Staff Software Engineer

Ocho People; Belfast; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

A growing engineering hub in Belfast is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to take on a hands-on, high-impact role focusing on scalable backend systems. This position offers the chance to drive technical direction, build high-availability systems, and mentor engineers within a supportive and collaborative culture. The ideal candidate will have over 7 years of experience and be proficient in Java or similar languages. Join during a period of renewed investment and growth to make a tangible impact.

Benefits

Career development paths

Collaborative and inclusive environment

Innovation-driven initiatives

Qualifications

• 7+ years building and supporting scalable, distributed backend systems.
• Strong experience with Java or similar object-oriented languages.
• Hands-on with API frameworks and cloud-native development.

Responsibilities

• Own, design, implement, and maintain core backend and data platform components.
• Define and evolve how large, complex data sets are aggregated, stored, and exposed.
• Build and operate high-availability, high-throughput systems.

Skills

Scalable, distributed backend systems

Java or similar object-oriented languages

Scripting languages

API frameworks (e.g., REST, Spring Boot)

Cloud-native development (AWS preferred)

SQL, RDBMS, ETL/data modelling

High-scale systems, distributed architectures

Strong communication and collaborative mindset

Job description

Staff Software Engineer

Location: Belfast, UK (Remote / Hybrid options available)
Contract Type: Permanent
Level: Staff (Individual Contributor - technical leadership)

The Opportunity

We're looking for a Staff Backend Engineer to join a growing engineering hub in Belfast. This is a hands-on, high-impact role at a company in a period of renewed investment and growth. You'll work on large-scale, distributed systems that process and serve billions of data points globally, powering critical platforms that drive revenue, trust, and user experience.

This role offers technical ownership, architectural influence, and the ability to shape both platform and product direction without people management responsibilities. You'll collaborate closely with senior engineers, architects, and product teams while driving engineering excellence and innovation.

What You'll Be Doing

• Own, design, implement, and maintain core backend and data platform components
  
• Define and evolve how large, complex data sets are aggregated, stored, and exposed to internal and external systems
  
• Build and operate high-availability, high-throughput systems that support analytics, reporting, and insight products
  
• Drive best practices in system design, reliability, performance, and data modelling
  
• Mentor and guide other engineers on technical decisions, architecture, and standards
  
• Contribute hands-on in code while influencing long-term platform and product direction

What We're Looking For

• 7+ years building and supporting scalable, distributed backend systems
  
• Strong experience with Java or similar object-oriented languages, and at least one scripting language (Python, Ruby, etc.)
  
• Hands‑on with API frameworks (e.g., REST, Spring Boot) and cloud-native development (AWS preferred)
  
• Experience with data-heavy systems, including SQL, RDBMS, and ETL/data modelling
  
• Knowledge of high-scale systems, distributed architectures, and data pipelines
  
• Proven ability to influence architecture and technical direction at a Staff or Senior Staff level
  
• Strong communicator, collaborative mindset, and ability to solve complex technical problems

Why Join This Engineering Hub

• Influence and ownership: Belfast engineers own critical, revenue-impacting systems
  
• Scale and impact: Work with high-throughput, globally distributed platforms
  
• Innovation & momentum: Join during a period of renewed investment and strategic growth, including AI-driven initiatives
  
• Career development: Clear individual contributor paths with visibility to senior leadership
  
• Collaborative culture: Highly technical, supportive, and inclusive environment

This is an ideal role for a backend engineer who thrives on scale, ownership, and meaningful technical challenges, and wants to make a tangible impact in a growing engineering hub.