Staff Software Engineer

Secure Every Identity, from AI to Human

Identity is the key to unlocking the potential of AI. Okta secures AI by building the trusted, neutral infrastructure that enables organizations to safely embrace this new era. This work requires a relentless drive to solve complex challenges with real-world stakes. We are looking for builders and owners who operate with speed and urgency and execute with excellence.

This is an opportunity to do career-defining work. We're all in on this mission. If you are too, let's talk.

The Identity Security Posture Management (ISPM) Team

At ISPM (formerly Spera Security), we are revolutionizing identity security for modern organizations. Our platform provides security leaders with end-to-end contextual visibility into their identity landscape—reducing risk, enhancing operational efficiency, and ensuring continuous compliance.

We’re a fast-moving, high-impact team looking for an exceptional Staff Software Engineer to help shape the future of identity security and platform architecture.

Hybrid work - 3 days a week from the office.

What You’ll Be Doing

As a Staff Software Engineer, you will serve as a technical authority and play a pivotal role in scaling our core platform. Your focus will span architecture, security research, and engineering excellence:

• Lead & Architect: Design, build, and scale high-performance software while driving architectural best practices across the R&D organization.
• Security & AI Innovation: Drive deep-dive research into cloud, SaaS ecosystems, and AI agents to build proactive detection models, mitigation strategies, and threat intelligence.
• Engineering Excellence: Elevate code quality, testing standards, system monitoring, and documentation across teams.
• Cross-Functional Ownership: Partner closely with Product and R&D to translate complex security requirements into scalable technical solutions.
• Scale & Optimize: Identify and resolve systemic performance bottlenecks and architectural challenges.
• Mentorship & Leadership: Act as a technical mentor, driving engineering standards and fostering a strong knowledge-sharing culture.

What You’ll Bring to the Role

• 7+ years of software engineering experience, ideally in fast-paced, high-growth environments.
• Cybersecurity Domain Expertise: Hands-on experience in security product development, security research, or threat/incident response.
• 4+ years of hands-on experience with Python, focusing on backend architecture and scalable systems.
• Proven System Ow