Senior Backend Engineer (Java/Scala) - AI-Driven, Hybrid

Ocado; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid office attendance

Work from anywhere program

30 days annual leave

Share plan program

150 EUR monthly allowance

Maternity/paternity leave extensions

Medical plan

Life and disability insurance

Employee assistance program

Job summary

Ocado is seeking a Senior Software Engineer (Java/Scala) for its Mobile Fulfilment backend. You will lead design and delivery of large‑scale, distributed systems, embed AI tooling into daily workflow, and mentor teammates in a fast‑growing environment. Hybrid working pattern applies with responsibilities spanning from discovery to production release.

You will work with cloud platforms (AWS/GCP), modern Scala libraries, and DevOps practices while aligning with product goals and customer value.

Qualifications

• Experience building backend services in Java or Scala for high‑availability systems.
• Strong knowledge of software engineering best practices and processes.
• Hands‑on with resilience patterns and fault tolerance.
• Track record using AI tools to accelerate engineering outcomes.
• Comfort with AI‑assisted development and forming opinions on tooling.
• Experience with cloud infrastructure (AWS/GCP) and managed services.
• Proven ability to lead multiple technical initiatives end‑to‑end.
• Ability to propose technical solutions and trade‑offs.
• Curiosity to learn new technologies and evaluate options.
• Product‑ and customer‑focused mindset; effective roadmap discussion with leadership.

Responsibilities

• Design, build and maintain large‑scale, high‑availability distributed systems.
• Lead technical initiatives from discovery to release with ownership of planning and execution.
• Ensure code quality through testing, monitoring and best practices.
• Contribute to long‑term architecture and product vision.
• Embed AI tools into daily workflows to accelerate delivery and improve quality.
• Champion AI adoption within the team and share practical demos.
• Participate in all stages of the SDLC following agile practices.
• Continuously improve processes, ways of working and tools.
• Collaborate with business and product partners to translate requirements.
• Participate in on‑call rotations to support production services.
• Coach and mentor team members in their growth.

Skills

Java/Scala backend

Distributed systems

AI tooling familiarity

Cloud platforms (AWS/GCP)

Leadership of initiatives

Functional programming awareness

Tools

AWS

GCP

SQS/SNS

DynamoDB

S3

Kinesis

CI/CD tooling

Job description

Ocado is seeking a Senior Software Engineer (Java/Scala) for its Mobile Fulfilment backend. You will lead design and delivery of large‑scale, distributed systems, embed AI tooling into daily workflow, and mentor teammates in a fast‑growing environment. Hybrid working pattern applies with responsibilities spanning from discovery to production release.

You will work with cloud platforms (AWS/GCP), modern Scala libraries, and DevOps practices while aligning with product goals and customer value.