Tech Lead (Java)

Picnic Technologies; Amsterdam; Hybrid; EUR 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Pension plan

25 vacation days

Relocation support

Dutch classes for expats

Expats integration program

Job summary

Picnic Technologies is seeking a Tech Lead to guide one domain team and drive delivery of high-quality, secure software. You will collaborate with the Product Owner to shape roadmaps and translate ideas into scalable, resilient technical solutions.

You will mentor engineers, own the health of your product, and influence the architectural direction while maintaining close collaboration with stakeholders. English fluency required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, AI, IT, Computer Engineering or a related technical field.
• At least 7 years of back-end development experience (Java/Spring Boot, MongoDB, PostgreSQL).
• At least 2 years of leading projects or teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead one domain team and empower the team to deliver high-quality, secure, and performant solutions.
• Collaborate with Product Owner to evaluate initiatives and drive roadmaps.
• Design and estimate technical solutions with your team.

Skills

Leadership

Mentorship

Communication

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science/IT/Engineering

Tools

Java

Spring Boot

MongoDB

PostgreSQL

Docker

Kubernetes

RabbitMQ

Kafka

AWS

Terraform

Vault

Datadog

Python

TypeScript

Job description

Picnic operates more than 40 product tech teams that each provide an integral part of our customers' experience - from the point they start the app until the moment they hold their groceries in their hands.

As Tech Lead you will be leading one of these teams and empower them to deliver high-quality, secure and performant solutions for the business we're building. Together with the Product Owner you will evaluate initiatives and drive roadmap discussions. You'll design and estimate technical solutions for the presented challenges together with your team.

You will be responsible for the delivery of projects and for developing the skills and strengths of the people working in your team. As a Tech Lead, you'll lead by example, not by title.

We don't hide what we do. Instead, we open-source with the community that helped us grow. Here's proof: http://picnic.tech

Tricks of the trade

Shaping: As a Tech Lead in one of our domains, you'll work with stakeholders from tech and business to translate requirements into scalable and resilient solutions.

Leadership: You help the team plan, prioritize and make the right trade-offs. Ensuring business goals are achieved while also realizing your long-term technical vision.

Expertise: You're the go-to for your product domain – both for your own team and for others who want to build on what you own.

Collaboration: You are able to communicate your views both when specifying new features with stakeholders and while providing technical mentorship to your colleagues.

Mentorship: You invest in your people. Through real conversations, honest feedback, and hands‑on coaching, you help them grow faster than they would anywhere else.

Ownership: You build it - you run it - you love it. You own the health of your product and the support model behind it.

Our tech

Our Tech: Java 21/25 (Spring 6 with Spring Boot 3.5, Reactor, Immutables), Maven, RabbitMQ, Kafka, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Git, Docker, AWS, Helm, Terraform, Kubernetes, Vault, Datadog, Python 3.x, Typescript

You have a Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Information Technology, Computer Engineering or a related technical field.

You have at least 7 years of experience and a profound understanding of back-end development including Java, Spring Boot, MongoDB and PostgreSQL.

You have at least 2 years of experience in leading projects and/or teams.

You have solid problem-solving skills and enjoy complex challenges.

You're based in or happy to relocate to the Netherlands. We work from our office in Amsterdam – for a Tech Lead, being present makes a genuine difference to your team and the work. There's flexibility to work from home when needed, but if remote or hybrid-first is what you're after, this probably isn't the right fit.

You have great English skills (no Dutch required).

Picnic Perks

Grow faster than anywhere else

Picnic's Tech Academy, O'Reilly, leadership trainings, and Lunch & Learn sessions. But honestly, the fastest growth comes from the complex challenges - and we have plenty of those.

Own something that matters

You'll shape technical direction and drive outcomes that reach millions of customers across three countries. We build everything in-house, so the decisions are yours and the impact is real.

Freshly prepared lunches, a Picnic barista, 80+ nationalities, and a social calendar from team events to our annual company ski trip.

There are plenty of sports communities and events to get involved with, from tennis to yoga, to climbing!

Attractive package

We offer competitive compensation and a pension plan that looks out for your future self, as well as 25 vacation days per year, so you can recharge your batteries.

Benefits for expats

Relocation support, free Dutch classes, and expat integration to help you land well from day one.

A bit about us

When you join Picnic, you’re joining the shopping revolution, delivering groceries to millions of people across Europe, and we’re growing fast. Think super fresh products and personal service, but in a modern, sustainable way. The tech team at Picnic is at the core of Picnic. From deep learning models to forecast orders to delivery algorithms to warehouse logistics: we’ve built it all from the ground up. You’ll thrive here if you’re a problem solver with a pro‑active mindset who’s not afraid to be challenged daily.

Recruitment Process

1. CV screening
2. Phone screening
3. Home assignment
4. Assignment review
5. Interviews
6. Assessment day
7. Closing interview
8. Offer

Commitment to equal opportunities

Picnic is an equal opportunity employer—this means that all decisions regarding applications will be based on qualifications and merit. Applicants will be regarded independently of age, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, ethnicity, skin color, civil status, religious beliefs, physical or mental disability, or any other factors protected by law.

At Picnic, we celebrate and value our differences and are committed to building a safe and inclusive working environment where everyone can be themselves.

Our Mentality

At Picnic, we build from scratch with an owner’s mindset. We dive into the unknown, taking end-to-end responsibility for every outcome, going the extra mile to tackle complex challenges. We turn insights into action, working as a team to get things done. We move fast, never compromising on quality or long‑term impact. With grit and commitment we build what has never been built before!