Lead Java Developer

Description
We are seeking a hands-on Lead Java Engineer with experience to drive technical direction while balancing hands-on coding, architectural design, and team mentorship. The ideal candidate will be a subject matter expert in the Java/Spring ecosystem and microservices architecture, capable of delivering scalable and resilient enterprise applications in a fast-paced Agile environment. The role requires strong expertise in backend engineering, distributed systems, cloud technologies, and engineering best practices.

Responsibilities
Define technical strategy and design complex distributed systems using microservices and event-driven architecture patterns.
Architect, develop, and deploy scalable, secure, and resilient backend services using Java and Spring technologies.
Drive engineering excellence through code reviews, test-driven development (TDD), and automated testing practices.
Lead performance tuning, memory optimization, and reliability improvements for low-latency, high-throughput applications.
Participate in Agile ceremonies, estimate user stories, and contribute to sprint planning and delivery.
Mentor and guide engineering teams through design discussions, code reviews, and knowledge-sharing sessions.
Collaborate with Product, DevOps, QA, and other cross-functional teams to translate business requirements into technical solutions.
Act as an escalation point for critical production issues, lead root cause analysis (RCA), and implement long-term fixes.
Ensure compliance with security standards and best practices including OAuth2, OIDC, and data protection protocols.
Work across multiple projects and support flexible working hours or shifts as required.

Requirements
6–10 years of professional software development experience with 2–3 years in a technical leadership role.
Strong proficiency in Java 8/21, Core Java, and multithreading concepts.
Deep expertise in Spring Boot, Hibernate, and microservices-based architecture.
Proven experience designing RESTful APIs and event-driven systems.
Hands-on experience with messaging platforms such as Kafka, RabbitMQ, ActiveMQ, IBM MQ, or AWS SQS/SNS.
Experience with application/web servers such as Tomcat or Jetty.
Strong knowledge of relational databases including PostgreSQL, MS SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, or MariaDB, with expertise in SQL query optimization.
Working knowledge of cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, or GCP, including deployments and cloud-native services.
Basic experience with CI/CD tools such as Jenkins, GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or Azure DevOps.
Hands-on experience with unit and integration testing frameworks including JUnit and Mockito.
Experience working in Agile methodologies such as Scrum and Kanban.
Hands-on experience with containerization and orchestration technologies such as Docker and Kubernetes.
Strong analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills.