Turborepo)
• Lead and mentor a team of engineers - provide technical guidance, conduct code reviews, and foster a culture of continuous improvement
• Drive web performance optimization across the application, with a focus on Core Web Vitals, critical rendering path, and perceived load times
• Work with personalization and engagement teams to ship real-time recommendations, personalized artwork, sign-up flow optimization, and short-form video experiences across Paramount+ and Pluto.tv web surfaces
• Partner with Product and Design to translate requirements into well-scoped, well-executed technical solutions
• Collaborate with Backend Engineering and DevOps/SRE teams to build and deploy high-performing services
• Continuously improve CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins), testing infrastructure, and developer tooling
• Champion the adoption of modern AI-powered development tools and workflows to accelerate team velocity and code quality
• Communicate tradeoffs, technical decisions, and project status clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Write things down - RFCs, ADRs, Confluence pages, Slack threads - and default to async communication that scales

Basic Qualifications:

• 7+ years of experience in web application development
• 2+ years of experience in a technical leadership or lead engineer role
• BS degree in Computer Science, a similar technical field of study, or equivalent applicable experience
• Deep knowledge of web application development, best practices, and modern frontend architecture
• Deep knowledge of Object Oriented Programming and Design, data structures, and algorithms
• Expert-level JavaScript/TypeScript, CSS, Sass, HTML
• Strong experience building production applications with React (including SSR) and Next.js or similar frameworks
• Solid understanding of GraphQL - schema design, resolvers, federation
• Familiarity with monorepo tooling (pnpm workspaces, Turborepo or equivalent)
• Deep understanding of web performance, browser rendering, Core Web Vitals, and the critical rendering path
• Experience with Webpack, Rspack, and/or Turbopack
• Strong testing discipline - Jest, Cypress, or equivalent
• Good understanding of HTTP protocol and caching layers
• Solid knowledge of the HTML DOM and Event APIs
• Demonstrated ability to lead engineers, make architectural decisions, and communicate design concepts clearly - in writing, design reviews, and real-time discussions with engineers at all levels
• Experience using modern AI agents and tools (e.g., Copilot, Claude, Cursor) to improve personal and team productivity

Additional Qualifications:

• Familiarity with micro-frontend architectures, multi-zones, or platform/design system integration
• Experience with microservices and distributed systems
• Experience with GraphQL, PHP
• Experience with E2E testing frameworks - Cypress, Synergy, or similar
• Working knowledge of Docker and CI tools
• Observability experience (New Relic, Datadog, or similar)
• Understanding or experience with Atomic Design concepts
• You've integrated recommendation or personalization APIs into production frontend applications
• You've worked with streaming event pipelines or real-time decisioning systems
• Track record of inspiring and coaching engineers to adopt AI-powered tools and workflows, maximizing team efficiency
• Eagerness to collaborate with Product and Design to ensure a high standard of UX
• Passion for delivering without compromising standards
• Humility to speak up when lacking knowledge or experience in an area
• Experience working asynchronously across time zones

Paramount+, a direct-to-consumer digital subscription video on-demand and live streaming service from Paramount Global, combines live sports, breaking news, and a mountain of entertainment. The premium streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including BET, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel. The service is also the streaming home to unmatched sports programming, including every CBS Sports event, from golf to football to basketball and more, plus exclusive streaming rights for major sports properties, including some of the world’s biggest and most popular soccer leagues. Paramount+ also enables subscribers to stream local CBS stations live across the U.S. in addition to the ability to stream Paramount Streaming’s other live channels: CBSN for 24/7 news, CBS Sports HQ for sports news and analysis, and ET Live for entertainment coverage.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Hiring Salary Range: $156,800.00 - 235,200.00.

The hiring salary range for this position applies to New York, California, Colorado, Washington state, and most other geographies. Starting pay for the successful applicant depends on a variety of job-related factors, including but not limited to geographic location, market demands, experience, training, and education. The benefits available for this position include medical, dental, vision, 401(k) plan, life insurance coverage, disability benefits, tuition assistance program and PTO or, if applicable, as otherwise dictated by the appropriate Collective Bargaining Agreement. This position is bonus eligible.

What We Offer:

• Attractive compensation and comprehensive benefits packages. Check out our full list of benefits here.
• Generous paid time off.
• Complimentary subscriptions to HBO Max, Paramount+, and other Skydance streaming services and digital news products.
• Robust employee engagement opportunities, including access to exclusive screenings and events, speaker series, volunteer activities and more.

Skydance is an equal opportunity employer (EOE)

We embrace the opportunity to build a workforce that reflects a wide array of perspectives, backgrounds and experiences. Being an equal opportunity employer means that we take seriously our responsibility to consider qualified candidates on the basis of merit. In line with the laws of the country or region in which the role is based, this includes consideration without regard to race, color, ethnicity, national origin, citizenship status, religion or belief, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, pregnancy, parenthood, physical or mental disability, genetic information, military or protected veteran status, union status or any other category protected by applicable law.

If you are a qualified individual with a disability, you may request a reasonable accommodation during the job application and/or recruitment process. You can request reasonable accommodations by calling 212.846.5500 or by sending an email to [email protected]. Only messages left for this purpose will be returned.