Intermediate / Senior Software Engineer Scientific Engine (Python) – CDI

About Descartes Underwriting

Descartes was born out of the conviction that the ever-increasing complexity of risks faced by corporations, governments and vulnerable communities calls for a renewed approach in insurance. Our team brings together industry veterans from the most renowned institutions (AXA, SCOR, Swiss Re, Marsh, Aon, …) and scientists on top of their field to bring underwriting excellence. After 5 years of existence, Descartes has secured a leading position in parametric insurance for weather and climate‑related risks utilizing machine learning, real‑time monitoring from satellite imagery & IoT. After a successful Series B raise of $120M USD, we launched Descartes Insurance, a “full stack” insurer licensed to underwrite risk by the French regulator ACPR. With a growing corporate client base (400+ and counting), our diverse team is headquartered in Paris and operates out of our 17 global offices in North America, Europe, Australia, Singapore and Japan. Descartes is trusted by a panel of A‑rated (re)insurers to carry out its activities.

About Your Role

Due to our consistent growth, we are seeking to expand our Data, Software and DevOps team. We are searching for a

Senior Software Engineer

to mentor 1 to 2 Software Engineers. As a Senior, you will oversee:

• The Python scientific engine of a business use case
• The processes to make each individual software engineer excel at their work
• Contribute directly on the code base either individually, in pairs or more
• Organise REX sessions to share the knowledge received with the rest of the team
• Ensure compliance to internal standards and practices
• Present the progress and goals
• Contribute to the technical roadmap through architecture meetings, design documents
• Coach your collaborators to consistently deliver according to their roadmap
• Provide expertise to help your team:
  • Develop, optimise and update software for:
    • Calculation of risk models
    • Data collection, preparation and visualisation
    • Export of outputs adapted to users
    • Testing and validation of existing solutions
    • Monitoring of contracts and associated data
  • Support, test and correct the tools of:
    • Continuous development and continuous integration (CD/CI)
    • Data storage
    • Version management of scripts, codes, languages and computer systems
    • Modularisation and containerisation of IT solutions
    • Connection to external and internal APIs
• The assessment and definition of user needs
• Modelling the risks of underlying contracts
• The choice of technical solutions
• Discussions with IT partners
• Improving the skills of your technical staff
• Managing the access and rights of users of internal tools

Code versioning tool: Git + Gitlab

OS: Windows

About You

• Coaching or mentoring experience
• Scoping and identifying solutions with business team
• Handling human interactions between tech and business
• Excellent communication skills, in both formal and informal settings, and in English and French.
• 3 years or more of experiences as a software engineer or data scientist
• Solid knowledge in Python
• Master in computer science, mathematics, physics or earth science
• Experience optimizing and profiling Python code
• Experience in a microservices architecture
• Good knowledge with Docker
• Solid knowledge of production development workflow (code reviews, fast‑forward git policy, TDD)
• Fluent in English and in French
• Strong interest with climate issue (it’s not a hoax, many people suffer from it)
• Being comfortable to work alongside corporate insurers (some still wear suits)
• You enjoy CI/CD automation (or at least appreciate the elegance of a well‑crafted pipeline)
• Willingness to help junior developers (remember how you were when you started)
• Strong team spirit and ability to work (you’ll have to review code and have your code reviewed)
• Rigorous, creative and meticulous mind (we handle large insurance, we take our time)
• Strong desire to learn (there’s no limitation to the tech used, we’re happy to test and learn new tools)
• Eagerness to work in a multi‑cultural environment (policies and teams are from all around the world)

Why Join Descartes Underwriting?

• Opportunity to work and learn with teams from the most prestigious schools and research labs in the world, allowing you to progress towards technical excellence
• Commitment from Descartes to its staff of continued learning and development (think annual seminars, training etc.)