Our Culture

At Red Planet Labs, we care a lot about the kind of company we are building. To that end, here are the principles and values that guide us:

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We believe talent is evenly distributed, but there are extra barriers for marginalized groups. We care about creating an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive.

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We are a fully distributed team because we believe this is the best way to run a software development team. Plus, it gives us access to the most talented people regardless of where they reside.

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Overworking is dangerous, and regular breaks are necessary for the best results. We eliminate the social anxiety of “unlimited” vacation policies by instead having a mandatory vacation policy.

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We believe compensation should be fair and flexible. All employees choose what balance of salary and equity is right for them, and salary ranges for each position are public within the company.

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We believe in evaluating people for their actual skills, not for their skills at interviewing. We rely on open source, side projects, and take-home projects to evaluate technical ability. Whiteboard coding and brain teasers are too far removed from the actual work of being a programmer.

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We reason from first principles even if our conclusions contradict common knowledge. When you're pioneering something new, you're inherently going against the grain and must be willing to challenge what's currently accepted.

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We have a strict no-assholes policy. Life's too short to have anything but a fun work environment full of people that inspire you.

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We are inspired to have a positive and lasting impact on the world.

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We are allergic to meetings and prefer to just get things done. Processes are tools, not religion, and we are always ready to alter a process when our needs change.

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We believe having flexibility in when you work is essential. Except for a few fixed meetings like daily standups, 85% of work hours at RPL are self-managed.

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We don't value our own ideas over those of our teammates.

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We value direct communication, even when it might be uncomfortable, because we care about making the company and products as great as they can be. We are respectful of each other, and we believe communication is everyone’s job.

Careers

Software Engineer

Red Planet Labs has pioneered a new kind of software tool that reduces the cost of building large-scale applications by multiple orders of magnitude. This technology pushes the boundaries of what's possible in compilers, databases, and distributed systems. Working on it is extremely challenging, but for the right person it's extremely fulfilling as well.

Being an early employee of RPL means taking on big responsibilities and having a huge impact on our culture. Out-of-the-box thinking and a willingness to change your mind when encountering new ideas are essential. At RPL, we don't focus on candidates with specific technical knowledge. Our technology spans innumerable areas of software engineering, so we look for people who are comfortable working outside their comfort zone.

More than anything else, we're looking for people with a deep ambition to accomplish great things. We're looking for people with a passion for software development who take great pride in their work and will do whatever it takes to get things done.

Application

To apply, send an email to:

jobs@redplanetlabs.com

Tell us why you're awesome and why you're the right person to help pioneer one of the most ambitious software technologies in history.

Requirements

Not required but nice to have

  • Deep knowledge of the JVM
  • Experience designing and building compilers, databases, and/or distributed systems
  • Awesome open source portfolio or impressive side projects
Requirements

Working at RPL

  • Fully distributed engineering team
  • Competitive salary
  • Large equity ownership
  • Comprehensive health plan
  • 401(k)
  • Four weeks of mandatory paid vacation