Senior Software Engineer - Java Backend

ZipRecruiter; London; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative company is seeking a Senior Software Engineer skilled in Java backend development. This high-impact role involves leading engineering efforts, developing backend services, and mentoring team members. The ideal candidate will possess substantial experience and a passion for technical leadership in a collaborative environment.

Qualifications

• 7-10+ years of experience in software engineering with a focus on Java backend development.
• Hands-on experience with DevOps tools and cloud infrastructure.
• Experience with large-scale systems and distributed architectures.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain Java-based backend services.
• Contribute to infrastructure modernization and work closely with DevOps.
• Mentor junior developers and ensure best practices.

Skills

Java backend development

Spring Boot

Kafka

RabbitMQ

PostgreSQL

DevOps

Software security principles

System performance optimization

Tools

Kubernetes

Git-based CI/CD

Cloud infrastructure

Job description

Job Description

Senior Software Engineer – Java Backend

London (5 days onsite, with some ad-hoc flexibility)

£85,000 – £120,000 (Permanent)

TechHeads is currently seeking a Senior Software Engineer with strong Java backend experience, DevOps awareness, and proven technical leadership capabilities to join our Client’s London team. This is a high-impact role involving the design, development, and deployment of backend services that power our client’s security platform. You’ll work on systems at significant scale, leading both engineering efforts and mentoring team members, while collaborating with globally distributed teams in the US, Ireland and India.

Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and maintain Java-based backend services using Spring Boot, REST/GraphQL, Kafka, PostgreSQL, and RabbitMQ.
• Contribute to infrastructure modernisation efforts, working closely with DevOps teams on Kubernetes, CI/CD pipelines, and legacy system migrations.
• Innovate across the stack, taking ownership of key projects and delivering performant, scalable solutions.
• Lead engineering best practices including coding standards, unit testing, code reviews, and system architecture discussions.
• Support, coach, and mentor junior developers, fostering a culture of technical excellence and collaboration.
• Work closely with cross-functional teams, including product and engineering groups in the US, Ireland and India, to ensure alignment and execution.
• Build and deploy secure, resilient APIs (REST/GraphQL) and optimise the full software development lifecycle through automation.

Requirements:

• 7–10+ years of professional experience in software engineering, with a strong focus on Java backend development.
• Solid understanding of Spring Boot, Kafka, RabbitMQ, PostgreSQL, and modern API design patterns.
• Hands-on experience or familiarity with DevOps tools and concepts – e.g. Kubernetes, Git-based CI/CD, cloud infrastructure (AWS/GCP/Azure).
• Bonus: Exposure to tools like Elasticsearch/Kibana, Hadoop/HBase, OpenSearch, or VPN/proxy architectures.
• Strong grasp of software security principles, system performance optimisation, and infrastructure reliability.
• Experience working on large-scale, production-grade systems with distributed architectures.

Ideal Candidate will:

• Bring technical vision, initiative, and a passion for exploring and implementing emerging technologies.
• Are a natural technical leader with experience mentoring engineers and driving engineering quality across teams.
• Enjoy solving complex problems and have a product mindset with an eye toward continuous improvement.