Tech Lead

Alaan; Bengaluru; Hybrid; INR 2,400,000 - 7,000,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Travel allowances

Gym memberships

Equity

Job summary

Alaan is seeking a Tech Lead to design, build, and optimize platform architecture. You will lead the backend team, ensuring high availability, scalability, and performance of services using Node.js, AWS/GCP, and event-driven patterns.

You will monitor, log, and instrument systems with observability stacks and collaborate with product, frontend, and DevOps to drive efficient development and deployment.

Qualifications

• Must have 5–8 years of relevant development experience.
• Strong Node.js proficiency with NestJS/Express.
• Experience with AWS and GCP services (EC2, S3, Lambda, Cloud Run, Pub/Sub, IAM, VPC).
• API development expertise: REST, GraphQL, WebSockets.
• Hands-on with event-driven architectures (SNS/SQS or Pub/Sub).
• SQL (PostgreSQL, RDS) and NoSQL (MongoDB, Elasticsearch) knowledge.
• Experience scaling microservices and optimizing performance.
• Observability tools: New Relic, Datadog, Prometheus, Loki.
• Containerization: Docker or Kubernetes or Cloud Run.
• Security: JWT, OAuth, SAML.

Responsibilities

• Technical leadership: mentor a team of engineers.
• Backend development: build high-performance services in Node.js.
• API development: design and implement RESTful APIs securely.
• Cloud infra: manage deployments on AWS and GCP; IaC with Terraform/CDK.
• Event-driven architecture: implement Pub/Sub, Kafka, or EventBridge.
• Database management: work with PostgreSQL and MongoDB/Elasticsearch.
• Scalability: ensure high availability and auto-scaling.
• Security & compliance: IAM, security best practices.
• Automation & CI/CD: maintain deployment pipelines.
• Collaboration: work with product, frontend, and DevOps.

Skills

Node.js

NestJS

Express.js

AWS

GCP

REST APIs

GraphQL

WebSockets

Pub/Sub

PostgreSQL

MongoDB

Elasticsearch

Docker

Kubernetes

JWT

OAuth

SAML

Terraform

CI/CD

Tools

Cloud Run

Terraform/CDK

Job description

About Alaan

Alaan is the Middle East’s first AI-powered spend management platform, built to help businesses save time and money.

Our all-in-one solution combines smart corporate cards, real-time expense tracking, AI-powered automation, seamless accounting integrations, and deep financial insights- designed to simplify finance operations and maximize control over company spend.

Founded in 2022, Alaan is already the trusted partner of over 3000 leading businesses across the UAE and KSA, including G42, Careem, McDonald’s, Tabby, Al Barari, Rove Hotels, Rivoli, and CarSwitch. Together, our customers have saved over AED 100 million with Alaan.

In just Four years, Alaan has been named to the Forbes Fintech 50 list, UAE Future 100 list, selected as an Endeavor company, and ranked the No. 1 spend management platform in EMEA by G2.

Alaan is also backed by Y Combinator and top global investors, including Peak XV (formerly Sequoia India), Y Combinator, 468 Capital, and 885 Capital, among others, and built by a world-class team with experience from McKinsey, BCG, Goldman Sachs, Careem, Rippling, and other high-growth companies. This creates an environment where employees learn from top-tier talent while building at startup speed.

We’re not just building software. We’re reimagining how finance works for modern businesses across the region.
*Alaan is a fintech company, not a bank. Business bank accounts are issued by Ruya.

About the Role

We are looking for a Tech Lead to design, build, and optimize our platform architecture. You will play a key role in leading the backend team, ensuring high availability, scalability, and performance of our services. The ideal candidate has deep expertise in Node.js, cloud platforms (AWS/GCP), APIs, and event-driven architectures, along with experience in both SQL and NoSQL databases.

You will also be responsible for monitoring, logging, and observability, ensuring seamless performance using tools like New Relic, Datadog, and other observability stacks.

What you'll do

• Technical Leadership: Lead and mentor a team of engineers in designing, developing, and maintaining scalable backend systems.

• Backend Development: Build high-performance, secure, and scalable backend services using Node.js.

• API Development: Design and implement RESTful, ensuring best practices in API security and efficiency

• Cloud Infrastructure: Manage and optimize deployments on AWS & GCP, including infrastructure as code (IaC) using Terraform/CDK.

• Event-Driven Architecture: Implement event-driven microservices using Pub/Sub, Kafka, SNS/SQS, or EventBridge.

• Database Management: Work with SQL (PostgreSQL/RDS) and NoSQL (MongoDB or Elasticsearch) databases, ensuring performance and scalability.

• Scalability & Performance: Design and implement strategies for high availability, auto-scaling, and load balancing in cloud environments.

• Security & Compliance: Enforce security best practices, manage IAM roles, and ensure compliance with industry standards.

• Automation & CI/CD: Develop and maintain CI/CD pipelines for seamless deployment and integration

• Collaboration: Work closely with product managers, frontend engineers, and DevOps teams to drive efficient development and deployment processes.

What we are looking for

Must-Have Skills:

• At least 5 to 8 years of relevant experience in technical development

• Strong proficiency in Node.js with frameworks like NestJS, Express.js

• Experience with AWS & GCP services (EC2, S3, Lambda, Cloud Run, Pub/Sub, IAM, VPC, etc.)

• Expertise in API development & integration (REST, GraphQL, WebSockets)

• Hands-on experience with event-driven architectures (SNS/SQS or Pub/Sub)

• Strong knowledge of SQL databases (PostgreSQL, RDS) and NoSQL databases (MongoDB, Elasticsearch)

• Experience in scaling microservices & optimizing system performance

• Proficiency in logging, monitoring, and observability tools (New Relic, Datadog, Prometheus, Loki, etc.)

• Strong understanding of containerization (Docker or Kubernetes or Cloud Run)

• Knowledge of security best practices, authentication mechanisms (JWT, oauth, SAML)

Good-to-Have Skills:

• Experience in serverless architecture (AWS Lambda, Google Cloud Functions)

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines and infrastructure as code (cloudFormation,Terraform, CDK, C)

• Knowledge of message queues (AWS SQS, GCP Pub/Sub, Kafka)

• Exposure to distributed tracing (Jaeger, OpenTelemetry)

• Hands-on experience with feature flagging & experimentation (LaunchDarkly)

• Background in high-volume transaction systems & fintech is a plus

What's in it for you

• Contribute to building the Middle East’s most beloved fintech brand from the ground up

• Benefit from a role with significant ownership and accountability

• Thrive in a flexible hybrid culture with ample work-life balance

• Participate in exciting offsite events

• Competitive salary and equity

• Enjoy additional perks like travel allowances, gym memberships, and more