Senior Backend Developer (Kotlin/Java, Spring, Kafka)

Albert Heijn; Zaandam; Hybrid; EUR 90,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

AH Tech Academy

Pension plan

NS travel card

Staff discount

Company laptop

Premium Mijn AH membership

Job summary

Albert Heijn is seeking a Senior Backend Engineer to join the Edge.os cluster, building a retail media SaaS platform for Europe’s brands. You will own backend features, collaborate with product teams, and contribute to scalable services in a hybrid work setup from Zaandam, NL.

The role emphasizes Kotlin/Java expertise, microservices, Spring, CI/CD, testing, and observability, with English fluency and a footprint in the Netherlands.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience as a Backend Engineer in Kotlin/Java.
• Hands‑on experience with Kotlin/Java (17+), Microservices Architecture, Spring Framework; experience with Kafka, MongoDB, Postgres, and APIs is a plus.
• Experience in an agile software development environment.
• Strong understanding of CI/CD practices in a MS Azure/AKS cloud environment.
• Commitment to the team and ability to challenge the status quo.
• Keen on testing, test automation, and observability.
• Experience with retail media and/or SaaS products is a plus.
• Good communication skills, fluent in English.
• Located in The Netherlands.
• Enjoy teamwork, greenfield settings, and making things happen.
• Tech‑savvy, proactive, and passionate about technology.

Responsibilities

• Join a scrum team and take ownership of specific product areas within our suite.
• Improve and develop new features with a wide range of brands in mind.
• Connect with the product, collaborate with the product owner and your team, and explore innovative feature ideas.
• Address the challenges of developing a SaaS solution for multiple retailers.
• Prioritize automated end-to-end tests and code quality.
• Consider the broader product suite beyond your specific area.
• Drive daily improvements and actively contribute ideas.

Skills

Kotlin/Java backend

Microservices

Spring Framework

Kafka

MongoDB

PostgreSQL

APIs

CI/CD

Azure/AKS

Agile

Testing

Observability

Retail SaaS

English

Team collaboration

Tools

Azure/AKS

Job description

Join our Edge.os Cluster as a Senior Backend Engineer (Java/Kotlin, Spring, Kafka)!
Retail media is booming, and we’re building a cutting-edge platform to support all Ahold brands in Europe with a comprehensive retail media suite. Get to work in a high traffic environment on a SaaS solution that will be utilized by approximately 15 different brands across Europe.

This is how you will reinvent food retail.

• Join a scrum team and take ownership of specific product areas within our suite.
• Improve and develop new features with a wide range of brands in mind.
• Connect with the product, collaborate with the product owner and your team, and explore innovative feature ideas.
• Address the challenges of developing a SaaS solution for multiple retailers.
• Prioritize automated end-to-end tests and code quality.
• Consider the broader product suite beyond your specific area.
• Drive daily improvements and actively contribute ideas.

Your new team and office.
In the Edge.os cluster, we are developing and implementing a retail media SaaS solution for all Ahold Delhaize brands in Europe. Retail media involves selling advertisement space on our digital touchpoints or in-store. Examples include:

• Promoting brands like Tony Chocolonely when customers search for chocolate on our website or app.
• Displaying advertisements on big screens inside and outside stores.
• Featuring supplier-branded banners on homepage or category pages.
• Exploring new territories as retail media is a rapidly growing field.

Our Edge.os cluster, part of the Customer Tech Platform, is responsible for a flexible, cost-efficient, high-end retail media suite with extensive functionality and a growing number of brand users. We have a scale-up vibe with 5 teams and counting. A mature agile approach (no frameworks) helps you excel and showcase your skills.

Together with your team of you will work on inspiring projects to accelerate our transition into a hybrid Food & Tech company. We want to leverage data and technology to future-proof food shopping and give our customers the accessibility to healthy food more easily available for everyone. At Albert Heijn, you team up with inspiring peers in the data, digital and tech domains. A community of diverse individuals who share a common goal; to create digital solutions that make (online) shopping simpler and more inspiring. Are you ready to reinvent the way millions of people buy and enjoy their food? We invest heavily in data, digital and tech. And that includes investing in your career! Our teams work in a hybrid way: both from home as well as in the office. We are located right next to the train station of Zaandam.

What we offer.

At Albert Heijn we aim to grow, and this is only possible if you grow along with us. As we work together to build our brand and your career, you can count on (based 40 hours per week):

• An annual salary up to 105K including holiday allowance and a flexible bonus. Depending on your level of seniority and experience;
• A minimum of 20 days paid vacation, optionally 12.5 days extra. Do you want to take that extra time off, or would you rather convert the extra days into discounts or sell them for cash? You’re the end boss!;
• Flexible working hours;
• Access to a challenging training curriculum – AH Tech Academy;
• An excellent pension plan where we as an employer contribute 4,5 more than you as an employee;
• A travel allowance or a NS-business card for traveling to and from Zaandam by train;
• Attractive discounts on various insurance policies;
• 10% staff discount on groceries in all Albert Heijn stores, to a maximum of €300 per year;
• A free Mijn Albert Heijn Premium membership with many benefits;
• A company laptop and telephone.

The recipe for maximum impact

• 8+ years of experience as a Backend Engineer in Kotlin/Java.
• Hands‑on experience with Kotlin/Java (17+), Microservices Architecture, Spring Framework. A big plus if you also have experience with Kafka, MongoDB, Postgres, and APIs.
• Experience in an agile software development environment.
• Strong understanding of CI/CD practices in a (MS Azure/AKS) Cloud environment.
• Commitment to the team and ability to challenge the status quo.
• Keen on testing, test automation, and observability.
• Experience with retail media and/or SaaS products is a big plus.
• Good communication skills, fluent in English.
• Located in The Netherlands.
• Enjoy teamwork, greenfield settings, and making things happen.
• Tech‑savvy, proactive, and passionate about technology.

We're Albert Heijn, food retail reinventors. Albert Heijn goes way back. More than 135 years, to be exact. So for millions of people, food shopping is synonymous with the Albert Heijn brand. We didn't achieve this with a complacent, 'hey, if it works today, it'll work tomorrow' approach, but by continually rethinking our propositions and staying plugged in to customer demands. More than 125,000 colleagues? Check. Over 1,250 stores in the Netherlands and Flanders? Check. The leading online food retail platform? Check, we build, run and love it.

Together we make eating better the easy choice. For everyone.
The world around us has changed, and significantly at that. These changes have impact on the lives of our customers, colleagues and partners. And therefore, also on Albert Heijn. We're moving towards a new world with new opportunities and challenges. Albert Heijn wants more people to eat fresher, healthier and more sustainable food. Eating brings us together, keeps us healthier and contributes positively to the world. Our mission is: Together we make eating better the easy choice. For everyone.

Albert Heijn the Netherlands is B Corp certified. This underscores our purpose, through which we aim to contribute to a healthier, more social, and sustainable society. B Corp certification is a designation that a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability and transparency.