--- title: 'Software Engineer - Data Insights at Top Hat' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/software-engineer-data-insights-top-hat-canada-1x3j6zp68463' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-09-06' --- # Software Engineer - Data Insights at Top Hat - **Company:** Top Hat - **Location:** Canada - **Employment:** full-time - **Work type:** remote - **Posted:** 2026-09-01 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-06 - **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/top-hat/e8d43056-b380-4658-a54e-79e8e507a999 ## Job description We’re searching for a Full Stack Engineer to join our Data Insights team! This team provides professors and students with a platform to interact during lecture sessions to ensure that we’re facilitating engaging and interesting classroom experiences. We’re currently experimenting with ways to increase social interaction between students and professors, and recently rolled out a feature that generates personalized interactive questions with AI to create a frictionless professor experience. You will contribute to innovation and experimentation, leveraging data-driven insights to deliver impactful product improvements. With a focus on collaboration and iteration, you’ll play a critical role in building products that drive success for both students and educators. Join this talented group that is dedicated to solving at-scale challenges, and help us to fulfill our mission to spark better teaching and learning for a brighter world. Our Purpose and Reach, Your Opportunity Top Hat is transforming higher education. Professors rely on our platform to create engaging, active learning environments, improving attendance, grades, and the overall lecture experience. With over 750 universities and 3 million students already using Top Hat, we’re setting our sights on reaching all 4,000+ post-secondary institutions across North America. As part of our growing Engineering team, you’ll help design and build the next generation of features that will shape classrooms worldwide. You will: - Drive impactful projects: Take ownership of key initiatives, leading the full software development lifecycle (SDLC) from discovery and planning to development and release, in collaboration with Product, Design, and Engineering peers. - Experiment and innovate: Propose bold ideas, experiment with solutions, and iterate to improve both our technology and the products we build. - Build with AI: In an ever-changing technical landscape you will be challenging the status quo about how we should build and operate on a day to day basis using new AI tech. - Collaborate in a dynamic environment: Work in a cross-functional scrum team to design and build scalable, user-focused features. •Contribute across the board: Support team goals by resolving bugs, tackling individual tickets, and ensuring the continuous improvement of our products. You are: - 3 + years of experience in full-stack software development. - Front-end proficiency, ideally with React, and back-end experience—we use Django and FastAPI, but similar experience with other frameworks is welcome. - A proactive problem-solver: Navigate ambiguity confidently by asking the right questions, making informed decisions, and aligning with stakeholders. - Innovation-focused mindset: Excited by experimentation, eager to propose ideas that enhance both technology and product design. - Strong communication skills: Exceptional written and verbal communication, active listening, and the ability to bridge the gap between technical and non-technical audiences. - A commitment to quality: You take pride in writing reliable, tested code and embrace full ownership of your work’s quality. Why team members love working at Top Hat: - A noble mission that creates meaningful, fulfilling work - A team that cares deeply for customers and for each other - Flexible, remote first work environment - Professional learning and development for all role levels - An awesome and welcoming Toronto HQ - Competitive health benefits that start on day one - A management team focused on performance, growth, engagement and connection - Our winning strategy and market potential - Innovative PTO policy with lots of time and space for self-care - Passionate customers that believe in us—and what we do - A chance to work with new tech like generative AI—and see the customer impact ## About Top Hat ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Top Hat provides an all-in-one active learning platform for higher education that combines interactive teaching tools, an AI-powered study assistant, and affordable digital course materials. - **Entity Type**: Private (Late-stage venture-backed) - **Headquarters**: Toronto, Ontario, Canada - **Founded**: 2009 - **Founders**: Mike Silagadze (co-founder, former CEO) ## Core Business - Primary industry/industries: Education Technology (EdTech), specifically higher education software and digital publishing. - Target customers: B2B – Colleges and universities in North America, with end users being professors (educators) and students. - Mission or purpose statement: "Make learning personal for every student." The company is also driven by a vision to "spark better teaching and learning for a brighter world" and is committed to making higher education more engaging, affordable, and equitable. ## Products & Services - **[Top Hat Platform]**: A comprehensive, interactive SaaS platform for course delivery. It includes tools for real-time polling, quizzes, discussions, and attendance tracking, designed to replace traditional lecture tools like clickers. It works in online, in-person, and hybrid modalities. - **[AI-Powered Study Tools]**: An AI-powered assistant that provides 24/7 personalized study support to students, helping to identify learning gaps and improve comprehension. - **[Top Hat Digital Textbooks & Content]**: A growing catalog of high-quality, interactive digital learning experiences and custom content delivery. This helps address the issue of textbook affordability and allows professors to customize materials. - **[Assessments & Grading]**: Built-in tools for creating and administering secure tests and assessments, with data-driven insights to track student success. ## Market Standing - **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed. The company was valued at approximately $300 million following a Series D round in 2021, though the current valuation is unconfirmed. - **Key Metric**: Total Funding – Over $100 million (including a $55 million Series D led by Bain Capital Tech Opportunities in 2021). - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Bain Capital Tech Opportunities, Union Square Ventures, Version One Ventures, and other prominent venture capital firms. - **Growth Signals**: Over 3 million students and 20,000 educators at 750 of the top 1,000 colleges and universities in North America use Top Hat. The company is rapidly integrating generative AI into its platform to enhance the learning experience. ## Competitive Advantages - **Deep Integration in Higher Ed**: Top Hat is embedded into the curriculum of hundreds of major universities, creating a high switching cost for institutions. - **All-in-One Platform**: Unlike point solutions (e.g., separate polling apps, textbook publishers, or LMS tools), Top Hat offers a unified ecosystem that replaces multiple legacy tools. - **Data-Driven Insights**: The platform captures real-time engagement data, giving educators actionable insights into student comprehension that traditional tools cannot provide. - **Strong Brand and Customer Loyalty**: 91% of instructors say Top Hat drives great student outcomes, and 81% of students believe it is worth the price, indicating high satisfaction. ## Strategic Focus - **AI-First Innovation**: The company is heavily investing in generative AI to personalize learning, automate administrative tasks for professors, and provide 24/7 student support. - **Content Expansion**: Growing its catalog of affordable, interactive digital textbooks to replace expensive traditional textbooks. - **Operational Excellence**: Under new COO Larry Indovina, the company is focused on driving operational excellence and a high-performance culture to support its next growth phase. - **Scale and Market Penetration**: Continuing to expand its footprint across North American higher education institutions. ## Why Work Here - **Meaningful Mission**: Employees are driven by the transformative power of higher education and the role Top Hat plays in making it more accessible and equitable. - **Culture and Values**: The company emphasizes "Five Cs": Curiosity, Community, Customer Obsession, and Commitment. It fosters an environment of empathy, innovation, and accountability. - **Remote & Hybrid Work**: Top Hat offers flexible work arrangements, including remote roles and a hybrid workspace from its Toronto HQ. Many roles are open to candidates across Canada and the United States. - **Professional Growth**: The company invests in professional learning and development for all role levels and offers the chance to work with cutting-edge technology like generative AI. - **Inclusive Environment**: Top Hat is committed to diversity and inclusion, with partnerships like the Black Professionals in Technology Network (BPTN) and improved hiring processes to broaden the talent funnel. - **Competitive Benefits**: Benefits include competitive health coverage starting on day one, an innovative PTO policy, and an open, welcoming office environment in Toronto. ## Sources 1. [Top Hat Careers Page](https://tophat.com/company/work-with-us/) 2. [Top Hat Official Website](https://tophat.com/) 3. [Built In: Top Hat Company Profile](https://builtin.com/company/top-hat) 4. [Top Hat Leadership Team](https://tophat.com/company/meet-the-team/) 5. [Top Hat Job Board](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/top-hat) ## Other roles at Top Hat - [Inside Sales Representative (Account Executive) - Western US](https://feeny.ai/job/inside-sales-representative-account-executive-western-us-top-hat-united-states-k1acqwfqd9jr) — United States - [Inside Sales Representative (Account Executive) - Central US](https://feeny.ai/job/inside-sales-representative-account-executive-central-us-top-hat-united-states-svbnmfkd6vqh) — United States - [Sales Representative (Account Executive) - Austin / San Antonio](https://feeny.ai/job/sales-representative-account-executive-austin-san-antonio-top-hat-texas-56c2jn9ejf1q) — Texas - [Event Marketing Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/event-marketing-specialist-top-hat-toronto-bgc1psfz6njg) — Toronto, Canada - [Junior Analytics Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/junior-analytics-engineer-top-hat-canada-v48d82cddn5k) — Canada - [Manager, Software Engineering](https://feeny.ai/job/manager-software-engineering-top-hat-canada-06g4sr54mked) — Canada - [Senior Backend Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-backend-software-engineer-top-hat-canada-90gj9rbfx7ft) — Canada