Backend Developer - Kraken Technologies

Help us use technology to make a big green dent in the universe!

Kraken powers some of the most innovative global developments in energy.

We’re a technology company focused on creating a smart, sustainable energy system. From optimising renewable generation, creating a more intelligent grid and enabling utilities to provide excellent customer experiences, our operating system for energy is transforming the industry around the world in a way that benefits everyone.

It’s a really exciting time in energy. Help us make a real impact on shaping a better, more sustainable future. 

Kraken Customer

What we do: build the most AI-driven, innovative, forward-thinking platform for energy management. From optimizing resources to delivering cost-effective, exceptional customer experiences through advanced Customer Information Systems (CIS), billing, meter data management, CRM, and AI-driven communications, Kraken is powering the next wave of innovation in the energy industry.

Why we do it: future energy will not look like energy as we know it today. We need to not just think about our future, but build for it. Now.

More recently, we have acquired the green energy start up Umeme in order to bring the green energy revolution to the Spanish market. Read more HERE.

It's in making this vision a reality that we are looking for you to help us achieve this.

Our team All technology is written and maintained by a multi-discipline engineering team of around 500 people globally. This includes server-side, client-side and mobile engineers working closely with UX experts, copywriters and designers. 

We follow a Kanban-like approach, using Google docs and Asana to specify and manage work; Github, CircleCI and Terraform Enterprise as part of an immutable-infrastructure, continuous delivery pipeline; and Loggly, Sentry and Cloudwatch to measure performance and monitor production. 

Some of our coding conventions are open-source . 

Octopus is a great place to learn, work with some talented engineers and level-up your skills.  

Our technology On the server-side, we mainly use Python. Most of our websites are powered by Django, Django-REST-framework and GraphQL (Graphene).  

We use AWS heavily, employing most of the "Hashistack" (eg Packer, Consul, Terraform) as part of a continuous deployment pipeline. See, for example, Django, ELB health checks and continuous delivery. 

Client-side, we use React, Redux and SASS; our mobile apps are built using native code or React Native.

What you'll do

• We have lots of difficult design challenges to solve. The Spanish energy market is complicated, outdated and process-heavy - there's an awful lot of domain modelling that we need to get right. Strong attention to detail is essential.
• We have difficult technical problems to solve. With the advent of smart meters, we'll soon be processing millions of meter readings a day. We need the right technology in place to handle this smoothly as well as feeding data into a machine learning pipeline that models and predicts consumption.
• There's a great opportunity for disruption in the Spanish energy market. The big suppliers still dominate, but are not exactly popular. The energy landscape is changing as we move to more dis-aggregated forms of generation, with less predictability, more dynamism and smarter technology. Octopus Energy were the first UK supplier to introduce a "tracker" tariff whose prices track the daily wholesale prices: http://www.cleanenergynews.co.uk/news/efficiency/octopus-offers-transparency-with-wholesale-price-tariff
• You'll be working for a company that’s fighting climate change. Our parent company is the largest investor in solar generation in the UK, and are funding wind and anaerobic digestion. As a supplier, we're helping people to use greener technology and renewable energy, all helping move the UK towards a lower carbon future.

What you'll have

• We're looking for someone with a general interest in technology and problem-solving; someone diligent and thoughtful. It would be helpful to have experience/expertise in the following (in rough priority order):
• Python
• Django (or equiv. web framework)
• Domain modelling
• HTTP and REST APIs
• Writing robust and fault-tolerant software
• Celery and async processing
• Postgres
• English & Spanish Plus experience in the following would be a bonus:- AWS
• Terraform, Packer, Consul
• React and Redux

What you'll love about us

• Our company culture - we won best company to work for in 2019 and our CEO, Greg has recorded a podcast about our culture and how we empower our people
• Flexible working environment - genuine work life balance here, we are in the top 5 companies in the UK, we treat you as a human, and do our best to make work and life merge smoothly together
• Relaxation - we don’t count your holidays here, we work hard, and so we know you need to play hard as well (within reason of course)
• Equity Options Scheme - you own your own part of the business, share options in the whole Octopus Energy Group so we all work together towards success
• Office culture - have a certain tech requirement? We’ll do our best to get it. Our offices are also stocked with fruit, breakfast, great coffee and soft drinks. Weekly on a Friday we all get together (this happens virtually too) for company updates and drinks - we call it Family Dinner
• Your development is important - we support and help with development including internal and external courses, learning, study support etc, all bespoke to you