Staff Software Engineer, Java Backend

Ad Hoc LLC; United States; Remote; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company-subsidized health, dental, and

vision insurance

Flexible PTO

401K with employer match

Paid parental leave after one year of【

Employee Assistance Program

Job summary

Ad Hoc LLC is a technology company delivering modern digital services for federal government programs, embracing remote work and flexible collaboration. The Staff Software Engineer will design, develop, and deliver scalable backend solutions using Java 17+, Spring Boot, and REST APIs, while mentoring peers and guiding architectural decisions across the VA program.

As a hands-on technical contributor, you will own complex engineering challenges, contribute to system design, and help advance

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required or equivalent professional experience.
• 9+ years of relevant software engineering experience.
• 5+ years designing, developing and integrating RESTful APIs and microservices.
• 8+ years of hands-on Java development with modern Java versions (Java 17+).
• Strong understanding of backend architecture and software engineering best practices.
• Experience with relational databases and ORM frameworks (Hibernate/JPA).
• Experience with automated testing, code reviews, and DevOps practices.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and deliver production-ready backend applications using Java 17+ and Spring Boot.
• Build and maintain scalable RESTful APIs, microservices, and enterprise integrations.
• Take ownership of complex engineering challenges including system design and API architecture.
• Contribute production code and actively participate in an Agile delivery environment.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineers and collaborate with cross-functional teams.
• Engage in architectural discussions and modernization initiatives with stakeholders.
• Identify risks and dependencies and communicate them to technical and non-technical audiences.

Skills

Java development

Spring / Spring Boot

RESTful APIs

Microservices

SQL / ORM (Hibernate/JPA)

Code testing & debugging

Mentorship

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

Kafka

Redis

Job description

Ad Hoc is a technology company that empowers organizations to deliver scalable, impactful digital services. Using modern, agile methods, our team creates products that meet people’s needs and transform their experience of government.

Work on things that matter

Our collaborations have shaped some of the defining moments in public-sector service delivery. We’ve helped build products that connect Veterans to tailored services, help millions access affordable health care, and support important programs like Head Start. As we work with agencies to deliver critical services, we’re also changing how the government approaches technology.

Built for a remote life

Our culture, communications, and tools are built for remote work, enabling us to bring together top talent nationwide. At Ad Hoc, remote life empowers our teams to design work environments that fit their lives and that foster flexibility and collaboration to achieve positive outcomes for our customers.

Committed to high expectations and a welcoming culture

Ad Hoc values acceptance, accountability, and humility. We aren’t heroes. We learn from our mistakes and improve the process for the next time. We build small, inclusive teams to collaborate closely with our partners to solve the right problems and deliver software that works.

The Veterans Affairs business unit helps transform the VA into a modern digital services organization where Veteran outcomes are at the center of every effort. We partner with the VA to design and deliver seamless user experiences for Veterans, their families and caregivers, and VA employees. By applying better practices in service design, product management, and technology, we enable the VA to increase the use, quality, and reliability of services and decrease the time Veterans spend waiting for outcomes.

Primary Responsibilities

As a Staff Software Engineer, you will be a hands-on technical contributor supporting the modernization of enterprise applications and services. You will design, develop, and deliver scalable backend solutions using Java, Spring Boot, and REST APIs while helping establish strong engineering practices across the team.

This role is ideal for an experienced engineer who enjoys solving complex technical challenges, mentoring others, and leading through technical expertise. While initially focused on individual contributions and technical leadership, there is an opportunity to grow into a formal engineering leadership or people management role as the team and program evolve.

Primary expectations of a Staff Software Engineer include:

• Design, develop, test, and deploy production-ready backend applications using Java 17+, Spring, and Spring Boot.
• Build and maintain scalable RESTful APIs, microservices, and integrations with existing enterprise systems.
• Take ownership of complex engineering challenges, including system design, API architecture, data access, and service integration.
• Remain actively involved in hands-on development, contributing production code within an Agile delivery environment.
• Drive engineering best practices through code reviews, automated testing, troubleshooting, and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with engineers, architects, product managers, and other stakeholders to deliver reliable technical solutions.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to engineers, helping improve code quality, problem-solving, and engineering practices.
• Participate in architectural discussions, technical design decisions, and modernization initiatives.
• Identify and communicate technical risks, dependencies, and potential solutions to technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
• Collaborate with customer technical teams and architects to align technical solutions with program requirements.
• Support technical interviews, engineering assessments, and knowledge sharing as needed.
• Demonstrate interest and potential to take on expanded technical leadership or people management responsibilities as opportunities develop.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and 9+ years of relevant software engineering experience; relevant professional experience may be substituted for education.
• 8+ years of hands-on Java development, including experience with modern Java versions (Java 17+ preferred).
• 5+ years of professional experience with Spring and Spring Boot, developing production backend applications.
• 5+ years designing, developing, and integrating RESTful APIs and microservices.
• Recent hands-on experience writing, testing, and deploying production code.
• Experience working with relational databases such as Oracle, PostgreSQL, or comparable technologies, including SQL and ORM frameworks such as Hibernate/JPA.
• Strong understanding of backend architecture, object-oriented programming, API design, and software engineering best practices.
• Experience with automated testing, code reviews, debugging, and maintaining production applications.
• Experience working across the software development lifecycle, including design, development, testing, deployment, and ongoing support.
• Demonstrated ability to independently own complex technical projects or engineering initiatives.
• Experience providing technical mentorship, guidance, or support to other engineers.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain technical decisions and tradeoffs.
• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship, now or in the future.
• Must be able to successfully obtain and maintain a Public Trust security clearance.

Preferred Qualifications

• An active, VA-adjudicated Public Trust.
• Experience modernizing legacy applications or transitioning monolithic systems into microservices.
• Experience with event-driven architecture, Kafka, Redis, or distributed systems.
• Experience with reactive programming and Spring WebFlux.
• Experience with containerization and orchestration technologies such as Docker and Kubernetes.
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines, automated deployments, and modern DevOps practices.
• Experience supporting federal government programs, particularly the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
• Experience collaborating across Engineering, Product, Design, and Program Management teams.
• Previous experience serving as a technical lead, engineering lead, or senior technical mentor.
• Interest in growing into an engineering leadership or people management role while maintaining strong technical involvement.
• Company-subsidized health, dental, and vision insurance
• Flexible PTO
• 401K with employer match
• Paid parental leave after one year of service
• Employee Assistance Program

Ad Hoc LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, age, pregnancy, disability, work-related injury, covered veteran status, political ideology, marital status, or any other factor that the law protects from employment discrimination.

We value the unique skills gained through military service and encourage veterans and transitioning service members to apply.

In support of various state and city equal pay transparency laws, Ad Hoc job descriptions feature the starting range we reasonably expect to pay to candidates who would join our team with little to no need for training on the responsibilities we've outlined above. Actual compensation is influenced by a wide range of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and responsibility. The range of starting pay for this role is $120,000 - $170,000. Our recruiters will be happy to answer any questions you may have, and we look forward to learning more about your salary requirements.