Staff Software Engineer - Back End

Capital One; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading financial services company is seeking a Staff Software Engineer - Back End in London. In this role, you will drive the technical strategy for significant business outcomes while mentoring engineers. The ideal candidate has deep expertise in Java, system design, and experience leading multi-team initiatives. You will enjoy a hybrid working model with flexibility, competitive benefits, and a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Benefits

Pension scheme

Bonus

Private medical insurance

Flexible benefits

Training programs

Qualifications

• Deep expertise in Java.
• Experience with system design and distributed architectures.
• Proven experience leading technical initiatives across multiple teams.

Responsibilities

• Own and drive technical strategy across multiple teams.
• Lead efforts ensuring collective work aligns with business objectives.
• Mentor and develop engineers, fostering a culture of learning.

Skills

Deep expertise in Java

System design and distributed architectures

Technical leadership

Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)

Driving engineering standards

Business acumen

Job description

White Collar Factory (95009), United Kingdom, London, London Staff Software Engineer - Back End

About this role

Do you love shaping the technical landscape and driving innovation across the organisation?

Are you passionate about solving complex business problems and supporting multiple teams toward a shared technical vision?

At Capital One, you'll be part of a community of technical leaders who drive engineering excellence, foster innovation, and deliver impactful solutions that meet real customer needs.

What You'll Do

• Own and drive the technical strategy for a significant business outcome or technology domain, spanning multiple teams and influencing the overall technical direction
• Lead and coordinate the efforts of multiple teams, ensuring their collective work aligns with broader business objectives and technology strategy
• Proactively identify emerging patterns, define and evangelise best practices, and establish reusable frameworks that enhance engineering productivity
• Build and maintain strong relationships with key stakeholders, including senior leadership, product owners, and architects
• Represent Capital One in external technical forums, contributing to vendor / industry discussions
• Drive service quality standards and practices for your domain, guiding complex incident resolution
• Develop and advocate for strategies to proactively manage technical debt across multiple teams
• Actively mentor and develop engineers, fostering a culture of continuous learning

What we’re looking for

• Deep expertise in Java
• Deep expertise in system design and distributed architectures
• Track record of leading technical initiatives across multiple teams
• Strong experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Proven experience setting a multi-team technical vision and strategy
• Strong track record of technical leadership and influence without authority
• Experience driving engineering standards and best practices across organisations
• Experience of steering Communities of Practice or technical forums
• Strong business acumen and ability to translate technical concepts for various audiences

Where and how you'll work

This is a permanent position based in our London office.

We have a hybrid working model which gives you flexibility to work from our office and from home.

We’re big on collaboration and connection, so you’ll be based in our London office 3 days a week on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.

What’s in it for you

• Bring us all this - and you’ll be well rewarded with a role contributing to the roadmap of an organisation committed to transformation
• We offer high performers strong and diverse career progression, investing heavily in developing great people through our Capital One University training programmes (and appropriate external providers)
• Immediate access to our core benefits including pension scheme, bonus, generous holiday entitlement and private medical insurance – with flexible benefits available including season-ticket loans, cycle to work scheme and enhanced parental leave
• Open-plan workspaces and accessible facilities designed to inspire and support you. Our Nottingham head-office has a fully‑serviced gym, subsidised restaurant, mindfulness and music rooms. In London, you can heighten your mood with a run on our rooftop running track or an espresso at the Workshop Coffee café

What you should know about how we recruit

We pride ourselves on hiring the best people, not the same people. Building diverse and inclusive teams is the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. We want to work with top talent : whoever you are, whatever you look like, wherever you come from. We know it’s about what you do, not just what you say. That’s why we make our recruitment process fair and accessible. And we offer benefits that attract people at all ages and stages.

We also partner with organisations including the Women in Finance and Race At Work Charters, Stonewall and upReach to find people from every walk of life and help them thrive with us. We have a whole host of internal networks and support groups you could be involved in, to name a few :

• REACH – Race Equality and Culture Heritage group focuses on representation, retention and engagement for associates from minority ethnic groups and allies
• OutFront – to provide LGBTQ+ support for all associates
• Mind Your Mind – signposting support and promoting positive mental wellbeing for all
• Women in Tech – promoting an inclusive environment in tech
• EmpowHER - network of female associates and allies focusing on developing future leaders, particularly for female talent in our industry
• Enabled - focused on supporting associates with disabilities and neurodiversity

Capital One is committed to diversity in the workplace.

If you require a reasonable adjustment, please contact All information will be kept confidential and will only be used for the purpose of applying a reasonable adjustment.