Kafka Solution Architect

Skysoft Incorporated; Memphis (TN); On-site; USD 140,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Skysoft Incorporated is seeking an experienced Kafka Solution Architect to design and build highly scalable, event-driven enterprise solutions. The role requires deep expertise in Apache Kafka, API design and integration, distributed systems, and microservices architecture.

You will demonstrate strong technical leadership with hands-on development and enterprise-grade messaging solutions. The ideal candidate will have 10+ years in software engineering and solution architecture, plus hands-on

Qualifications

• 10+ years in software engineering and solution architecture.
• Expert-level Apache Kafka experience including Streams, Connect, Schema Registry and Confluent Platform.
• Strong REST API design, development, integration and API security expertise.
• Hands-on experience with event-driven and microservices architectures.
• Extensive Java, Spring Boot and enterprise integration framework expertise.
• Experience with API Gateway technologies (Apigee, Kong, AWS API Gateway, or MuleSoft).
• Knowledge of asynchronous messaging, event streaming and distributed systems.
• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes and cloud platforms (AWS preferred).
• Understanding of messaging patterns, fault tolerance, scalability and high availability.
• Experience implementing OAuth2, JWT, SSL/TLS and API authentication/authorization.
• Strong SQL skills; relational and NoSQL databases.
• Experience with CI/CD (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, etc.).
• Experience with monitoring tools (Splunk, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, Datadog).
• Strong communication, leadership and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement secure, scalable REST APIs.
• Develop Kafka producers, consumers, streams and event-processing apps.
• Define API standards, governance, versioning and best practices across platforms.
• Collaborate with applications, cloud and DevOps teams to build highly available distributed systems.
• Optimize Kafka clusters for performance, resiliency and scalability.
• Troubleshoot production issues involving Kafka, APIs and distributed apps.
• Conduct architecture reviews and mentor development teams.

Skills

Apache Kafka

Kafka Streams

Kafka Connect

Schema Registry

Confluent Platform

REST API design

API security

Event-driven architecture

Microservices

Java/Spring Boot

AWS Cloud

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD

Monitoring

Tools

Apigee

Kong

AWS API Gateway

MuleSoft

OpenAPI/Swagger

Terraform

Job description

Note: Only US Citizens & H1B'S for this role

Client is seeking an experienced Kafka Solution Architect to design and build highly scalable, event-driven enterprise solutions. The ideal candidate will possess deep expertise in Apache Kafka, API design and integration, distributed systems, and microservices architecture. This role requires strong technical leadership, hands-on development experience, and the ability to architect enterprise-grade messaging and integration solutions.

Required Skills

• 10+ years of experience in software engineering and solution architecture.
• Expert-level experience with Apache Kafka, including Kafka Streams, Kafka Connect, Schema Registry, and Confluent Platform.
• Strong expertise in REST API design, development, integration, and API security.
• Hands-on experience designing event-driven and microservices architectures.
• Strong experience with Java, Spring Boot, and enterprise integration frameworks.
• Experience with API Gateway technologies such as Apigee, Kong, AWS API Gateway, or MuleSoft.
• Strong knowledge of asynchronous messaging, event streaming, and distributed systems.
• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, and cloud platforms (AWS preferred).
• Strong understanding of messaging patterns, fault tolerance, scalability, and high availability.
• Experience implementing OAuth2, JWT, SSL/TLS, and API authentication/authorization.
• Strong SQL skills with experience in relational and NoSQL databases.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or similar tools.
• Experience with monitoring tools such as Splunk, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, or Datadog.
• Strong understanding of Agile/Scrum development methodologies.
• Excellent communication, leadership, and problem-solving skills.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement secure, scalable, and high-performance REST APIs.
• Develop Kafka producers, consumers, streams, and event-processing applications.
• Define API standards, governance, versioning, and best practices across enterprise platforms.
• Collaborate with application, cloud, and DevOps teams to build highly available distributed systems.
• Optimize Kafka clusters for performance, resiliency, and scalability.
• Troubleshoot production issues involving Kafka, APIs, and distributed applications.
• Conduct architecture reviews, mentor development teams, and establish technical best practices.
• Work closely with business stakeholders to translate requirements into scalable technical solutions.

Preferred Skills

• Confluent Kafka Certification.
• Experience with AWS cloud services.
• Experience with OpenAPI/Swagger.
• Knowledge of GraphQL and AsyncAPI.
• Experience with Terraform and Infrastructure as Code (IaC).