Senior Java Software Engineer

Join Europe's leading, high-growth Google Cloud consultancy. At Qodea, you’ll be part of a team energised by innovation and passionate about delivering exceptional results. We craft cutting-edge solutions in data and analytics, AI, cloud infrastructure and security, driving digital transformation that empowers our customers to scale, modernise and lead in their industries. We’re driven by ideas and powered by our people.

We are looking for a senior-level Java Software Engineer to be the architectural authority for our loyalty platform. You won't just use AI and ML; you'll design the large-scale systems that make them possible, setting the technical strategy for how we deliver personalized, intelligent experiences to millions of users.

We want to be transparent about expectations. Our daily collaboration sync is 5-6 pm GMT. Beyond that, this role will require occasional evening availability to align with US time zones for high-priority events, like a critical deployment, a major architectural review, or to resolve an urgent production issue.

What You’ll Do:

• Lead the architecture and evolution of scalable, high-performance Java backend systems for personalisation, including data ingestion, profile management, recommendation services, and dynamic content delivery. 
• Utilize frameworks like Spring Boot, Apache Kafka for messaging, and RESTful API as well as Backend-for-Frontend (GraphQL) design principles.
• Drive cross-functional initiatives to integrate modern personalisation technologies, such as real-time behavioral analytics and A/B testing frameworks, using Java-based APIs and microservices.
• Define strategies to enhance the performance, reliability, and observability of personalisation services, ensuring low-latency, high-availability systems through Java optimizations and monitoring tools like Micrometer or Prometheus.
• Design and implement Java frameworks for evaluating personalisation effectiveness through both offline metrics and live A/B experimentation.
• Champion engineering best practices in Java development and mentor engineers across teams, raising the bar for code quality and system design.
• Shape long-term technical direction by staying ahead of trends in distributed systems, Java ecosystem advancements, and personalisation technologies—and bringing these innovations into production.

What You’ll Need to Succeed

• Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Experience in developing large-scale java systems.
• Extensive hands-on experience working with content from personalisation and recommendation engines.
• Familiarity with technologies such as Apache Beam, Pub/Sub, and other large-scale data processing frameworks crucial for personalisation at scale.
• Expertise in backend development, with knowledge of Golang is a plus, to build robust and efficient recommendation systems.
• Proficiency with both SQL and NoSQL databases, to manage and query data for personalized experiences.
• Demonstrated experience building robust APIs (REST, GraphQL) and operating in modern cloud environments (GCP, AWS), using Kubernetes, Docker, CI/CD, and observability tools.
• Proven ability to influence engineering direction across teams and functions.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to align diverse technical stakeholders around a cohesive vision.

Nice to Have

• Specialization in personalisation-related areas and recommendation engines.
• Experience deploying personalisation solutions in production.
• Knowledge of end-to-end personalisation system design.
•  knowledge of Scala

How You’ll Grow: 

• Clear career progression opportunities within our career framework
• Cross-skilling and internal mobility across business areas
• Access to dedicated training, certifications, and professional memberships

• We are a team of passionate people who genuinely care about what they do and the standard of work they produce
• Whilst we’re remote first, we have two hubs in Portugal: Lisbon and Porto
• 25 days’ annual leave, Juneteenth, your birthday off, and a paid office closure between Christmas and New Year's.
• Health insurance
• 15 days of paid sickness and wellness days
• A generous learning and development budget and an annual leadership development programme
• A strong company culture that includes weekly meetings, company updates, team socials, and celebrations
• In-house DE&I council and mental health first-aiders

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

At Qodea, we champion diversity and inclusion. We believe that a career in IT should be open to everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability or neurotype. We value the unique talents and perspectives that each individual brings to our team, and we strive to create a fair and accessible hiring process for all. If you feel we can improve in any way, please reach out to our careers team via email at [email protected] or connect with us on LinkedIn via our Qodea Company Page.