Senior Software Development Engineering Manager – Java Microservices

Raise; Chicago (IL); Hybrid; USD 103,000 - 117,000; Full time

Job summary

Raise is seeking a Senior Software Development Engineering Manager to provide hands-on technical leadership for enterprise-scale Java microservices on AWS. You will lead architecture, design, and delivery while mentoring distributed engineering teams and collaborating with client stakeholders.

The role requires strong leadership, deep Java expertise, and experience delivering modernized cloud-native solutions in hybrid onsite settings with EST/CST alignment.

Qualifications

• 9+ years of software engineering experience with Java microservices and leadership.
• Strong hands-on expertise in Java, Spring Boot, Spring Cloud, distributed systems, and design patterns.
• Experience with enterprise-scale architecture, APIs, integration, and modernization planning.
• Hands-on AWS experience including compute, storage, IAM, monitoring, and containers.
• Docker and Kubernetes experience, preferably Amazon EKS.
• Experience with Apache Kafka and event-driven architectures.
• CI/CD, DevSecOps, and automated testing practices.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end design, development, testing, deployment, and support of Java-based microservices and REST APIs.
• mentor engineers through design reviews, code reviews, and problem-solving.
• Design enterprise-scale solutions, API contracts, data flows, and non-functional requirements.
• Guide AWS-hosted solutions and container platforms, ensuring security and scalability.
• Oversee production readiness, observability, and incident analysis.
• Collaborate with product, security, DevOps, and leadership to translate business needs into technical roadmaps.

Skills

Java

Spring Boot

Spring Cloud

microservices

REST APIs

JPA/Hibernate

Maven/Gradle

AWS

Docker

Kubernetes

Kafka

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Jenkins

GitHub

OpenShift

Job description

Senior Software Development Engineering Manager – Java Microservices

• Pay Rate: $75–$85.00/hour USD, depending on experience
• Contract Length: 6 months
• Location: Chicago, Illinois
• Work Arrangement: Hybrid – candidates must be willing to work onsite 3–4 days per week at a client office location. Candidates must be able to work within EST/CST time zones
• Interview Process: 2 rounds

Raise is currently hiring a Senior Software Development Engineering Manager on behalf of our client. This is an exciting opportunity to provide hands‑on technical leadership for enterprise‑scale Java microservices and modernization programs, working with client stakeholders and globally distributed engineering teams to build secure, resilient, observable, and maintainable platforms on AWS.

Project Overview

The project is focused on modernizing a major car rental platform for a leading travel and hospitality client in North America. The team is leveraging AI‑driven solutions to improve operational efficiency, streamline workflows, introduce modern capabilities, and create a more seamless and intuitive customer experience. This is an opportunity to contribute to a high‑impact modernization initiative at the intersection of Java, AWS, microservices, and AI‑assisted software engineering.

Description

The Senior Software Development Engineering Manager will combine hands‑on software engineering, solution architecture, technical leadership, client consulting, and team mentorship. The successful candidate will own technical outcomes across multiple services and business capabilities while remaining hands‑on with architecture, design, coding, debugging, and technical decision‑making.

This role will work closely with product, architecture, quality engineering, security, DevOps, and program leadership to translate business needs into scalable technical solutions and predictable delivery outcomes.

Responsibilities

Engineering & Architecture: Lead the end‑to‑end design, development, testing, deployment, and support of Java‑based microservices, REST APIs, and event‑driven applications.

Hands‑On Technical Leadership: Remain hands‑on with architecture, technical design, prototypes, critical code paths, complex debugging, performance tuning, and technical decisions.

Solution Design: Design enterprise‑scale solutions and define architecture, API contracts, data flows, technical documentation, and non‑functional requirements covering scalability, availability, resilience, security, observability, and maintainability.

AWS & Cloud‑Native Development: Design and deliver AWS‑hosted solutions using appropriate compute, storage, identity, monitoring, database, messaging, and container services.

Microservices & Kubernetes: Develop and support containerized applications using Docker and Kubernetes, preferably Amazon EKS.

Event‑Driven Architecture: Design Apache Kafka producer and consumer flows, including delivery semantics, error handling, replay, idempotency, schema evolution, and operational support.

DevSecOps & CI/CD: Guide Jenkins CI/CD, GitHub branching and pull‑request workflows, automated quality checks, build/release automation, and deployment practices.

Quality & Production Readiness: Establish effective automated testing practices and support unit, component, contract, integration, regression, and performance testing. Lead production readiness reviews and incident analysis.

Observability: Use Dynatrace or comparable APM/observability tools for monitoring, dashboards, diagnostics, alerting, and production health.

AI‑Assisted Modernization: Apply approved AI engineering approaches, including Code2Spec and Spec2Code, to accelerate legacy modernization while maintaining functional equivalence, security, testability, and human accountability.

Client Consulting: Lead technical workshops, discovery sessions, architecture reviews, solution walkthroughs, demos, and modernization planning with client stakeholders.

Delivery Leadership: Provide estimates, identify technical and delivery risks, develop mitigation plans, and support predictable sprint and release commitments.

Team Leadership & Mentoring: Mentor engineers through design reviews, code reviews, technical coaching, pairing, and structured problem‑solving while promoting engineering quality and ownership.

Qualifications

• 9+ years of relevant software engineering experience, including substantial hands‑on experience delivering Java microservices and demonstrated technical leadership.
• Strong hands‑on expertise in Java, Spring Boot, Spring Cloud, microservices, REST APIs, JPA/Hibernate, Maven or Gradle, distributed systems, concurrency, and design patterns.
• Proven experience with enterprise‑scale solution and system architecture, API and integration design, technical documentation, architecture trade‑offs, and modernization planning.
• Hands‑on experience with AWS, including compute, storage, IAM, monitoring, databases, messaging, and container platforms.
• Strong experience with Docker and Kubernetes, preferably Amazon EKS.
• Strong experience with Apache Kafka and event‑driven architecture.
• Experience with Jenkins CI/CD, GitHub, branching and pull‑request workflows, build and release automation, and containers.
• Strong understanding of automated testing, code reviews, SonarQube, static analysis, secure coding, quality gates, performance, and production readiness.
• Experience with Dynatrace or comparable APM/observability platforms, including telemetry, dashboards, diagnostics, alerting, and incident analysis.
• Demonstrated client‑facing technical leadership, solutioning, estimation, risk management, mentoring, and communication across distributed teams.
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related discipline, or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Experience with AWS Lambda, RDS, DynamoDB, Terraform, Helm, OpenTelemetry, Prometheus, or Grafana.
• Experience with IBM MQ, MuleSoft, Amazon EKS, API gateways, identity platforms, or enterprise integration patterns.
• Experience with large‑scale digital transformation, cloud migration, platform modernization, or legacy‑to‑modern application programs.
• Experience with AI‑enabled software development lifecycle (SDLC) practices.
• Experience with technical proposals, estimation, pre‑sales, or technical due diligence.
• Experience within travel and hospitality, financial services, retail, consumer products, or other enterprise environments.

Core Skills & Competencies

• Java / Spring Boot / Spring Cloud
• Microservices & REST APIs
• AWS / Amazon EKS
• Apache Kafka / Event‑Driven Architecture
• Docker / Kubernetes
• Jenkins / GitHub / CI/CD
• Distributed Systems
• API & Integration Architecture
• Automated Testing & Quality Engineering
• Dynatrace / Application Performance Monitoring
• Cloud & Application Modernization
• AI‑Assisted Software Engineering
• Technical Architecture & Solution Design
• Client Consulting & Stakeholder Management
• Technical Leadership & Mentoring

Ideal Candidate

The ideal candidate is a hands‑on engineering leader with deep expertise in Java microservices, AWS, Kafka, and Kubernetes, combined with strong architecture, client consulting, and delivery leadership capabilities. They can move from a business problem to a multi‑service technical solution, contribute directly where technical risk is highest, mentor engineering teams, and use AI‑assisted modernization techniques while maintaining strong engineering judgment and accountability.

We strive to build teams that reflect the diversity of the communities we work in. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including people from traditionally underrepresented groups such as women, visible minorities, Indigenous peoples, people identifying as LGBTQ2SI, veterans, and people with visible/nonvisible disabilities.

We have a dedicated webpage for accommodations where you can learn more about what we offer and request accommodation: https://raise.jobs/accommodations/

In order to submit candidates for roles, our clients will sometimes require personal information to confirm the identity of applicants and their legal status to work. Raise will never ask you for personal or banking information unless you have been selected for a job. If you are ever unsure about the legitimacy of this or any other Raise job posting (or have any other questions), please contact us at [phone] or [e-mail].