Senior Technical Writer

Databases are the beating heart of every business in the world.

Cockroach Labs is the team behind CockroachDB, an open source, distributed SQL database. We aim to build infrastructure that keeps pace with the world, so developers can focus on what matters most: building the best products. Join us on our mission to Make Data Easy. Are you ready to aim high and build to last?

About the Role

We’re looking for a Senior Technical Writer to join our team and help us create outstanding documentation that educates and guides our global community of customers and open source users to success, with a particular focus on the application developer experience.

We are flexible on location but must be US-based.

You Will

• Put yourself in the shoes of developers building applications on CockroachDB.
• Write how-tos and tutorials that help developers quickly get up and running with their preferred tools while learning and applying best practices.
• Write demo code and sample applications to support tutorials and other education materials, such as online training courses.
• Write comprehensive API reference documentation (e.g., SQL) with tactical examples.
• Develop technical expertise in CockroachDB and accompanying technologies.
• Foster collaboration with our Engineering, Product, Support, and Sales teams to keep our documentation up-to-date, effective, and user-centric.

The Expectations

In your first 30 days, you have completed onboarding and developed enough expertise to begin your first documentation project. You will have also started to review and edit documentation written by other technical writers on the team. You will use CockroachDB hands-on throughout this experience. We believe that it’s important to take this first month to become familiar with our technology and our company.

After 3 months, you’ll be integrated into the team. You will oversee documenting part of CockroachDB. You’ll design and improve documentation conventions, processes, and tools to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the documentation process. As our user base grows, you will be a part of developing the team to accommodate higher demands for education. We want our users to have a phenomenal experience using CockroachDB and that requires excellent documentation from you and the team.

You Have

• Application development experience or experience writing and reading code in 2+ programming languages.
• A passion for writing and editing developer documentation, including tactical how-tos, end-to-end developer tutorials, and detailed developer reference. You are passionate about clarity, concision, and correctness.
• Experience with Markdown, HTML, CSS, and UNIX, as well as source control systems like git.
• Familiarity with, or are willing to learn about, the various technologies that make web-scale applications function.
• A love for information and are a sponge. You enjoy getting into the weeds technically, but don’t let that distract you from achieving your end goals.
• A passion for building relationships with internal and external users to get feedback and identify potential areas of documentation improvement.

The Team

Reporting to Jesse Seldess – VP of Documentation

The CockroachDB mission is to make data easy. Jesse makes sure we write the docs counterpart to that mission: Make learning CockroachDB easy and intuitive. Previously, he spent four years at AppNexus building and leading a team of writers through a broad range of docs scenarios, from technical integrations to business use. In off hours, he’s probably make-believing with his kids, reading literature, or writing his own.

Our Benefits

• 100% health insurance coverage (for you and your dependents!)
• Paid parental leave (with baby bucks)
• Flex Fridays
• Flexible time off & flexible hours
• Education reimbursement
• Relocation support

Cockroach Labs is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer building a diverse and inclusive workforce. If you need additional accommodations to feel comfortable during your interview process, please email us at [email protected].

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