Senior Software Developer

Empire Life Insurance; Kingston; On-site; CAD 107,000 - 157,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salaries with annual pay

Annual bonus program

Employer-funded benefits from day one

Flexible work arrangements

Four weeks annual vacation

Pension with employer matching

Parental and compassionate leave top‑S

Wellness and recognition programs

Job summary

Empire Life Insurance is seeking a Software Developer to join the Back Office Development team to modernize core systems from legacy COBOL/Easytrieve to a cloud-native architecture. This permanent role emphasizes hands-on modernization and cross-functional collaboration.

The role focuses on decoding business rules from legacy code, building microservices in Java/Kotlin, Python, or Go, and ensuring parity with legacy outputs before transition. Applicants across Canada may be considered.

Qualifications

• 5+ years work experience in back office software development.
• Practical working knowledge and expertise in application modernization.
• Completion of a University degree, college diploma, technical training, and/or equivalent experience.
• Reverse engineering & legacy logic (COBOL/Easytrieve) analysis.
• Deep understanding of incremental modernization patterns.
• Hands-on expertise in modern target languages and frameworks (Java/Kotlin, Golang, Python, C#).
• Expertise in data layer migration from hierarchical/flat formats to relational or NoSQL stores
• Mainframe ecosystem working knowledge (JCL, CICS, VSAM, DB2, packed-decimal).
• Mastery of test driven validation, automated parity and parallel testing.
• Ability to map monolithic batch/transactional workflows to event-driven architectures.
• Domain-Driven Design (DDD) & monolith decomposition.
• GCP and/or Microsoft Azure experience for modernization would be an asset.
• Insurance or investment experience would be an asset.

Responsibilities

• Technical Discovery & Code Analysis: Reading COBOL programs, Easytrieve report scripts, and JCL flows to reverse-engineer core business rules and data pipelines.
• Target Architecture & Service Development: Writing clean, scalable microservices/APIs in modern target languages (e.g., Java/Kotlin, C#, Python, or Go) and decoupling batch workflows into event streams (Kafka).
• Parity Testing & Interception: Setting up API routing gateways, feature flags, and parallel shadow testing to validate that new services match legacy output down to the penny/byte before cutting over.
• Implementation & Cleanup: Flipping live transaction switches and safely decommissioning legacy system functions and capabilities.

Skills

Back office dev

Application modernization

COBOL/Easytrieve

Incremental modernization

Java/Kotlin

Golang

Python

C#

Mainframe knowledge

Test driven validation

Event-driven architectures

DDD

GCP/Azure

Insurance domain

Education

University degree

College diploma

Technical training

Job description

The total target compensation (TTC) range, including salary and target bonus, is $106,904 - $156,904. This TTC range is applicable to permanent roles only. The actual base salary offered within this range will be determined by the successful candidate’s skills and experience, as well as internal equity.

Empire Life is looking to hire a Software Developer to join our Back Office Development team! We are actively seeking candidates to fill a current, open position.

We are building a dedicated modernization development team to transform our core operational systems from legacy COBOL and Easytrieve mainframe logic into a modern, cloud-native architecture using Incremental Modernization Strategy patterns.

Why pursue this opportunity

Impactful work - get the opportunity to work on meaningful projects that have a positive impact on our customers, our company, and society as a whole.

Play an integral role - this is an opportunity that allows for you to grow your skills, while directly contributing to the business unit you are a part of.

The opportunity - collaborate with cross-functional teams and work on a variety of projects that will keep you engaged and continuously learning.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion - we are committed to creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace and welcome candidates who share this commitment.

What you’ll be working on

• Technical Discovery & Code Analysis: Reading COBOL programs, Easytrieve report scripts, and JCL flows to reverse-engineer core business rules and data pipelines.
• Target Architecture & Service Development: Writing clean, scalable microservices/APIs in modern target languages (e.g., Java/Kotlin, C#, Python, or Go) and decoupling batch workflows into event streams (Kafka).
• Parity Testing & Interception: Setting up API routing gateways, feature flags, and parallel shadow testing to validate that new services match legacy output down to the penny/byte before cutting over.
• Implementation & Cleanup: Flipping live transaction switches and safely decommissioning legacy system functions and capabilities.

What we’re looking for you to have

5+ years work experience in back office software development.

Practical working knowledge and expertise in application modernization.

Completion of a University degree, college diploma, technical training, and/or equivalent experience.

Reverse engineering & legacy logic (COBOL/Easytrieve) analysis.

Deep understanding of incremental modernization patterns.

Hands-on expertise in modern target languages and frameworks (Java/Kotlin, Golang, Python, C#).

Expertise in data layer migration from hierarchical/flat formats to relational or NoSQL stores

Mainframe ecosystem working knowledge (JCL, CICS, VSAM, DB2, packed-decimal).

Mastery of test driven validation, automated parity and parallel testing.

Ability to map monolithic batch/transactional workflows to event-driven architectures.

Domain-Driven Design (DDD) & monolith decomposition.

GCP and/or Microsoft Azure experience for modernization would be an asset.

Insurance or investment experience would be an asset.

If you are applying for a position which is open to applicants across Canada, unless otherwise indicated in the position, language proficiency in English is required for communicating with customers, advisors, or employees across Canada.

Our hiring process includes AI screening for keywords and minimum qualifications. Recruiters review all results.

Beyond the salary

For permanent full-time positions, Empire Life offers a comprehensive total rewards package that includes:

• Competitive salaries with annual pay increases
• Annual bonus program, which recognizes both strong company performance and individual contributions, for non sales positions
• A comprehensive employer-funded benefits package starting from day one of employment, that includes life insurance, disability, health and dental and a generous health account
• Flexible work arrangements and an annual allotment of personal health days.
• Four weeks annual vacation from hire date
• A defined contribution pension plan with generous employer matching
• Top up programs for parental leave and compassionate leave
• Employer-sponsored wellness and recognition programs

Empire life is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity, are committed to creating an inclusive environment, and welcome everyone to participate in our application process. We encourage those of all backgrounds and experiences to apply, even if you don't believe you meet each unique qualification outlined. A pplicants will receive equal consideration without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or age.

Empire Life welcomes applications from people with disabilities and disabled people. Accommodations are available upon request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the screening and selection process. If you need this job posting in an alternative format or have any accessibility questions, please contact [e-mail] .