Lead Backend Engineer – Banking & AI-Driven Ops

Tally; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 190,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, vision plans

401(k) match

Wellness programs

Flexible time off

Parental leave

Job summary

Happen Bank is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to design and build tools and systems that make operations faster, more reliable, and scalable, with deep backend ownership and enough frontend fluency to span the stack. You will work closely with Operations and Underwriting to simplify workflows and boost efficiency.

You will help shape the technical direction, enforce security for PII, mentor peers, review designs, and drive automation including AI-assisted workflows, while contributing to a

Qualifications

• 7+ years of backend software engineering experience and a bachelor's degree or higher.
• Deep expertise with Java and Spring Boot, AWS, and relational/NoSQL data stores.
• Strong ownership mentality and proactive problem solving.
• Curiosity about banking and underwriting domains.
• Practical handling of PII and sensitive financial data.
• Hands-on experience with AI tools and responsible usage.

Responsibilities

• Own and deliver backend services and tooling from design through production.
• Lead architecture decisions balancing speed, reliability, and maintainability.
• Collaborate with Operations and Underwriting to fit workflows.
• Ensure security practices for PII and sensitive data.
• Mentor engineers and review code and designs.
• Troubleshoot incidents and implement RCA-driven improvements.
• Advocate for AI-assisted automation where appropriate.

Skills

Java

Spring Boot

AWS

Relational databases

NoSQL databases

Security practices

Cross-team communication

Education

Bachelor's degree or higher

Tools

AI tools

Job description

Happen Bank is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to design and build tools and systems that make operations faster, more reliable, and scalable, with deep backend ownership and enough frontend fluency to span the stack. You will work closely with Operations and Underwriting to simplify workflows and boost efficiency.

You will help shape the technical direction, enforce security for PII, mentor peers, review designs, and drive automation including AI-assisted workflows, while contributing to a