Java Technical Lead

Job Description
Java Technical Lead
Location: Sunnyvale, CA
Work Model: Onsite - 5 days/week
Duration: Contract
Job Description
We are looking for an experienced Java Technical Lead to lead the design, development, and delivery of scalable, high-performance backend applications and distributed systems. The ideal candidate will have strong hands-on expertise in Java, Spring Boot, microservices, Kafka, cloud-native architectures, and NoSQL databases, along with the ability to provide technical leadership across engineering teams.
The Technical Lead will be responsible for driving technical design decisions, developing critical backend services, ensuring engineering best practices, mentoring developers, and collaborating with architecture, product, DevOps, and other engineering teams.

Required Skills
8+ years of experience in Java backend development, with experience in a technical lead or senior engineering role
Strong hands-on experience with Java 8/11/17/21
Strong expertise in Spring Boot and Spring Framework
Extensive experience designing and developing microservices and RESTful APIs
Strong experience with Apache Kafka and event-driven architectures
Hands-on experience with NoSQL databases, preferably Cassandra and/or Azure Cosmos DB
Experience with Microsoft Azure, preferably Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS)
Strong experience with Kubernetes and Docker
Strong understanding of distributed systems, scalability, resiliency, and high-availability architectures
Experience with relational databases such as PostgreSQL or MySQL
Experience with Redis is a plus
Familiarity with GraphQL is a plus
Experience with CI/CD, Git, Maven, Jenkins, or similar DevOps tools
Strong experience with JUnit and integration testing
Strong understanding of software design principles, design patterns, and engineering best practices
Responsibilities
Lead the technical design and development of scalable Java/Spring Boot microservices
Define and drive technical solutions for complex backend and distributed-system problems
Design and develop REST APIs and event-driven services
Develop and integrate asynchronous services using Kafka
Design solutions using NoSQL and relational databases
Drive application deployment and support in Azure/Kubernetes environments
Conduct technical design and architecture discussions and provide recommendations on technology and implementation approaches
Review code and ensure adherence to coding standards, design principles, security, scalability, and maintainability
Mentor and provide technical guidance to other software engineers
Troubleshoot complex production issues and drive root-cause analysis and resolution
Identify and implement improvements to application performance, reliability, scalability, and observability
Collaborate closely with product, architecture, DevOps, QA, and engineering teams
Participate in planning, estimation, technical reviews, releases, and production support
Drive engineering best practices across development, testing, deployment, and operational support

Preferred Skills
Experience working on large-scale e-commerce, retail, marketplace, or enterprise platforms
Experience building and supporting high-volume, high-traffic production systems
Strong experience with Cassandra and/or Cosmos DB
Strong experience with Kafka and event-driven architectures
Experience with Azure AKS, Kubernetes, and Docker
Experience with Redis
Familiarity with GraphQL
Experience with cloud-native application development
Experience with performance optimization and troubleshooting of distributed systems
Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills
Proven ability to lead technical initiatives and mentor engineering teams