Level 12 Technologies is a web & database development firm with a focus on building strong win-win relationships with our customers and employees. We are looking for a full-time web developer, although a part-time position may be considered for a stellar
candidate. The candidate will be responsible for planning and coding database driven web applications.
The ideal candidate will have experience in Java and Python (preferred) or other web-development languages (PHP, Ruby, .Net), and SQL servers. Experience in JavaScript, xhtml, css, web standards, and table-less design techniques is also desired.
Most of our work is with back-end code and databases, so above-average skill in those areas is required. Contributions to the open-source community are a plus. Proven ability to communicate effectively with customers and management and willingness to take
responsibility for projects and drive them to completion is a necessity.
Our customers have varied needs and so we tend to have varied responsibilities and projects. We have a focus on serving the customer and making software conform to their company rather than making the company conform to software.
Telecommuting may be an option for this position, but preference will be given to local candidates who can meet face-to-face regularly. We are also open to contracting work out to candidates.
Emphasis on Best Practices
We know what it's like to work in a substandard development environment or culture that accepts or maybe even promotes practices that kill developer productivity and enjoyment. We work hard at promoting development best practices and engraining them into
our culture. If you come work for us, you can look forward to:
- all projects managed in a DVCS (Mercurial mostly, some Git)
- project management on Bitbucket for social coding and analysis, pull requests, etc.
- developer friendly project setup: checkout project, setup DB, develop locally
- test-centric development methodology: asking "how can we test this" is engrained into our engineering and development workflow
- a focus on LEAN/Agile principles while not being enslaved to them
- a openness to changing our processes and using new technologies when it makes sense to do so
Think something is missing from the list above? Please let us know about it.
Joel Test Details
- Do you use source control? Yep. HG mostly, some Git.
- Can you make a build in one step? Python doesn't need to "build". However, most of our projects can be checked out and then setup with a single command. So....sure. :)
- Do you make daily builds? ditto. We also have a build server checking out and running tests on many of our projects.
- Do you have a bug database? Absolutely, we use Redmine.
- Do you fix bugs before writing new code? The one's we know about. :)
- Do you have an up-to-date schedule? Yes, you know and we know what you should be working on at all times.
- Do you have a spec? Sometimes. For larger projects, yes.
- Do programmers have quiet working conditions? Yes.
- Do you use the best tools money can buy? Nope, we make wise purchasing decisions balancing productivity with cost. Expensive does not always mean superior. But we are quick to buy tools for our employees that enhance their productivity.
- Do you have testers? Yep...you! We believe in a practical test-centric development process. If you check something in, it should generally have tests to go with it.
- Do new candidates write code during their interview? Yep...our skills test is probably the most involved pre-hire coding test you have ever seen or even heard of. Can you handle it?
- Do you do hallway usability testing? Hmmm...not regularily. But good UI design is a top priority, so maybe we should start.
What We Offer
Why put this up front? Because we hate job descriptions that don't tell you how much the job pays just as much as you do! We will ask for and verify your salary history as part of the application process and think it's fair to tell you how much we plan to
pay.
- Salary: Up to $75K annually: amount will depend on salary history, experience, references, and a skills assessment.
- Reasonable Work Hours: Salary is based on a 40-45 hour average work week, but 40 hours is the norm. Comp time will be given if you are required to work greater than 45 hours in a given week.
- Paid Time Off: Generous PTO (Vacation, sick, personal, and holiday) allotments, 25.5 days combined the first year.
- Health Reimbursement Account (HRA): We contribute to an HRA which gives you the freedom to purchase health insurance or pay for your expenses out-of-pocket. Similar to an HSA but company funded and does not need to be coupled with health
insurance.
- Profit Sharing Bonus: Employees will earn a bonus based on how profitable our company is each year. As a FT employee working all of last year, you would have received ~$2,000.
- Great Tools: We want our employees to have great tools that make working more enjoyable:
- SSD hard drives
- Multiple monitors
- Geek Desk anyone?
- Say goodbye to crappy chairs and hello to a Herman Miller Mirra
- etc.
- Flexibility:
- While this position requires something close to a typical 9-5 work schedule, we are pretty flexible when schedule changes are needed for legitimate reasons.
- We are also considering moving to a 9/80 work week, does that interest you?
- Meals & Community:
- We eat together regularly and have company lunches monthly. We also do a company lunch for everyone's birthday and have a pretty nice Christmas dinner each year.
- We are also looking for ways to be more engaged in our local community as well as the development and open-source communities as a whole. If that kind of thing interests you, we love to get your ideas about what we can do better.
- We Care: It's easy to say, harder to do. We all need to make a living, our company needs to be successful in the marketplace, and hard decisions sometimes need to be made. But, at the end of the day, we really care about our employees,
their families, their needs, and their desires.
Skills & Requirements
Required (character)
First and foremost we are a company that seeks to glorify Christ in all that we do. You
do not need to share our leadership's religious convictions, but
you will need to share our commitment to the following principles:
- Integrity: honest, trustworthy, reliable, ethical. We have high moral standards and we expect our employees to share those standards. If you use pirated software, don't mind "tweaking" the truth, or think `porn == entertainment`, this is
not the job for you!
- Good work ethic: you work hard and like to work hard. You also work efficiently, seeking to make the best use of your time.
- Dedicated: you really desire to contribute to and improve our company; you are not just earning a paycheck. You demonstrate a high level of "ownership" for and initiative with projects that are assigned to you.
- Teachable: you have a willingness and desire for feedback/correction. You are always looking to improve. You are willing to ask for help even if it makes you "look bad."
- Resourceful: you know how to solve problems or are at least able to explain that the problem is not solvable with the requirements given. You use all resources at your disposal in an efficient manner to troubleshoot. You know when to ask
someone for help and when more effort is needed on your part.
- Technical Prowess: you just "get" programming, computers, technology. The thought of solving a problem in an entirely new programming language, one you have never even heard of before, excites you.
- Technical Diversity: while we all have our preferences when it comes to programming languages or operating systems, you should be willing to work with anything, in any language, if that's what it takes to get the job done. If you are easily
lead into a "______ rocks, everything else sucks" mentality, this isn't the job for you.
- Flexible: we are small, things change. You should be able to "role with the punches."
- Professional: at the end of the day, you like what you do, you take your job seriously, you do it extremely well, and you
pay attention to the details!
Highly Desired (non-technical)
- Required: US citizen or ability to work in the United States without sponsorship
- Bachelor's Degree in computer science (or similar degree) or ability to demonstrate comparable education & experience
- 3+ years developing database-driven web applications in a dynamic programming language
Highly Desired (technical)
Skills progression: Novice (1), Familiar (2), Competent (3), Proficient (4), Expert (5).
- Proficient (4): one or more web-based dynamic programming languages like PHP, Python, Ruby, and/or .NET MVC.
- Proficient (4): Database Development (SQL, multiple-joins, views, triggers, stored procedures)
- Proficient (4): written and verbal communication, working independently or with a team, interacting professionally with customers and employees
- Competent (3): (X)HTML, CSS, web standards, table-less design techniques
- Competent (3): JavaScript, JQuery, Ajax, JSON
- Competent (3): writing unit and functional tests. Believing in a TDD approach is a big plus.
- Competent (3): Version Control (Mercurial, Subversion, Git, etc.)
- Competent (3): Networking fundamentals (HTTP, DNS, TCP/IP, etc.)
Nice To Have (technical)
- Be Proficient or Expert in any of the items above
- Have significant experience working with Python in a web context
- SQLAlchemy, Flask, Pylons, or Django experience
- Python testing experience (Nose, pytest)
- Java experience
- Linux familiarity
- LESS/SASS familiarity
About Level 12 Technologies
Level 12 Technologies is a web & database development firm with a focus on building strong win-win relationships with our customers and employees.
Why Work For Us
There are a lot of good companies out there, why work for Level 12? Here are three of the most important reasons:
Relationships: at Level 12, we strive to foster an environment where trust and generosity are valued and encouraged, both at the leadership level and among co-workers. Not only does this make the work atmosphere enjoyable, it also brings
many practical benefits to the relational dynamics of the workplace.
Flexibility: while we do ask our employees to have a typical 9-5 M-F work week, we are very flexible when schedule changes are needed. Work is an important part of life, but it should serve us, not dominate us.
We are also considering moving to a 9/80 work week. Does having a three-day weekend every-other week interest you?
Impact: Since we are a small company, the opportunity exists for you to have significant input in the technical, and sometimes global, direction of our company. There isn't really a "management structure" or any red-tape to wade through.
You will be regularly working with and reporting to one of the partners of the company.
More Info
Our website has way more information about us than you would probably ever want to know! Including management philosophy and bios of current employees. Take a look:
https://www.lev12.com/
Finally...Ready To Apply?
If you have read all of the above, carefully, and are interested and qualified, then here are your next steps:
- Please send an email with your resume to
hrteam@lev12.com
- In the body of the email, please include a bit about yourself. We hire humans, not robots. :)
- No cookie-cutter cover letters please!
- Please also include answers to the five questions below.
Questions
- Based on your experience, how do you grade a developer? That is, what makes the difference between a mediocre developer (2 of 5) and stellar developer (5 of 5). Where do you fit in?
- What excites you about programming? What discourages you?
- What makes a company's culture enjoyable to you? Not enjoyable?
- Based on this job description what do you find most attractive about this position? What do you find less attractive?
- Based on our company website and anything else you may know about us, what most attracts you to our company? What do you find less attractive?
Regarding Authenticity
As you answer these questions, please keep in mind that we prefer authenticity over flattery and we are under no delusion that this is the perfect position or we are the perfect company. Likewise, we don't believe there are any perfect candidates. We understand
that companies and people are made up of both strengths and weaknesses and the better we understand both your strengths and weaknesses the more likely we are to make a wise hiring decision.
Please take time to answer the questions thoughtfully and accurately.
Our Promise If You Apply
Ever send a resume in only to never...hear...anything? We promise we won't do that. If you follow the directions above, you
will receive a response from us within a week or two. If you don't hear anything back from us, you probably didn't follow the instructions above. :)
