Senior Software Engineer

Risepoint is an education technology company that provides world-class support and trusted expertise to more than 100 universities and colleges. We primarily work with regional universities, helping them develop and grow their high-ROI, workforce-focused online degree programs in critical areas such as nursing, teaching, business, and public service. Risepoint is dedicated to increasing access to affordable education so that more students, especially working adults, can improve their careers and meet employer and community needs.

The Impact You Will Make

We are seeking a highly experienced Senior Software Engineer to design, build, and evolve a large-scale Optimizely DXP implementation powering a portfolio of 150+ high volume marketing websites and multi-channel marketing experiences. This role is central to modernizing our digital marketing ecosystem and enabling high-velocity, content-driven growth.

This role will be focused on the design and implementation of the front-end of a headless web platform using Optimizely CMS (SaaS) as a backend, and Next.js hosted on Vercel as the front-end framework. You'll collaborate closely with DevOps, data, architecture and platform technical teams, as well product, marketing, and design teams to build personalized, scalable, and high-performing digital experiences.

This is a highly technical, hands-on engineering role requiring deep expertise in the Optimizely ecosystem, enterprise CMS architecture, and modern JavaScript frameworks.

This is a senior individual contributor role with strong architectural influence. The role includes mentoring and technical leadership but does not have direct people management responsibilities.

How You Will Bring Our Mission to Life

What You Will Do

Platform Architecture & Development

• Assist in the design, development, and optimization of a headless Optimizely DXP platform supporting an active, dynamic portfolio of 150+ marketing websites that serves over 50M page views/year.
• You will play a key role in defining architectural standards for our headless CMS platform, including content modeling patterns, rendering strategies, and performance optimization approaches.
• Collaborate with marketers to optimize site performance (i.e. Core Web Vital scores), SEO/AEO, accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.2), while balancing the need for dynamic user experience and highly efficient/automated administration and operation supporting regular updates.
• Build, extend, and maintain site front-ends using Next.js deployed via Vercel.
• Leverage backend APIs and SDK integrations to power dynamic headless content delivery.
• Develop infrastructural solutions to support custom integrations and enhanced functionality (tokenization system, data caching platform)

Optimizely Expertise

• Utilize deep knowledge of Optimizely CMS SaaS, Content Graph, and the Optimizely CMS SDK/APIs to develop an optimal headless front-end multi-site platform built with Next.js, hosted on Vercel.
• Implement scalable content models, custom components, multi-site structures, custom integrations.
• Develop, configure, extend front-ends leveraging Optimizely personalization features, including behavioral targeting and segmented content rules to deliver personalized, user-centric experiences at scale while
• Implement A/B testing and experimentation frameworks within the Optimizely DXP and ensure seamless integration with front-end environments.
• Nice to have: experience with Optimizely CMP, DAM, ODP, Experimentation, Opal AI subsystems

Infrastructure, DevOps & Quality

• Help manage Vercel-based hosting environments and optimize build pipelines, caching, routing, and performance.
• Work with engineering peers to establish standards for code quality, testing, observability, and deployment automation.
• Manage and optimize the GitHub-based repository ecosystem supporting a large multi-site platform.
• Collaborate with DevOps to support an efficient, automated CI/CD solution.
• Collaborate with QA to support an efficient, automated QA process.

Collaboration & Cross-Functional Leadership

• Partner closely with Marketing Technology, Creative, SEO, Analytics, and Content Operations to align technical solutions with business needs.
• Mentor engineers and contribute to best practices, documentation, and architectural frameworks.
• Serve as a subject matter expert on Optimizely capabilities and modern headless CMS architectures.

What Success Looks Like

• A stable, scalable Next.js + Optimizely headless foundation supporting rapid site launches and frictionless content updates while meeting functional requirements to deliver a dynamic experience to site users.
• Completion of an initial implementation, including a pilot production site deployment by Q3 2026.
• Improved Core Web Vitals and SEO performance across priority sites
• Clear content modeling and front-end standards adopted by the broader team

How Impact Will be Measured

• Working alongside an implementation team, successful delivery of a headless DXP platform, including on-time launch of at least one production pilot site by Q3 2026 and demonstrated ability to support repeatable site launches using the established Optimizely + Next.js architecture.
• Measurable improvements in site performance and quality, including sustained gains in Core Web Vitals, SEO/AEO health, accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.2), and front-end reliability across priority sites.
• Platform enablement and team leverage, evidenced by documented architectural standards, reusable front-end patterns, and adoption of content models and development practices by the broader Marketing Technology team.

What You'll Bring to the Team

Experience That Matters Most

• 7+ years of software engineering experience, with a strong emphasis on CMS-driven digital marketing platforms.
• Expert-level JavaScript/TypeScript skills, specifically Next.js, React
• Experience with Next.js patterns such as:
  • App Router vs Pages Router
  • ISR / SSR / SSG performance-functionality tradeoffs
• Expert-level front-end development skills, including semantic HTML and modern CSS including Tailwind CSS experience
• Experience with cloud-first front-end hosting on Vercel (build pipelines, serverless functions, edge middleware, caching strategies).
• Advanced proficiency with Optimizely CMS SaaS, including:
  • Optimizely CMS SDK/APIs
  • Content Graph / headless delivery
  • Custom front-end development
  • Custom integration design and implementation
• Hands-on expertise implementing Optimizely personalization and experimentation solutions, including A/B tests, targeting rules, and optimization frameworks.
• Deep experience working with GitHub-based repository management and CI/CD processes.
• Proven experience designing and supporting large multi-site architectures at enterprise scale.
• Strong understanding of best practices in software design and implementation
• Demonstrated ability to effectively and independently work within a mid-sized development team using formal SDLC methodologies such as Scrum. Proven ability to assess, estimate and deliver solutions that meet requirements and timelines.
• Analytical mindset with strong quantitative and problem-solving skills
• Effective communication and documentation skills

Experience That's Great to Have

• Bachelor's degree in related field or equivalent work experience preferred
• Experience with composable MarTech stacks including CDPs, analytics platforms, and digital asset management systems.
• Optimizely back-end configuration across the ecosystem (CMS, CMP, DAM, ODP, Opal AI, Personalization engine)
• Background supporting CRM-driven email/SMS marketing and social content channels.
• Familiarity with WordPress / PHP platforms and site migrations is a plus.
• Ability to interpret Figma designs into code

Risepoint is an equal-opportunity employer and supports a diverse and inclusive workforce.