Senior Software Engineer (Backend)

Traveltechessentialist; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Navan is seeking a Senior Backend Software Engineer to scale backend systems powering a global AI-first expense platform. You will design and scale core services for payments, issuing, and accounting integrations, while supporting automated policy management and admin controls.

You will work with a global, cross-functional team to deliver features end-to-end, ensure reliability, and drive engineering excellence through testing, monitoring, and documentation.

Qualifications

• 4–6 years building and scaling complex systems.
• Proficiency in Java and Spring Boot; JVM performance optimization.
• Experience with AI models and AI-driven development.
• Distributed systems, microservices, and AWS.
• Product-focused development at scale.
• Ownership mentality with post-release support.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop high-performance backend features for a global customer base.
• Address large-scale engineering challenges to improve reliability and performance.
• Own features end-to-end from design to deployment and operation.
• Collaborate with global cross-functional partners across engineering, product, design, and business.
• Champion best practices in testing, documentation, monitoring, and code quality.
• Stay current with new technologies and deliver elegant solutions to complex problems.

Skills

Java & Spring

AI integration

Distributed systems

AWS

Product experience

Ownership

Cross-functional collaboration

Code quality

CS/Engineering degree

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in CS/Engineering

Job description

Navan has transformed the corporate travel, payment, and expense landscape by consistently prioritizing user needs. We are seeking a Senior Software Engineer (Backend) for our AI-first engineering team to drive the architecture of a next-generation corporate expense management platform. In this role, you will scale backend systems powering global commerce, payments, issuing platforms, and payment/money ledgers, while building infrastructure for automated policy management, granular admin controls, and seamless accounting system integrations.

What You'll Do

• Build at Scale: Design and develop robust, high-performance features and core services that support the company's flagship product and serve a global customer base.
• Solve Complex Problems: Apply deep technical expertise and creativity to address large-scale engineering challenges, driving improvements in reliability, performance, and user experience.
• Deliver Customer-Facing Solutions: Take end-to-end ownership of features—from design and development to deployment and operational support—ensuring exceptional quality and value for users.
• Collaborate Across Teams: Work effectively as part of a global, cross-functional team, partnering with fellow engineers, product managers, designers, and business leaders to deliver impactful solutions and elevate team performance.
• Contribute to Engineering Culture: Champion best practices in code quality, scalability, documentation, monitoring, and testing, fostering a culture of technical excellence, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Learn and Grow: Stay engaged with new technologies and industry trends, bringing a growth mindset and a passion for delivering elegant solutions to complex problems.

What We're Looking For

• 4-6 years of experience building and scaling complex systems in fast-paced, high-growth, or large-scale environments (open to exceptional candidates with less experience).
• Java & Spring Mastery: Proficiency in Java and Spring Boot, with a solid understanding of JVM performance and optimization.
• AI Integration: Proven experience leveraging AI models and AI-driven development to build intelligent, automated features and enhance engineering productivity.
• Systems Architecture: Strong experience with distributed systems, microservices, and API design, including practical expertise with AWS or other cloud platforms.
• Product Experience: Hands-on experience developing and maintaining consumer-facing or core business products at scale.
• Ownership Mentality: A record of delivering production-quality, maintainable code, and supporting features post-release through monitoring and troubleshooting.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborative team player able to work effectively with global, cross-functional partners.
• Technical Excellence: Commitment to engineering best practices in testing, documentation, scalability, and code quality, coupled with a passion for tackling technically demanding and customer-impacting challenges.
• Education: Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.

Bonus Qualifications

• Fintech or payments processing experience is a plus.
• Comfort with financial or workflow-heavy domains: expenses, payments, ERP, tax, or similarly high-stakes data.

Navan uses AI-assisted Automated Employment Decision Tool (Metaview) to assist with evaluating resumes against job qualifications for this role. All final decisions are made by human recruiters and hiring managers.

Human oversight: Metaview does not automatically reject candidates or make final hiring decisions. Our recruiters and hiring managers review all outputs and make the final hiring decision regarding every application.

• Your rights: If you prefer to have your application reviewed without AI assistance, you may request a human evaluation by entering your email here. Your decision to do so will not affect how your candidacy is evaluated.

Please refer to our Candidate Privacy Notice for more information about our processing of personal data, and your rights.

About Navan

Navan (Nasdaq: NAVN) is the global AI-powered business travel and expense platform that makes travel easy for frequent travelers. From finding flights and hotels, to automating expense reconciliation, with 24/7 support along the way, Navan delivers an intuitive experience travelers love and finance teams rely on. See how Navan customers benefit and learn more at navan.com.

Culture of Excellence

Our team is our competitive edge — a high-performance group of smart, driven people committed to winning together. This dedication to excellence is why we’ve been recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In (2023–2026), a G2 Best Global Software Company (2025–2026), Forbes Cloud 100 (2022–2025), and CNBC Disruptor 50 (2022–2025). At Navan, we provide an environment where top talent excels, offering the autonomy and fast-paced trajectory needed to build a defining career and do the best work of your life.

Our Benefits

Navan offers a comprehensive benefits program designed to support your well-being, financial security, and life outside of work. Our benefits, thoughtfully tailored by country to meet local needs, include healthcare coverage, insurance offerings, and wellness resources for you and your family.

We support long-term financial growth through retirement savings programs and opportunities to participate in our equity plans, so you can share in Navan’s success. To promote balance, we offer flexible time off, country-specific holidays, and paid parental leave for all new parents. Additional benefits include connectivity and commuting support, mental health resources, and exclusive travel-related perks. Wherever you’re based, our benefits evolve with you.

Workplace Policy

Navan believes in the value of in-person connections, whether that’s sitting down to have lunch with one another, taking a walking 1:1, or collaborating in a room together. The connections forged through face-to-face interactions improve company culture and drive business results. Navan invests in global office spaces — in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, among others — that feel welcoming. In-office perks such as company-provided lunches and happy hours create a strong team environment to help you do your best work. Our employees work from the office four days a week. Please expect this policy for all roles that are tied to an office.

Equal Opportunity

Navan is an equal opportunity employer. We make all employment decisions based solely on merit. We provide equal employment opportunity to all applicants and employees without discrimination on the bases of race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We prohibit any such discrimination or harassment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including hiring.

Accommodations

Navan complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended by the ADA Amendments Act, and all applicable state or local law. Navan will reasonably accommodate qualified individuals with a disability in connection with applications for employment as required by law.

If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, you are welcome to email us at [e-mail].

Candidate Privacy Notice and Use of AI

As part of the recruitment process, certain personal data may be processed using automated tools, including tools that use AI. For details on how Navan collects and uses your personal data, please review Navan's Candidate Privacy Notice here.