About dbx Team
We’re the creators behind leading developer tools like dbdiagram.io, dbdocs.io, and runsql.com, loved by many engineers and data professionals worldwide. Our mission is to build simple yet powerful web applications that empower developers to design, document, and work with databases with joy and efficiency.
dbx is part of Holistics Software, operating as an agile, engineering-led team focused on product innovation and technical excellence. We’re looking for passionate fullstack engineers to join our dbx squad, focusing on our core products, dbdiagram.io and dbdocs.io, which drive our revenue, alongside our smaller tool, runsql.com.
This is a full-time position based in Ho Chi Minh City, with a flexible hybrid (WFH/WFO) setup.
Our Application’s Architecture
Our tools—dbdiagram.io, dbdocs.io, and runsql.com—are crafted to streamline database workflows. dbdiagram.io is a free, intuitive tool for creating entity-relationship diagrams (ERDs) using Database Markup Language (DBML), enabling rapid visualization, SQL generation, and real-time collaboration for databases like PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQL Server. dbdocs.io generates shareable, web-based database documentation from DBML, with team workspaces for centralized project management and schema changelogs. runsql.com is a lightweight SQL playground for MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server.
At dbx, we architect our applications with a developer-first mindset, prioritizing modularity, scalability, and a seamless user experience. Our core technologies, DBML and dbrender, power all three tools, enabling everything from real-time schema collaboration to dynamic ERD rendering. We follow a “Functional core, imperative shell” philosophy to keep our codebase clean and maintainable, ensuring our tools remain robust and delightful to use.
- Backend: Node.js (Express) with TypeScript and JavaScript, following a “Functional core, imperative shell” pattern. We modularize our codebase for maintainability, with stateless functional code at the core and imperative logic in outer layers, powering schema parsing, query execution, and real-time collaboration.
- Frontend: Vue.js with TypeScript for rich, interactive interfaces. We build custom components for UI elements, enhanced by Web Workers to decouple complex computations from the rendering thread for a smoother user experience.
- Databases: PostgreSQL and MongoDB for reliable, flexible data management.
- Core Technologies: Our open-source DBML project parses DBML into JSON objects, forming the backbone of all three applications. Our dbrender project uses the Kova.js library to render these JSON objects into ERD diagrams on HTML canvas, providing diagramming, lazy rendering, and optimization for complex datasets across our tools.
- Realtime Collaboration: For dbdiagram.io, we use WebSocket with YDocs to track and resolve conflicts for real-time schema editing, supported by team workspaces in dbdocs.io and query sharing in runsql.com.
- Other: We invest in automated testing, CI/CD (GitHub Actions), static type checking, and code quality tools to maintain a robust codebase. We are also using AI to increase our engineering productivity.
What You’ll Work On
As a dbx engineer, you will help design, build, and scale products used by developers and data teams across the world:
- Develop new features and core enhancements for dbdiagram.io, dbdocs.io, and runsql.com
- Maintain and develop DBML, an open-source DSL language designed to define and document database schemas and structures. Develop tools to enable users to import/export database schemas to/from DBML.
- Build high-performance diagram rendering engines for visualizing complex databases that contain thousands of tables, columns and relationships.
- Architect scalable WebSocket services to handle real-time collaboration in dbdiagram.io.
- Opportunity to collaborate with product managers, designers, and fellow engineers on everything from ideation (product discovery) to design, implementation, and launch of new features.
The way we work
- We follow the Spotify squad model. Holistics is split into many squads, but you’ll join the dedicated dbx squad (5-7 members), exclusively owning dbdiagram.io, dbdocs.io, and runsql.com. You’ll work closely with engineers, product managers, and designers to deliver impactful features.
- How we work on a new feature:
- Product & Design Team spends time researching the problem, talking to customers, and preparing a Product Discovery Doc (PDD) and Product Requirement Doc (PRD).
- Engineering Team then performs Technical Research. When we have a clear picture of the complexity and impact, we’ll start with the implementation.
- We do not compromise product and code quality for artificial deadlines. We refactor and think about code optimization regularly. We understand the good and bad of technical debt and use it to our advantage.
- We employ “pair programming” practices regularly where two team members work on a task together in one workstation. This brings a great deal of benefits, among which are faster knowledge transfer, reduced bus factor, better team cohesion, and improved code quality.
- We have a strong writing culture: Almost everything is communicated through written documents. Just as our developers write reusable code, we write evergreen notes.
- We maintain a problem-solving culture. Everyone is strongly encouraged to have a rigorous understanding of a problem, separating Problem Space vs Solution Space as well as using Eigenquestions to find the most important dimensions of a problem. Solutions are deliberated over with trade-offs explicitly listed in discussion documentation. Watch this talk about problem-solving for engineers that our cofounder gave (in Vietnamese).
- We avoid being a feature factory. We’re aware more features do not equal a better product.
- We let team members rotate every 3-6 months. This allows them to try new things and learn different aspects of the business, though dbx engineers stay focused on dbx products.
- Our culture stimulates continuous learning:
- We have a weekly TED talk program where team members present topics they are interested in.
- Engineering Team organizes weekly technical talks as well as monthly technical workshops.
- Product Team has regular AMA events with external product experts.
What we look for in you
Here’s our idea of a good team member fit:
- You should have a strong foundation in Computer Science with good problem-solving ability.
- Experience with our technology stack not required: While it’s a bonus, it’s not a requirement for you to be familiar with our current technical stack. We expect you to be able to pick up these quickly on the job.
- You should be someone with a continuous learning & growth mindset. You find yourself excited to learn something new as part of the work every week.
- Communications: Given we have a strong writing culture, you should be comfortable with communicating your ideas in English written forms.
- Genuine interest in the space: We’d love to work with people who are genuinely interested in the product and the space we’re in, someone who cares about the end-product beyond just writing the code that makes it work.
Interview Process
- Round 1: Technical Interview with Engineering team (introduce the company, our products, and to understand your skills and experiences)
- Round 2: Pair Coding (work with a dbx engineer on a real-world problem to experience our workflow)
- Round 3: Culture & Behavioral Interview (discuss your working style and alignment with our team culture)
Why you will love working with us
💕 Benefits:
- Flexible working arrangement, hybrid work (WFO+WFH) policies
- 14 annual leaves, 14 sick leaves, and childcare leave policy.
- Annual budget for personal and professional growth, well-being, and interest cultivations.
- 24/7 healthcare insurance; periodic medical checkups.
- 13-month salary; annual compensation reviews
- Weekly happy hours, company-organized events.
🏢 Workstations provided for maximum productivity
- MacBook (or Laptop) Grant
- Mechanical Keyboard + Mouse
- Big-screen monitor(s)
🌐 Working time: From Monday – Friday, from 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
🌐 Work location: 457-459 Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Ward 5, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
