# Team Job Descriptions

## Hiring Priority Order
1. Backend Python Developer (Senior)
2. Backend Python Researcher (Mid-Level)
3. Audio Engineer Specialist
4. AI/ML Deep Researcher
5. AI/ML Developer
6. Frontend Developer (Vanilla JS + Tailwind)
7. Frontend Researcher

---

## 1. Backend Python Developer (Senior)

### Role
Core Architecture & Pipeline Development

### Priority Skills
- **Deep Python expertise** (Critical)
- **System design** (Critical)
- **Whisper/ML experience** (Critical)

### Responsibilities
- Design and implement protocol-based service architecture for media processing
- Build iterative transcription pipeline (v1→v2→v3→v4)
- Integrate Whisper models with M3 optimizations
- Develop batch processing system with queue management
- Design PostgreSQL schema with JSONB for transcripts
- Ensure backward compatibility across versions
- Implement comprehensive testing strategy
- Code review and mentor team members
- Document architectural decisions

### Required Skills
- Expert Python 3.11+ with async/await patterns
- Strong system design and clean architecture principles
- Whisper/ML model integration experience
- PostgreSQL with SQLAlchemy and Alembic
- Protocol/ABC patterns and dependency injection
- pytest with factory patterns and real file testing
- Experience with audio processing pipelines
- Git workflow and code review practices
- Performance optimization and profiling

### Nice to Have
- FFmpeg experience
- FastAPI/async frameworks
- Performance optimization on Apple Silicon
- DevOps/CI/CD knowledge
- Experience with large-scale batch processing
- Previous transcription service development

### Compensation Range
$150,000 - $200,000 (Senior level)

---

## 2. Backend Python Researcher (Mid-Level)

### Role
ML Experimentation and Performance Optimization

### Priority Skills
- **ML experimentation** (Critical)
- **Performance profiling** (Critical)
- **Documentation** (Important)

### Responsibilities
- Research and benchmark Whisper model variants
- Profile performance bottlenecks in transcription pipeline
- Experiment with multi-pass strategies and parameters
- Document findings and create proof-of-concepts
- Research speaker diarization approaches
- Optimize batch processing strategies
- Create performance benchmarks and metrics
- Investigate new transcription models and techniques
- Collaborate with senior developer on implementations

### Required Skills
- Python 3.11+ with research/experimentation focus
- ML/AI fundamentals and model evaluation
- Performance profiling tools (cProfile, memory_profiler)
- Data analysis and visualization (pandas, matplotlib)
- Technical documentation and reporting
- Jupyter notebooks for experimentation
- Git for experiment tracking
- Statistical analysis and hypothesis testing

### Nice to Have
- Whisper model internals knowledge
- Audio processing knowledge
- Academic research background
- PyTorch/TensorFlow basics
- Published papers or blog posts
- Experience with A/B testing

### Compensation Range
$100,000 - $130,000 (Mid-level)

---

## 3. Audio Engineer Specialist

### Role
Audio Processing Pipeline Development

### Priority Skills
- **FFmpeg expertise** (Critical)
- **Audio DSP** (Critical)
- **Python audio libraries** (Important)

### Responsibilities
- Design and implement audio preprocessing pipeline
- Optimize FFmpeg commands for format conversion
- Implement audio quality assessment algorithms
- Develop noise reduction and enhancement techniques
- Handle multi-channel to mono conversion
- Implement dynamic range compression
- Design chunking strategies for long audio files
- Create audio analysis metrics (SNR, quality scores)
- Optimize for various audio formats and codecs

### Required Skills
- Expert FFmpeg knowledge and optimization
- Audio DSP concepts (sampling, filtering, compression)
- Python audio libraries (pydub, librosa, soundfile)
- Understanding of audio codecs and formats
- Signal processing and noise reduction
- Batch audio processing optimization
- Audio quality metrics and assessment
- Experience with real-time audio processing

### Nice to Have
- C/C++ for low-level audio optimization
- Real-time audio streaming experience
- Music information retrieval
- Acoustic analysis expertise
- Video processing experience
- Broadcasting standards knowledge

### Compensation Range
$120,000 - $160,000

---

## 4. AI/ML Deep Researcher

### Role
Transcription Model Research and Optimization

### Priority Skills
- **Deep learning frameworks** (Critical)
- **Model optimization** (Critical)
- **Research methodology** (Important)

### Responsibilities
- Research state-of-the-art transcription models
- Optimize Whisper for M3 hardware (Metal/CPU)
- Investigate model quantization and pruning
- Research speaker diarization algorithms
- Benchmark accuracy vs speed tradeoffs
- Design confidence scoring mechanisms
- Research voice embedding techniques
- Create model evaluation pipelines
- Stay current with ASR research

### Required Skills
- Deep learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow)
- Transformer models and attention mechanisms
- Model optimization (quantization, distillation)
- CUDA/Metal optimization techniques
- Research methodology and experimentation
- Statistical analysis and hypothesis testing
- Academic paper comprehension
- Benchmark design and evaluation

### Nice to Have
- Published ML research
- Speech recognition expertise
- Multi-modal model experience
- Fine-tuning experience
- Contribution to open-source ML projects
- PhD or advanced degree in relevant field

### Compensation Range
$130,000 - $180,000

---

## 5. AI/ML Developer

### Role
Production ML Implementation

### Priority Skills
- **Implementation focus** (Critical)
- **API integration** (Critical)
- **Production ML** (Important)

### Responsibilities
- Implement Whisper model integration
- Build confidence scoring systems
- Develop multi-pass merging algorithms
- Create structured output templates
- Implement prompt engineering for enhancement
- Build speaker diarization pipeline
- Handle model versioning and deployment
- Optimize inference performance
- Create ML monitoring systems

### Required Skills
- Python 3.11+ with production ML focus
- Faster-whisper and whisper.cpp integration
- Async Python for ML pipelines
- JSON schema validation
- API integration (DeepSeek, OpenAI)
- Model serving and optimization
- Error handling and retry logic
- Production ML best practices
- Container deployment (Docker)

### Nice to Have
- MLOps experience
- Model monitoring tools
- A/B testing frameworks
- Edge deployment experience
- Kubernetes knowledge
- Cloud ML platforms experience

### Compensation Range
$120,000 - $160,000

---

## 6. Frontend Developer (Vanilla JS + Tailwind)

### Role
Modern JavaScript UI Development (No Framework)

### Priority Skills
- **Modern vanilla JavaScript** (Critical)
- **Tailwind expertise** (Critical)
- **Performance optimization** (Critical)

### Responsibilities
- Build fast, responsive UI without frameworks
- Implement transcript viewing interface
- Create audio player with timestamp sync
- Design batch processing progress UI
- Build speaker-colored transcript views
- Implement search and filter functionality
- Create export interface for multiple formats
- Optimize for performance and accessibility
- Build progressive web app features

### Required Skills
- Expert modern JavaScript (ES6+) without frameworks
- Advanced Tailwind CSS with custom configurations
- Web Components and Custom Elements
- WebSocket integration for real-time updates
- Audio/Video HTML5 APIs
- Progressive enhancement principles
- Performance optimization (lazy loading, virtualization)
- Accessibility standards (ARIA, WCAG)
- Service Workers and PWA development

### Nice to Have
- WebAssembly basics
- IndexedDB for offline storage
- Previous transcript UI experience
- Data visualization libraries
- Mobile-first development
- Experience with media players

### Compensation Range
$110,000 - $150,000

---

## 7. Frontend Researcher

### Role
UX Research and Design Systems

### Priority Skills
- **UX research** (Critical)
- **Design systems** (Important)
- **Performance analysis** (Important)

### Responsibilities
- Research transcript viewing patterns
- Design information architecture for media processing
- Research accessibility requirements for transcripts
- Benchmark UI performance metrics
- Investigate progressive enhancement strategies
- Research mobile-first approaches
- Document UI/UX best practices
- Create design system documentation
- Conduct user testing sessions

### Required Skills
- UX research methodologies
- Design system principles
- Performance analysis tools
- Accessibility expertise
- Information architecture
- User testing facilitation
- Figma/design tools
- Technical writing
- Data-driven decision making

### Nice to Have
- Frontend development basics
- Data visualization experience
- Cognitive load theory knowledge
- Media player UX experience
- Analytics tools expertise
- Previous research publications

### Compensation Range
$90,000 - $120,000

---

## Team Composition by Phase

### Phase 1 (Weeks 1-2)
- Backend Python Developer (Lead)
- DevOps Support (Part-time)

### Phase 2 (Week 3)
- +AI Integration Developer

### Phase 3 (Weeks 4-5)
- +ML Engineer/Researcher

### Phase 4 (Week 6+)
- +Audio/Speech Specialist

### Future Phases
- +Frontend Developer
- +Frontend Researcher

---

## Interview Process

### Technical Interview Structure
1. **Phone Screen** (30 min)
   - Background and experience
   - Interest in media processing
   - Basic technical questions

2. **Technical Interview** (90 min)
   - Coding challenge (45 min)
   - System design (30 min)
   - Technical discussion (15 min)

3. **Take-Home Project** (4-6 hours)
   - Relevant to role
   - Real-world problem
   - Open-ended solution

4. **Team Interview** (60 min)
   - Culture fit
   - Collaboration style
   - Questions and answers

### Evaluation Criteria
- Technical competence (40%)
- Problem-solving ability (25%)
- Communication skills (20%)
- Culture fit (15%)

---

## Benefits Package

### Standard Benefits
- Health, dental, vision insurance
- 401k with matching
- Flexible PTO
- Remote work options
- Professional development budget
- Conference attendance
- Hardware budget

### Unique Benefits
- Access to latest AI models
- Publication opportunities
- Open-source contribution time
- Learning stipend
- Sabbatical options (after 2 years)

---

*Last Updated: 2024*  
*Status: ACTIVE HIRING*