Software Engineer Wikidata for Wikimedia Projects (all genders)

Software Engineer Wikidata for Wikimedia Projects (all genders)

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Free knowledge leads to a fairer world. Wikipedia is the most important online knowledge collection of our time. The German Wikipedia alone records almost 1 billion page views per month for a total of 3 million articles. We – Wikimedia Deutschland e. V. – support the volunteers of Wikipedia and its sister projects, develop free software, such as Wikidata, and advocate for free access to knowledge, the opening of education and research, and more common good orientation in data policy.

For our team Software Engineering we are looking for a permanent Software Engineer Wikidata for Wikimedia Projects (all genders), full‑time or part‑time (30–40 hours/week), starting  or sooner.

This position is designed as a hybrid working model with regular presence in our Berlin office.

About the position & the team :

Wikidata for Wikimedia Projects wants to provide structured data support that is collaborative, verifiable, and multilingual to other Wikis in the Wikimedia movement. You will be developing open source software that puts user needs first and increases our users’ satisfaction.

At Wikimedia Deutschland – with volunteers and institutions – we work towards a future in which people share the power to collect and organise the data that shapes humanity's understanding of the world.

Knowledge and experience in these technologies is not a requirement. We believe they all can be learned on the job and WMDE, your team, and your line manager will support you in this learning. We list only a few of them here.

The tech stack we are currently working with :

• Object‑oriented PHP
• Docker and Docker Compose
• Github and Github Actions
• TypeScript and WebDriver.io
• MediaWiki and its ecosystem, specifically Wikibase Suite

Please check out our Github project and task management boards to learn more about how we work!

What you’ll be doing :

• Improve and maintain the Wikidata integrations in other Wikimedia projects, according to users’ needs
• Working in a large, legacy codebase and knowing how best practice judgements are different in this environment
• Write readable, testable, sustainable, and efficient code
• Participate in all the stages of software development including code, design, and architectural reviews providing constructive feedback
• Collaborating with the cross‑functional team to find the best solution to users’ issues in an agile work environment.
• Deconstruct a problem into an executable action plan for yourself and other engineers as well as execute it in a high‑quality way
• Maintain a good understanding of the technical aspects of the product roadmap as well as the team goals
• Engage in community discussions, feedback & events
• Engage in constantly improving the team processes and agile practices.

What makes you right for this role :

• You are a software engineer who is passionate and care about software.
• You have some relevant – not necessarily professional – experience in web development (PHP, Javascript, Lua etc.).
• You have experience and joy in pair programming.
• You want to keep learning and developing yourself and therefore you are open to new ideas and you are not afraid of making mistakes.
• You bring the ability to ask for help when blocked.
• You like being part of a cross‑functional team, working towards a common goal, learning together, and supporting each other.
• You are able to communicate in English with professional proficiency and you like to participate in technical discussions.

Interested?

Please send us your detailed application documents (Resume & Motivational Letter (yes, we read them)) via our job portal. We kindly ask you to refrain from application photos and information on date of birth, marital status and parents.

Wikimedia Germany is committed to equal opportunities and does not discriminate on the basis of, for example, ethnic origin, citizenship, religion or belief, political or other convictions, gender, age, disability, or sexual identity. We would like to address you in the way which feels most comfortable for you so please share your preferred name and pronouns if you wish.

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