Lead Software Engineer

JobSpace; Auckland; On-site; NZD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

4 weeks holiday

Wellbeing leave

Banking benefits

Growth and development

Recognition

School holiday subsidy

Volunteer days

Job summary

Westpac in Auckland seeks a Lead Software Engineer to contribute to the development of digital customer experiences. You will manage up to two squads, combining engineering and leadership tasks to consistently deliver high-quality digital experiences.

The role is approximately 50% hands-on engineering and 50% team enablement, with flexibility based on squad needs. You will mentor peers, promote automation, and support a collaborative, inclusive team culture.

Qualifications

• Over 10 years of experience in full stack development and delivering scalable web and mobile solutions.
• Proven leadership abilities emphasising relationship-building and fostering open dialogue.
• Strong background in Agile and DevOps environments guiding teams toward project goals.
• Experience delivering with CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and API integration.
• Ability to mentor peers and promote an automation-focused culture.
• Excellent collaboration with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead up to two squads, balancing hands-on engineering with team enablement.
• Design processes, oversee software delivery, and mentor engineers.
• Align engineering work with business objectives and the technical roadmap.
• Identify and address technical debt early; remove blockers across squads.
• Facilitate sprint planning and ensure realistic end-to-end delivery estimates.
• Promote best practices and ensure psychological safety within the team.

Skills

Leadership

Full-stack development

Agile & DevOps

Team enablement

Problem solving

Communication

Tools

Micronaut

ForgeRock

Finacle

Docker

Jenkins

Git

Bitbucket

Selenium

Cucumber

Kubernetes

SonarQube

Job description

Digital transformation is changing the way we provide customer experiences, making effective and cooperative leadership important for success. The Digital Engineering team is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to contribute to the development of digital customer experiences.

You will manage up to two squads, combining engineering and leadership tasks. Responsibilities include process design, software delivery, engineer mentoring, and ongoing improvement. You'll work with POs, SOs, engineers, designers, architects, principal engineers, and stakeholders to:

• Consistently deliver high-quality digital experiences to our customers.
• Develop solutions that adhere to contemporary engineering best practices.
• Align engineering decisions with overarching business objectives to advance the technical roadmap.
• Proactively minimise and manage technical debt, identifying and addressing blockers at an early stage.
• Demonstrate and promote agreed squad work practices while cultivating a positive and collaborative team environment.
• Define sprint goals that support delivery targets, customer needs, and strategic priorities.
• Facilitate accurate high-level effort estimation for features, initiatives, and solutions by comprehensively understanding end-to-end delivery and collaborating across squads to identify backend system dependencies.

This role is approximately 50% hands‑on engineering and 50% team enablement, with flexibility based on squad needs.

What will you bring?

This position requires an engineering professional with experience in leadership and technical skills. The ideal candidate will have a background working within Agile environments and guiding teams towards project goals. The role involves influencing engineering standards and collaborating across various squads and departments.

• Over 10 years of experience in full stack development, with delivery of scalable web and mobile solutions.
• Proficiency in Java, React, and mobile technologies aimed at developing responsive, high-performance applications.
• Demonstrated leadership abilities emphasising relationship‑building and fostering open-minded dialogue.
• Solid understanding of service layers, networking, and UI/UX to support integration and user experience.
• Familiarity with Micronaut, ForgeRock, Finacle, Docker, Jenkins, Git, Bitbucket, Selenium, Cucumber, Kubernetes, and SonarQube.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, unit testing, debugging, and third‑party API integration.
• Knowledge of functional programming and automated testing frameworks.
• Prior experience in Agile and DevOps environments, contributing to iterative delivery cycles.
• Ability to collaborate and maintain relationships with both internal teams and customers.
• Analytical approach to problem‑solving, with sound judgement and resilience.
• Commitment to operational efficiency and implementing strategic plans.

The role also includes mentoring peers, fostering an automation-focused culture, and supporting a team environment that prioritises psychological safety and inclusion.

Working at Westpac

In addition to immersing yourself in a supportive team environment, you'll receive some great job perks and benefits including:

• 4 weeks standard holiday + 5 additional days of wellbeing leave to support you to be your best
• Additional purchased leave options up to 4 weeks per year
• Banking benefits, insurance discounts and superannuation scheme
• Growth and development – we provide opportunities for development and promote internal mobility
• Recognition - we recognise and reward our star performers
• School holiday subsidy - help you balance work and family during school holiday
• 2 Volunteer days per year

Our Organisation

At Westpac, we're working together to build a fairer and stronger New Zealand for our people, customers, and communities. For over 160 years we've been driven by our purpose to Create Better Futures Together.

What makes us unique are the incredible people we're lucky enough to have walk through our doors every day. The giant 'W' on our building doesn't just stand for Westpac – it says, double you. We're a place that values, rewards and recognises individuality. Where you can be your whole self, your true self, and your best self. We're recognised as a place where talent is developed, where passions are fuelled and where ambitions of all shapes and sizes thrive. And it all starts with you!