[alpha_ori]

Wanted: Programming Unicorn.

We aren't asking for much here at SwiftStack. All we need is someone that's

   * An experienced, opinionated crafter of scalable distributed systems
   * Possessed of a deep and abiding knowledge of Linux
   * A brilliant Python developer, steeped in the Web
   * Excited about deployment and knowledgeable about packaging and 
     the infrastructure that goes into getting nontrivial software systems 
     from "here" to "there"
   * Oh yeah, and it would be peachy if that person was really good at 
     front end development so they could give our users a smooth, 
     comprehensible experience that masks the inherent complexity 
     under the hood.

(We'll supply the horn.)

OK, maybe that is a big ask. It’s true, at a small (but growing) company, we do wear many hats, so the more you fit the above description, the better. But what we're really looking for is a smart, talented, intellectually curious engineer with a strong background in at least one of the above skills and aspirations to grow in one or more of the others.

We've got a multi-talented engineering team and a host of compelling software-related challenges in many different arenas, and by the time you're done here, you'll have broad and deep enough experience that you'll have earned your unicorn horn, and no can take that away from you. Because you'd stab them. With your unicorn horn.

Who the heck are we?

At SwiftStack we're building software to help people create petabyte scale object storage infrastructure in their own data center instantaneously. At our core, we use Swift, OpenStack's object storage technology, but we're building an orchestration layer that does the easy things for you, makes the hard things easy, and makes the impossible possible.

Why join SwiftStack?

   * You'll be part of a small team of highly skilled people who are also 
     very nice folks and would totally help you out in a pinch.
   * You'll be joining a company at a perfect size -- just big enough to 
     have momentum, but small enough that the decisions you make will have 
     a real impact on its course.
   * You'll get valuable experience building a product meant to manage massive 
     amounts of data. At scale, there are no easy problems.
   * Swift is Open Source technology, and part of one of the most important Open 
     Source initiatives in recent history: OpenStack. You'd be writing code that 
     people all over the world would use, including the likes of Wikipedia and CERN. 

If you've ever wanted to write code that has an impact, and we know you have, this is a good place to do it. Drop us a line at [e-mail], take a look at http://swiftstack.com/jobs/, and/or check out our puzzles at https://swiftstack.com/jobs/puzzles/. Thanks!

[wpietri]

Hi, HNers. I worked with Orion a few years back and wanted to say publicly that he's awesome. Smart, chill, reasonable, and funny. I'll definitely be passing this along to friends.

[alpha_ori]

Thanks, wpietri!

[eli_gottlieb]

I stopped reading the instant I saw the word "unicorn". No, just no.

[alpha_ori]

But the narwhal is so 2008. The Unicorn is coming back around! Like the 70's...for the third time.

[eli_gottlieb]

I propose that, what with unicorns numbering one-third of the population in many areas, we simply cut to the chase by declaring that our firms will henceforth only hire demigod alicorn princesses. This will convey exactly the desired degree of hyperbolic rarity we intend.

The fact that there are only four known alicorn princesses ever isn't going to stop every firm insisting that each and every candidate hoping to interview provide strong evidence that he or she is one of the four alicorn princesses.