Application Engineer (Backend)

ZipRecruiter; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company seeks an Application Engineer responsible for overseeing product design and implementation. The ideal candidate will have a solid understanding of software development, and experience in technologies like Java, Python, and cloud environments such as AWS. This role requires strong leadership skills and the ability to mentor junior engineers.

Qualifications

• Experience in Software Engineering or related areas required.
• Technical proficiency at competent level on the Dreyfus engineering scale (for internal applicants).

Responsibilities

• Oversee the design and implementation of assigned products.
• Guide early-career engineers through mentorship.
• Analyze, design, code, test, and deploy new features.

Skills

Technical leadership

Programming in Java

Programming in Python

Analytical skills

Cloud technologies

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

AWS

CI/CD pipelines

Job description

Job Description

Discover. A brighter future. With us, you’ll do meaningful work from Day 1. Our collaborative culture is built on three core behaviors: We Play to Win, We Get Better Every Day & We Succeed Together.

We value what makes you unique so that you have an opportunity to shine. Come build your future, while helping millions find a brighter financial future with Discover.

Job Description: What You’ll Do

The Application Engineer is responsible for overseeing the design and implementation of products assigned to their team. You will take user stories and new features from idea to production independently. You will actively manage and escalate risk and customer-impacting issues within your role to management.

How You’ll Do It

• Analyze, design, code, test, and deploy new user stories and product features with high quality (security, reliability, operations) to production.
• Understand the software development lifecycle and leverage critical thinking skills to evaluate features and functionality properly.
• Guide early-career engineers by providing learning tasks and work-related tasks, direct the work of emerging talent, and help them grow in their technical skillset through mentorship.
• Oversee application, system, and architecture design decisions; guide the team to achieve key results for assigned products.
• Remediate issues using engineering principles and create proactive design solutions for potential failures to ensure high reliability.
• Achieve team commitments and influence others through collaboration with engineers, architects, product owners, and data scientists.
• Contribute to and lead technology communities of practice at Discover in areas like design-thinking, tools/technology, agile development, security, architecture, and data.
• Create and enforce IT standards within the system/application infrastructure, ensuring compatibility with the platform architecture.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Informatics, Information Security, Information Technology, or related field.
• Experience in Information Technology, Software Engineering, or related areas.
• For roles requiring Dreyfus Rating – internal applicants only: technical proficiency at the competent level on the Dreyfus engineering scale.

Physical and Cognitive Requirements

Primarily remain in a stationary position, perform indoors in an office setting, operate office equipment, and communicate verbally and in writing. Reasonable accommodations may be made for individuals with disabilities.

Bonus Points If You Have

• Strong technical leadership with programming experience in Java and Python, building highly available environments using proper design patterns.
• Proven experience in software development methodologies, cloud environments such as AWS, and related technologies.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, testing frameworks, high availability and scalability design, API service architecture, relational databases, and messaging systems.

External applicants will need to perform a technical interview. Discover will not sponsor or transfer employment work visas for this position. Applicants must be authorized to work in the UK on a full-time basis.

The application deadline is anticipated to close on Jul-14-2025, but the posting may remain available past this date.

All Discover employees prioritize our customers and contribute to a culture that values compliance and risk management. Discover is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities.

If you require accommodations to search, apply, or interview, please email [e-mail]. Your information will be kept confidential.