Back-end Software Engineer

Job Description

The team you will join, Proteus, is building a product that powers the model-based work of our internal sector experts: scientists and domain specialists who understand environmental data deeply but are not software engineers. Your job is to build the tooling they use, mentor them in software practice, and help them own production end-to-end.

This is hands-on engineering work with a coaching element. You will write production-quality Python, build and maintain data pipelines, collect requirements from domain experts directly, and help people who are not from a software background ship work they can be proud of.

This is not a role where requirements land neatly in a ticket and you implement them in isolation. It is not a heads-down engineering position with no stakeholder interaction. If you prefer a fully defined process and minimal ambiguity, this will not work for you.

What you will be working on

• Design and build Python tooling that sector experts use to implement and validate environmental data models, from requirements you collect directly with them.

• Build and maintain data ingestion pipelines and ETL workflows that underpin the Proteus data production platform.

• Mentor colleagues with scientific backgrounds and limited software experience, helping them follow best practices and take ownership of model production end-to-end.

• Participate in technical discussions across teams to ensure Proteus integrates well with ecoinvent's broader platform and architecture.

• Contribute to agile practice, developer experience, and process improvement across the team -- we are still building how we work, and this person will help shape it.

What we are looking forTechnical skills:

• 3+ years working with Python in a professional software environment.

• 2+ years working with data-processing libraries such as Pandas or Polars.

• Experience building and maintaining data pipelines and ETL workflows.

• Solid automated testing practice using pytest or equivalent.

• Proficient with git and CI/CD workflows in a collaborative team.

• Understanding of API design principles with practical implementation experience.

How you work:

• You collect requirements from stakeholders who are not software engineers, break down complex problems clearly, and communicate in plain terms.

• You are comfortable with uncertainty and can make pragmatic decisions without waiting for a perfect brief.

• You have worked in small to mid-sized companies and understand what building from scratch actually means.

• You can mentor non-technical colleagues effectively -- not just pair with them, but help them build lasting capability.

• You do not stay inside a defined lane when the work requires otherwise.

Nice to have:

• Experience building Python libraries designed for use by data scientists or non-software engineers.

• Experience designing workflows or tooling for people without a software background.

• Worked in cross-disciplinary teams combining software, data science, and domain expertise.

Why ecoinvent?

As a fast-growing team based in Zürich with over twenty nationalities, we embrace diversity and promote a collaborative and adventurous mindset. We are committed to building an inspiring work culture that nurtures creative thinking, transparency, and reliability.

Our benefits include flexible and hybrid work, employee professional growth plans, and our most vital asset: our community. We value transparency, flexibility, and a diverse working environment that encourages learning and continuous improvement. Collaboration is at the heart of what we do. Join us and make an impact.

Our Mission

ecoinvent is an internationally active, mission-driven organization devoted to supporting high-quality, science-based environmental assessments. Its activities include publishing and maintaining the ecoinvent database—a comprehensive life cycle inventory database that provides reliable and transparent information on the environmental impacts of various products and services. It is used by companies, researchers, and policymakers to analyze the environmental impacts of their operations and make informed decisions.