Senior / Staff Backend Engineers - Build Platforms at the Intersection of Embedded Systems, Data & AI

I’m currently partnering with a small but ambitious Australian technology company that is quietly building a platform sitting at the intersection of embedded products, data, and emerging AI capabilities. 

The engineering organisation is structured around three key initiatives. The core platform team focuses on embedded product infrastructure, which is where most engineers initially join and build a deep understanding of the systems. Alongside this, the company is developing a new AI-driven initiative, with their first product expected to launch later this year. The longer-term ambition is to evolve into a generative-AI-native platform, with engineers gradually gaining exposure to this work as the roadmap unfolds.

From an engineering perspective, the team is looking for Senior or Staff-level backend engineers who think beyond a single language or framework. They are particularly interested in polyglot engineers who have built and operated production systems across multiple stacks and enjoy solving complex problems rather than simply implementing tickets.

The environment is highly collaborative and product-focused. Engineers work closely with product, design, and data teams to shape solutions from early problem definition through to delivery. Strong engineers here are the kind who ask thoughtful questions, challenge assumptions, and bring others along on the journey rather than working in isolation.

Technically, the platform is largely Python-based (Django / Flask / FastAPI) with cloud infrastructure in AWS, modern CI/CD practices, and architectures built around microservices and event-driven systems. Engineers are expected to take ownership of systems end-to-end - from designing scalable services and reviewing code across the squad, to improving platform health through monitoring, logging, and infrastructure automation.

Because the company operates in a highly regulated industry, engineers must also enjoy working within real-world constraints. This means designing systems that are not only scalable and elegant, but also secure, resilient, and compliant.

The team itself is distributed, with a strong engineering presence in Sydney but openness to outstanding engineers across Melbourne or Newcastle provided collaboration and communication remain strong.

This role tends to resonate with engineers who:

• Enjoy owning systems end-to-end, not just contributing small components
• Are curious problem solvers who ask the right questions before jumping to solutions
• Have experience working across multiple languages or architectures
• Care about platform quality, engineering standards, and mentoring others
• Want exposure to AI-driven product development while still working on meaningful platform problems

It’s a rare opportunity to join a small, high-calibre engineering team early, shape the technical platform, and work on problems that sit across backend engineering, distributed systems, and the next generation of AI-enabled products.

If you want to discuss further, reach out to reema@theonset.com.au

Senior Machine Learning Engineer (Computer Vision)
Sydney | Full-time | Hybrid (3 days per fortnight)

The Mission
A Sydney-based engineering team builds perception systems that inspect critical infrastructure in the real world. Think crack detection on dams and corrosion detection on heavy industrial assets. This role exists to build new computer vision and ML capability, then carry it all the way into production.

Not a demo. Not a research island. End-to-end ownership.

What You’ll Work On
• Designing and shipping ML and computer vision systems across multiple software platforms
• Building scalable pipelines for image and 3D/spatial data (point clouds, meshes)
• Developing production-grade models and data processing workflows (Python, PyTorch/TensorFlow, scikit-learn, NumPy, Pandas)
• Handling uncertainty in sensors, data quality, and operating environments
• Taking ML components from PoC through to product features that are reproducible, monitorable, and maintainable
• Validating performance and robustness against real customer requirements
• Communicating trade-offs, limitations, and technical risk clearly to stakeholders
• Partnering with product and engineering to shape feature scope, priorities, and delivery plans
• Improving team practices through documentation, mentoring, and pragmatic engineering standards

The Way This Team Works
• Extreme ownership: engineers steer from ideation to requirements to build to production
• Cross-functional by default: product, ops, data capture, platform engineering, global stakeholders
• Flexible work patterns: outcomes matter, not clock watching
• High retention: people stay because the problems are hard and the impact is real
• This is a long-game role with room to shape your lane, whether that’s technical depth, product influence, or leadership over time

What Matters Here
• 4+ years of hands-on applied ML and computer vision experience (detection, segmentation, classification, 3D reconstruction)
• Strong Python and modern ML framework experience
• Solid software engineering fundamentals (Git, testing, modular design)
• Comfortable in Linux environments
• You can navigate ambiguity without freezing or over-processing
• You can own a feature like it’s your baby and run it to maturity
• Clear communicator across technical and non-technical audiences

Nice To Have
• Deep experience working with 3D data (point clouds, meshes, spatial workflows)
• Robotics, SLAM, sensor fusion, or autonomy-adjacent background
• CI/CD, deployment workflows, orchestration tooling, and production monitoring patterns

Apply / Enquire
Apply directly or email Toby Tank at toby@theonset.com.au with your CV or a short note on what you’ve shipped in production (especially in CV, 3D, robotics, or sensor-driven ML).

Write code that makes the heart of this trading machine beat.

Software Engineer (C++)

Hands-on development role focused on exchange connectivity and rapid execution

The mission

This global High-Frequency Trading ("HFT") firm provides liquidity to global markets, keeping trading action alive globally, open to close. Their two opportunities to win are:

1. Relentlessly developing trading strategies that capitalise on opportunities while they exist
2. Executing on them while they exist, before their competitors*

*Here's where you fit in.

The team

A collection of the world's sharpest mathematical, logical and technical minds across trading, engineering, IT and operations. You'll find your place in a group of engineers responsible for driving excellence in:

• Hardware: FPGAs keep things fast and customisable
• Software: Java, C++, CUDA, Python*
• ML: Actually, this is a secret

*These folks, your new colleagues are divided between core teams, and teams attached to particular trading activities

The control room

State-of-the-art office and lab environment fit for the market's most sought-after talent, complete with the following benefits:

• Generous paid parental leave
• Catered meals, barista coffees, well-stocked kitchen
• Volunteering opportunities, charitable donation matching
• A stacked social calendar
• Family days

The problem

• Insane socio-economic climate + headlines that could be Black Mirror episode titles = market volatility
• Volatility = growth for HFT firms equipped to capitalise (like this one)
• Growth = more brainpower needed to stay ahead

The solution

An engineer with a winning mindset, and likely experience and knowledge of:

• Modern C++ (on Linux) in ultra-low latency CI/CD environments
• Genuine ground-up "build" projects
• Thriving in high-pressure, often ambiguous circumstances
• Outstanding academics in Computer Science, Maths, Physics

Still reading?

Let's explore.

The world’s biggest breakthroughs rarely fail in theory, they fail in execution.

A process works beautifully in the lab, then collapses under real-world constraints.
A technology clears every technical hurdle, then stalls at pilot because no one owns delivery.
A promising system exists, but never quite makes the leap to something you can actually build, install, and run.

This team exists to close that gap.

They operate where science meets engineering reality — taking first-of-a-kind technologies out of the lab and into pilot plants, demonstration facilities, and ultimately commercial scale.

Right now, they’re looking for a Senior Process Engineer who can own that complexity end-to-end

What you'll be doing 
This is not a “sit behind the model” role.
You’ll take ownership of pilot plant delivery — translating experimental results into something that can be designed, built, installed, commissioned, and operated safely.
You’ll work alongside scientists, simulation specialists, fabricators, vendors, and commissioning crews — and you’ll be accountable for making the system work in the real world.

In this role, you will:

• Own the delivery of pilot-scale systems, from early design through to installation and commissioning.
• Translate lab and experimental outcomes into practical, buildable process designs.
• Lead first-of-a-kind process design, embedding scale-up, operability, and safety considerations from day one.
• Prepare and review engineering deliverables including BFDs, PFDs, P&IDs, equipment lists, and preliminary layouts.
• Develop and iterate mass and energy balances, equipment sizing, and process assumptions as data evolves.
• Perform techno-economic assessments to inform design choices and commercial decisions.
• Lead procurement of process and mechanical equipment, working directly with local and international vendors.
• Act as the on-site technical owner during fabrication, installation, commissioning, and troubleshooting.
• Identify technical, commercial, and safety risks early — and actively manage them through delivery.
• Communicate clearly with internal leaders and external stakeholders when trade-offs are required.

What we’re looking for

This role suits someone who has been through pilot delivery before, and understands where theory breaks down.

You’ll be a strong fit if you have:

• A degree in Chemical Engineering
• Hands-on experience delivering pilot plants or demonstration-scale systems — not just contributing to them.
• The ability to move comfortably between modelling, design, site work, and commissioning.
• Experience working with hazardous or corrosive systems, with a strong safety-by-design mindset.
• Sound judgement when data is incomplete and timelines are non-negotiable.
• A track record of owning outcomes, not just producing analyses.
• Clear communication skills — especially when explaining uncertainty, risk, and trade-offs.
  

The Ideal Background

• There’s no single “perfect” background for this role. Strong candidates typically have experience working outside the lab, delivering pilot or demonstration-scale systems in real operating environments.
• You’re likely to have worked with corrosive or hazardous processes, early-stage or first-of-a-kind technologies, and systems where data was incomplete and design assumptions were tested in the field.
• Your experience may come from chemical manufacturing, hydrometallurgy, mineral or metals processing, energy-adjacent technologies, or pilot plant operations. Specific commodity experience is less important than the ability to own delivery, balance safety and operability, and make sound engineering decisions under pressure.
• If you’ve been responsible for getting a pilot plant built, commissioned, and running — not just designed — you’re probably a strong fit.

Why this role is different

You won’t be handed a perfectly defined problem.
You won’t have the luxury of infinite data.
And you won’t be shielded from accountability.

But you will see your work move from concept to something physical, operating, and real — and you’ll know you played a critical role in getting it there.

If you’re motivated by ownership, execution, and seeing complex systems come to life outside the lab, this role will stretch you in the right ways.

Interested?
Reach out to Thaís Amorim at thais@theonset.com.au for a confidential conversation.

Senior Scientific Software Engineer, 3D Geometry and Visualisation
Sydney | Full time | Hybrid

The Mission
A global medical technology team designs complex physical products that must fit real human anatomy across massive population diversity. This role exists to turn large scale 3D scan data into practical digital tools that engineers actually use.

You are not building a generic platform. You are building internal software that directly shapes how physical products are designed, sized, and validated.

This is where scientific software meets real-world hardware outcomes.

What You’ll Work On
• Owning and evolving an internal digital anthropometry platform used by engineering teams
• Building cross platform desktop applications using Qt for Python
• Developing interactive 3D visualisation tooling with VTK for shape and fit analysis
• Working hands on with meshes, point clouds, geometry, and population level variation
• Implementing backend algorithms and data processing pipelines that support design decisions
• Translating messy engineering workflows into usable, repeatable software tools
• Driving adoption of digital first workflows across multidisciplinary product teams
• Improving architecture, testing, CI/CD, and long term maintainability without over-engineering

What Matters Here
• Strong experience building software for scientific, engineering, or R&D environments
• Deep comfort working with 3D data, meshes, geometry, and visualisation
• Solid Python engineering fundamentals
• Hands on experience with Qt for Python and VTK or equivalent frameworks
• Enough mathematical and statistical grounding to reason about shape variation and populations
• Ability to work directly with engineers, gather requirements, and influence how tools get used

The Type of Engineer Who Thrives
A scientific programmer who likes owning real tools, not abstract platforms. Someone who enjoys working with geometry, visual data, and physical constraints. Comfortable operating as the only dedicated software engineer in a domain heavy team, and confident enough to challenge workflows when the software can do better.

Not a web generalist. Not a ticket taker. Someone who wants their code to shape real products.

Why This Role Matters
Physical product development is slow and expensive when driven by trial and error. Better digital tools reduce iterations, improve upfront decisions, and raise the quality bar across every product cycle. This role directly influences how efficiently and accurately products are designed.

The "What's In It For Me" Bit
• Senior individual contributor role with clear technical ownership
• Long-term platform work, not short-lived features
• High autonomy and direct access to a varied class of engineering stakeholders
• Exposure to applied 3D geometry, anthropometrics, and medical R&D

If you want to build software where geometry, data, and real world fit actually matter, reach out.

Senior Hardware Production Engineer

(AU Citizenship Required)

Sydney | Full-time | Hybrid

The Mission
A senior hardware team in Sydney builds complex electronic systems that must work first time and continue to work at scale.

The PCB designs are largely completed upstream. This role exists to ensure those designs survive manufacturing, supplier variability, and real-world, rugged conditions.

This is where hardware moves from design intent to repeatable production.

What You’ll Work On

• Reviewing high-speed and RF-adjacent PCB designs for production readiness
• Assessing schematics, layouts, and BOMs with a manufacturing and reliability focus
• Working directly with suppliers to validate components, processes, and incoming quality
• Defining inspection and test approaches that catch issues before they scale
• Investigating failures and driving proper root cause analysis and corrective actions
• Feeding lessons learned back into upstream design teams to improve future revisions
• Supporting audits and quality frameworks without turning engineering into paperwork
• Acting as the technical gate between design and volume production

What Matters Here

• Strong experience with high-speed PCB or RF-influenced designsComfort reviewing and challenging existing designs rather than creating them from scratch
• High-speed exposure is essential: multigigabit, high-speed DDR3 or DDR4, and 100GbE Ethernet chops are the unavoidable foundation
• Hands-on experience with Altium schematics and PCB layouts
• Strong understanding of PCB assembly drawings and manufacturing documentation
• Practical use of quality tools such as FMEA, SPC, 8D and root cause analysis
• Experience working with external suppliers and manufacturing partners
• Familiarity with ISO-style quality management systems

The Type of Engineer Who Thrives Here
An engineer who has seen boards fail in production and understands why. Someone who enjoys tightening tolerances, closing feedback loops, and preventing issues before they reach the field. Design-literate, detail-oriented, and comfortable operating without a management title.

Why This Role Matters
The hardware is non-trivial. The environments are unforgiving. Errors are expensive. This role protects the product and the roadmap by ensuring what gets built matches what was intended, every time.

The Opportunity

• Senior individual contributor role with real technical ownership
• Direct influence on how hardware moves into production at scale
• Close proximity to manufacturing, suppliers, and real failure modes
• Competitive salary + super + bonus

If you want to work on hardware where production realities matter as much as design intent, apply directly or reach out to Toby Tank: toby@theonset.com.au

Growth Marketing Lead

- High growth customer obsessed global business

- Generate high quality leads that convert

- Circa $180k plus super and bonus

This is an opportunity to join a high growth business operating across Australia and global markets that is known for building high-performing teams, scaling quickly and delivering meaningful customer impact. They value pace, commercial thinking and experimentation that drives better customer outcomes and experiences.

Picture yourself in a newly created role.  One where, as a hands-on, outcomes-focused growth marketer, you'll take ownership of a multi-region, multi funnel growth engine. If you thrive in an environment where you can build, optimise, test, and scale, this is your opportunity to drive measurable results and lead a team doing their best work.  This role isnt for the faint hearted - think building something from scratch while you drive immediate and long term impact.

The Role

Put simply, your focus is to generate high quality leads that convert.  You'll:

• Own digital performance across paid media, SEO, CRO, content and website experience.

• Drive integrated, full-funnel marketing spanning brand, awareness, acquisition and early tenure.

• Manage media and performance agencies with strong commercial accountability.

• Turn insight and data into actions that reduce CPL and improve conversion velocity.

• Deliver highly segmented and localised marketing strategies across regions and states.

• Partner closely with sales, CX, operations and product.

• Lead integrated campaigns, activations, events and launches.

• Report on performance with speed, clarity and recommendations.

What You Bring

• Deep expertise in digital or growth roles with a strong lead gen and conversion track record.

• Deep hands-on experience in paid media, SEO, CRO, analytics and optimisation.

• Strong commercial mindset and ability to operate at pace.

• A track record of building and scaling B2C growth engines.

• Strong analytical capability.

• Experience managing agencies and driving accountability.

• Experience improving full-funnel efficiency.

• Familiarity with CRM, automation tools and AI-enhanced marketing.

• Experience designing events, activations or localised marketing.

• Comfort working with diverse audiences across regions.

Apply now to make a measurable difference in a rapidly scaling business.  Alternatively, call Michelle Rubinstein at The Onset on 0413 463 043 for more information.

Head of Customer Acquisition

Sydney or Melbourne | Financial Services | Hybrid

We are partnering with a well-known financial services brand in their search for a Head of Customer Acquisition.

This leadership role will take ownership of the customer acquisition strategy across digital and above-the-line channels, driving measurable growth while optimising the end-to-end customer journey.

You will lead a high-performing marketing function and work closely with product, analytics and commercial teams to ensure acquisition initiatives are aligned to broader business objectives.

The Role

As Head of Customer Acquisition, you will lead the strategy, execution and optimisation of all acquisition marketing initiatives.

Key responsibilities include:

Strategy & Growth

• Develop and execute end-to-end acquisition strategies across digital and ATL channels

• Drive measurable new customer growth through data-led marketing initiatives

• Partner closely with product leaders to align campaign objectives, KPIs and outcomes

• Lead integrated acquisition campaigns across paid media, digital platforms and partnerships

Performance Marketing & Optimisation

• Oversee performance marketing initiatives and continuously optimise campaigns to maximise ROI

• Analyse customer behaviour, attribution models and conversion metrics to identify growth opportunities

• Optimise the online acquisition journey to improve engagement and conversion rates

• Champion experimentation and a strong test-and-learn culture

Analytics & Reporting

• Establish clear acquisition KPIs, reporting frameworks and dashboards

• Deliver regular insights and performance updates to senior leadership

• Use analytics to inform strategic decisions and campaign optimisation

Agency & Budget Management

• Manage external media agencies and vendor partnerships

• Oversee marketing budgets and ensure strong return on investment

• Negotiate contracts and ensure agency performance aligns with campaign goals

Leadership

• Lead and mentor a high-performing acquisition marketing team

• Build internal capability across performance marketing, analytics and data-driven decision making

About You

You are a commercially driven acquisition marketing leader with a strong track record of delivering measurable growth. You will bring:

• Significant experience in customer acquisition or performance marketing leadership

• Experience within financial services, fintech, telco, e-commerce, marketplaces or other high-volume consumer businesses

• Strong expertise across digital media, ATL campaigns and integrated marketing

• Deep understanding of analytics, attribution and conversion optimisation

• Experience managing agency partnerships and large marketing budgets

• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence senior leaders

• A strategic mindset combined with strong operational execution

Why This Role?

• Lead the acquisition strategy for a rapidly growing organisation

• Work within a data-driven and performance-focused marketing culture

• Significant opportunity to shape growth strategy and drive measurable impact

• Hybrid working environment and collaborative leadership team

If you're passionate about building scalable acquisition engines and driving measurable growth, please apply online or call Michelle Rubinstein at The Onset on 0413 463 043.

Technical Business Analyst
Sydney | Surry Hills | Financial Services | $120k + Super

We’re partnering with a financial services business that is undertaking a significant transformation of its core systems. As part of this work, they are modernising a long-standing internal platform and improving the way business processes and systems interact across the organisation.

They are now hiring a Technical Business Analyst to help bridge the gap between business operations and engineering as the platform evolves.

This role will play an important part in understanding the current system landscape, documenting workflows and regulatory obligations, and translating business requirements into clear technical specifications for engineers.

It’s an opportunity to work closely with engineering while helping establish a strong and reliable foundation for future system improvements and automation.

What you’ll be doing:

Build a deep understanding of existing business processes, systems and compliance requirements

Work with internal stakeholders to capture and document the current state of systems and workflows

Translate business requirements into clear technical requirements for engineering teams

Document system workflows, architecture and process artefacts

Identify potential risks, regulatory considerations and downstream system impacts

Support integration work across APIs and internal systems

Investigate technical requirements for new features and integrations

Assist with testing activities including UAT and validation of system changes

Contribute to sprint planning and Agile delivery activities

Work closely with product leadership, engineers and operational stakeholders

The environment:

The team works in a fast-moving Agile environment with short delivery cycles and frequent releases.

The platform itself is being refactored and modernised, including updates to the technology stack, database architecture and integration capabilities.

What they’re looking for:

Around 3+ years experience as a Business Analyst or Technical Business Analyst

Experience working closely with engineering teams

Ability to translate business requirements into clear technical specifications

Comfort reviewing APIs, integrations and system architecture

Strong documentation and systems analysis skills

Experience mapping workflows, processes and system interactions

Experience within financial services, insurance or another regulated industry would be highly regarded.

Why this role is interesting:

You’ll be working on the evolution of a core system used across the organisation

You’ll help improve how business processes and systems operate together

You’ll work closely with engineering and product leadership in a hands-on delivery environment

Location

Surry Hills, Sydney
Office-based role (5 days per week)

If you’re a technically minded BA who enjoys understanding systems deeply and helping teams modernise internal platforms, we’d love to hear from you.

Head of Consumer Growth

Sydney | High-Growth FinTech | Strategic Leadership Role

A rare opportunity to join one of Australia’s fastest-growing fintechs that is reshaping how consumers access finance.

This founder-led, ASX-listed business has built a reputation for challenging traditional players through smart technology, better customer experiences and a relentless focus on innovation.

 Since launching, the company has continuously scaled while continuing to take meaningful market share across their category.

With a sizeable but nimble team in place, the business sits in the sweet spot of being large enough to have real market impact, yet small and agile enough for individuals to genuinely influence strategy and outcomes.

As growth accelerates, they are now seeking a Head of Consumer Growth to lead and scale one of the company’s most important revenue channels.

The Opportunity

A part of the Exec leadership team, this role owns the end-to-end strategy and performance of the direct-to-consumer channel.

You will take full commercial ownership of the digital channel, defining the growth roadmap, optimising the customer journey, and leading a multidisciplinary team across marketing, sales and digital.

This role combines strategy, growth leadership and P&L accountability, making it ideal for someone who thrives in high-growth, data-driven environments.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy & P&L Ownership

• Define and execute the direct-to-consumer strategy aligned with broader business objectives

• Own the P&L for the digital channel and drive sustainable revenue growth

Growth & Customer Acquisition

• Lead customer acquisition strategy across digital marketing and performance channels

• Optimise the conversion funnel to maximise ROI and deliver against ambitious growth targets

Customer Journey & Value Optimisation

• Continuously improve conversion, retention and customer lifetime value

• Use data-driven segmentation and advanced analytics to drive cross-sell, upsell and refinance opportunities

Leadership & Team Development

• Lead and grow a multidisciplinary team across growth marketing, sales and digital optimisation

• Establish strong performance frameworks, KPIs and capability development pathways

Product & Market Innovation

• Identify opportunities for new products, pricing strategies and channel expansion

• Lead competitive analysis and market insights to support innovation and growth

Strategic Partnerships

• Manage and grow key strategic partnerships, including major financial institutions and distribution partners

Technology & Customer Experience

• Oversee the MarTech stack and continuously improve the digital application journey

Risk, Compliance & Operations

• Partner closely with risk, compliance and operations teams to ensure responsible lending practices while improving efficiency and customer outcomes

About You

You are a commercially minded digital leader who combines strategic thinking with hands-on execution.

You thrive in high-growth environments, enjoy building and leading teams, and have a strong track record of delivering measurable outcomes through digital channels.

You will likely bring:

• Deep B2C experience across digital growth, product, sales leadership, partnerships or portfolio management

• Proven ability to design and optimise customer journeys and conversion funnels

• Strong commercial acumen with experience owning revenue, budgets or P&L

• Experience leading cross-functional teams spanning marketing, product and sales

• Exceptional stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence across an organisation

• Experience in fintech, consumer lending or financial services is highly regarded, though leaders from other high-growth direct-to-consumer businesses may also be considered.

You’ll be joining a high-performing, collaborative and ambitious team that is building one of Australia’s most innovative fintech platforms.

The culture is entrepreneurial and outcome-focused, with a strong emphasis on ownership, innovation and continuous improvement.

You Will Benefit From:

• The opportunity to shape a critical revenue channel in a scaling fintech

• Working with a smart, ambitious and collaborative team

• A culture that encourages innovation and new ideas

• Flexible working arrangements

• Professional development and learning opportunities

If you’re excited by the opportunity to lead digital growth in a high-performing fintech and play a key role in shaping their growth strategy, I would love to hear from you.

Apply now or call Michelle Rubinstein at The Onset on 0413 463 043.