Senior Software Engineer I (Java & Python)

Elsevier; Oxford; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Elsevier is seeking a Senior Software Engineer I to help build Document Intelligence capabilities powering the Submission and Editorial platform.

You will design and implement cloud-based services that transform unstructured manuscripts into structured data, enabling smarter submission, editorial workflows, and AI-driven features across the portfolio.

Qualifications

• Proficiency in Python and Java with Spring/Spring Boot.
• Experience with distributed/event-driven systems (Kafka, AWS).
• Experience with Git, CI tools, and agile processes.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and deploy cloud-hosted distributed apps.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to gather requirements.
• Contribute to architecture decisions for stability and performance.
• Improve delivery processes with enhancements.
• Partner with Agile and DevOps teams.
• Own services across their lifecycle including observability.

Skills

Python

Java

Spring Boot

SQL

Kafka

AWS

Git

CI/CD

Agile

Team mentoring

Testing (Jest/Mockito)

Docker

Kubernetes

OpenSearch

New Relic

IntelliJ/VSCode

Tools

Kafka

AWS

Git

Jenkins

Docker

Kubernetes

OpenSearch

New Relic

IntelliJ/VSCode

Jira/Confluence

Job description

Senior Software Engineer I (Java & Python)

Would you like to help create products to support the sharing of scientific knowledge?

Do you enjoy collaborating to solve complex technical problems?

About the team:

The Submission and Editorial platform is at the heart of Elsevier's publishing ecosystem, supporting millions of interactions between researchers, editors, reviewers, and publishers every year.

Our team provides the Document Intelligence capabilities that underpin the Submission product portfolio. Using a combination of data science models and LLMs, we transform complex, unstructured documents into structured, trusted, and reusable data, enabling our products and teams to understand submitted content and use that intelligence to create smarter experiences throughout the Submission and Editorial journey

About the role:

As a Senior Software Engineer on our team, you'll help build the Document Intelligence capabilities that enable Elsevier's Submission products to understand scientific content on a scale. You'll work on services that transform complex, unstructured manuscripts into structured, meaningful information and knowledge through document transformation, metadata extraction, content enrichment, and entity recognition.

You’ll help turn this intelligence into capabilities that power smarter submission and editorial experiences, from automating traditionally manual processes to enabling content discovery and new AI-driven features across the Submission portfolio.

We combine AWS, event-driven architectures, microservices, data science, and AI/LLM capabilities to build reliable, secure, and highly scalable Document Intelligence services. You’ll work at the intersection of software engineering, data engineering, and AI, solving challenging problems around understanding and processing millions of research documents within Elsevier's publishing ecosystem.

Key Responsibilities:

• Designing, developing, and deploying applications in a cloud-hosted distributed system to build our next-generation product


• Collaborating with business stakeholders to identify requirements and gather feedback in a fast-moving environment.


• Providing input into architectural decisions to ensure stability and performance


• Identifying and implementing enhancements to continually improve our delivery process


• Partnering with cross-functional Agile and DevOps implementation teams


• Taking ownership of services throughout their lifecycle, including architecture, implementation, deployment, observability, operational support, and continuous improvement.

Requirements:

• Demonstrate some proficiency in most of these technologies: Python, Java, Spring / Spring Boot, SQL, with a willingness to learn the others.


• Demonstrate proficiency in distributed and event-driven solutions using Kafka and AWS cloud services.


• Display experience with build tools, Git, and continuous integration (GitHub Actions / Jenkins)


• Enjoy collaborating with team members to create innovative solutions.


• Have experience of supporting and mentoring team members to share knowledge and upskill team members.


• Show experience with alerting, monitoring, and logging tools (New Relic, OpenSearch / Kibana, Coralogix)


• Have experience with a modern IDE (IntelliJ / VSCode) and proficiency in using the refactoring tools.


• Be open to discussing and honing approaches for our team to improve our working practices.


• Have some experience of test-driven development and mocking libraries (Jest, Mockito)


• Be familiar with collaborative documentation tools (Jira and Confluence)


• Be familiar with data-processing workflows and scalable backend architectures.


• Have some real-world experience with Agile practices and execution (Scrum, Kanban)


• Have some familiarity with how to design and develop for cloud environments (i.e., Docker, Kubernetes, AWS)


• Familiar with AI coding tools (Copilot, Claude, Codex, antigravity)


• Some experience with agentic software development is desired.


• Wanting to learn or have experience with AI-based solutions.


• Be eager to learn and grow your skills and experience.


• Be aware of industry best practices and standards.

Why Join Us?

Join our team and contribute to a culture of innovation, collaboration, and excellence.

Work in a way that works for you

We promote a healthy work/life balance across the organization. We offer an appealing working prospect for our people. With numerous wellbeing initiatives, shared parental leave, study assistance and sabbaticals, we will help you meet your immediate responsibilities and your long-term goals.

• Working flexible hours - flexing the times when you work in the day to help you fit everything in and work when you are most productive.

Working for you

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