Careers at Iron Pixel Works
A development studio in Wrightsville Beach. Estimates that get checked, and nobody penalised when one turns out wrong.
Why work with us
Estimates are calibrated
Every project you estimate is compared to the actual. It is the fastest way to become good at it and nobody is punished for variance.
No death marches
An overrun is recorded, not absorbed by unpaid weekends. Our record exists precisely so schedules stay honest.
Published salary
Every advertisement carries the real range with no variable component.
Mainstream stack
You will build in technology that is genuinely maintainable rather than whatever is fashionable.
Current vacancies
All roles are based at our Wrightsville Beach, NC office unless stated otherwise. Salary ranges are published with every advertisement.
Full Stack Developer
Builds client web applications and business systems, and maintains the estimating record that this studio publishes to prospective clients.
What you will do
- Build web applications and business systems across the client portfolio
- Participate in paid discovery engagements producing written scope, risk lists and estimates with stated confidence
- Price uncertain work as ranges with the underlying assumption stated rather than as single confident figures
- Write exclusions into every scope document so out-of-scope work is agreed rather than argued about later
- Record actual effort against the original estimate on every completed project
- Maintain the published estimating record accurately, including overruns and their causes
- Set up client repositories, hosting and third-party services under client ownership before development begins
- Write handover documentation aimed at a developer who has never seen the system
What we are looking for
- Three or more years building production web applications
- Comfortable across both front-end and back-end work
- Willingness to record and publish your own estimating variance
- Experience integrating with third-party and undocumented systems
- Mainstream stack fluency; we build in technology clients can hire for locally
Senior Engineer
Technical lead across client builds, owning architecture decisions and the quality of discovery work that estimates rest on.
What you will do
- Lead architecture and stack decisions
- Run technical discovery and produce estimates
- Review code and maintain handover standards
- Mentor developers on estimating and calibration
What we are looking for
- Seven or more years in production development
- Strong discovery and estimating track record
- Experience with intermittent-connectivity and offline-capable design
- Able to explain technical risk to non-technical clients
Front-End Developer
Builds client-facing interfaces across web applications with an emphasis on real device performance and accessibility.
What you will do
- Build interfaces against agreed designs and scope
- Test on real devices and assistive technology
- Contribute to discovery and estimating
- Document components for handover
What we are looking for
- Three or more years in front-end development
- Strong JavaScript, HTML and CSS fundamentals
- Accessibility knowledge and manual testing habit
- Comfortable working without a heavy framework where appropriate
Junior Developer
Supported entry into professional development with real client projects and structured mentoring from the first month.
What you will do
- Build features and components under supervision
- Write tests and documentation
- Support maintenance work on client systems
- Record effort accurately against estimates
What we are looking for
- Demonstrable programming ability, however acquired
- Something you built that you can discuss honestly
- Willingness to be taught and to ask early
- Bootcamp graduates and career changers welcome
How we hire
Application reviewed
Every applicant receives a reply within two weeks of the closing date. Send a repository or portfolio; no cover letter required.
Technical conversation
A discussion about something you built, what went wrong and what you would change. We ask how long you thought it would take and how long it actually took.
Paid work session
Three hours, paid at your day rate, on a real but non-urgent task. You keep the work and we do not use it.
Offer
Two stages then a decision, in writing, with the full compensation structure stated.