Tech Lead (Integration - API & Events / Java)

Client: Photon
Position: Tech Lead (Integration - API & Events / Java)
Location: Newark, DE (Onsite)
Duration: Contract & Full time

Short Description for Internal Candidates
Owns end-to-end delivery of the enterprise integration platform: API design standards, event-driven architecture, and workflow/business-process automation. Sets the platform patterns that let teams expose and consume APIs and events safely and consistently, but is measured on delivery outcomes runs the offshore development team day-to-day and stays hands-on to unblock delivery risk.
Description for Internal Candidates

Key Responsibilities

Own delivery of enterprise API design standards using OpenAPI 3.0/REST, including versioning, lifecycle, and governance.
Drive rollout of the organization's API Gateway patterns and Mulesoft Anypoint Platform usage/topology.
Set the strategy for contract testing and API lifecycle management across producing and consuming teams.
Own API security delivery for both internal and external-facing APIs (authN/authZ, rate limiting, threat protection).
Drive delivery of event-driven infrastructure: topic/queue design, Kafka/EventBridge/SNS/MSK topology, and event production/consumption patterns.
Define schema registry standards (Avro/Protobuf) for event and API contracts.
Own delivery of workflow/business-process automation using BPMN 2.0, Camunda, and rules engines (Drools) where applicable.
Run day-to-day delivery of the offshore team: sprint commitments, code/design review, real-time unblocking, and hands-on work on critical-path integrations.
Report delivery status, risks, and blockers to engineering leadership.

Must-Have Qualifications

8+ years in integration/API engineering, with 3+ years as a tech lead owning end-to-end delivery (not a pure design/review architect role).
Proven track record of shipping integration platforms on committed timelines, including hands-on troubleshooting under delivery pressure.
Expert-level API design using OpenAPI 3.0/REST; proven experience setting org-wide standards.
Hands-on architecture experience with Mulesoft Anypoint Platform.
Deep knowledge of API Gateway patterns and API lifecycle management at scale.
Proven experience designing contract testing strategy across teams.
Strong API security expertise internal and external-facing, including OAuth2/JWT, rate limiting, and threat mitigation.
Architecture-level experience with event-driven infrastructure and at least one of Kafka, EventBridge, SNS, or MSK in production.
Solid understanding of schema registry design (Avro/Protobuf) and schema evolution/compatibility strategy.
Financial-services or regulated-industry API/integration experience.
Strong stakeholder communication and ability to directly manage day-to-day delivery of an offshore team (standups, unblocking, sprint accountability).

Nice-to-Have Qualifications

Experience architecting workflow automation with BPMN 2.0 and Camunda.
Experience with rules engines such as Drools.
Exposure to multiple event brokers (beyond primary platform) and migration between them.
Relevant certifications (Mulesoft Certified Architect, Confluent Kafka certifications).