Senior Java Backend Software Engineer

Kforce Inc; Roanoke (TX); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Kforce is seeking a Senior Java Backend Software Engineer in Westlake, TX to design and implement backend microservices and APIs within established patterns. You will own services end-to-end, ship to production, and mentor junior engineers through code reviews and pair programming.

You will contribute to team engineering practices, improve test coverage, and embrace AI-assisted tooling as part of daily workflows. Strong communication and problem-solving are essential in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience delivering production systems.
• Proven ability to own services end-to-end from design through deployment and operation.
• Database experience: writing and tuning queries, understanding indexing.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement backend microservices and APIs within established architectural patterns.
• Take ownership of services: write the code, own the tests, ship to production, and stand behind what you deploy.
• Mentor junior and associate engineers through code reviews, pair work, and direct feedback.
• Work towards team engineering practices: participate in code reviews, improve test coverage, and flag gaps in pipeline and operational readiness.
• Apply spec-driven development and AI-assisted tooling as a standard part of how you work.

Skills

Owns outcomes

Strong communication

Ambiguity handling

Constructive feedback

AI tooling curiosity

Tools

Spring Boot 4

Kafka

AWS EKS

OpenAPI

GitHub Copilot

Claude Code

Job description

Responsibilities

Kforce has a client in Westlake, TX that is seeking a Senior Java Backend Software Engineer. Responsibilities:

• Design and implement backend microservices and APIs within established architectural patterns, contributing to those patterns as your experience grows
• Take ownership of services: write the code, own the tests, ship to production, and stand behind what you deploy
• Work towards team engineering practices: participate in code reviews, improve test coverage, and flag gaps in pipeline and operational readiness
• Mentor junior and associate engineers through code reviews, pair work, and direct feedback
• Apply spec-driven development and AI-assisted tooling as a standard part of how you work

Responsibilities

Kforce has a client in Westlake, TX that is seeking a Senior Java Backend Software Engineer. Responsibilities:

• Design and implement backend microservices and APIs within established architectural patterns, contributing to those patterns as your experience grows
• Take ownership of services: write the code, own the tests, ship to production, and stand behind what you deploy
• Work towards team engineering practices: participate in code reviews, improve test coverage, and flag gaps in pipeline and operational readiness
• Mentor junior and associate engineers through code reviews, pair work, and direct feedback
• Apply spec-driven development and AI-assisted tooling as a standard part of how you work

Requirements

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience delivering production systems
• Proven ability to own services end-to-end, from design through deployment and operation
• Database experience: writing and tuning queries, understanding indexing, choosing the right storage pattern for the problem

Preferred

• Experience in financial services or a regulated, high-reliability industry
• Familiarity with enterprise Java frameworks (Spring Boot 4, EJF) and platform standards
• Experience with AI-assisted development tooling (GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, or similar) applied as a standard workflow tool
• Hands-on experience with Java and Spring Boot for backend microservice development, including RESTful API design and contract-first OpenAPI development
• Cloud deployment experience with AWS EKS: packaging, deploying, and operating containerized services
• Event-driven architecture experience with Kafka or similar messaging platforms
• Delivery pipeline proficiency: source control, CI/CD, containerization, and automated testing
• Observability: writing structured logs, understanding distributed traces, using dashboards to diagnose production issues

Skills And Attributes

• Owns outcomes, not just tasks; Tracks what they ship, wants to know if it works, and acts when it does not
• Strong communication: writes clear tickets, leaves useful comments in code reviews, and flags blockers early
• Works well with ambiguity at the feature level; Can take a requirement that is not fully defined and figure out what to ask to get it there
• Builds others up through direct, constructive technical feedback
• Intellectually curious about new tools and approaches, including AI-assisted development methods

The pay range is the lowest to highest compensation we reasonably in good faith believe we would pay at posting for this role. We may ultimately pay more or less than this range. Employee pay is based on factors like relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, seniority, location, performance, union contract and business needs. This range may be modified in the future.

We offer comprehensive benefits including medical/dental/vision insurance, HSA, FSA, 401(k), and life, disability & ADD insurance to eligible employees. Salaried personnel receive paid time off. Hourly employees are not eligible for paid time off unless required by law. Hourly employees on a Service Contract Act project are eligible for paid sick leave.

Note: Pay is not considered compensation until it is earned, vested and determinable. The amount and availability of any compensation remains in Kforce's sole discretion unless and until paid and may be modified in its discretion consistent with the law.

This job is not eligible for bonuses, incentives or commissions.

Kforce is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, protected veteran status, or disability status.