Skip to main content

Lead Software Engineer

Posted today

optomiMcLean (VA)

SENIORITY

Manager

Apply (opens in a new tab)

About the role

Engineering Team Lead / Lead Software Engineer
Position Summary: Optomi, in partnership with a leading enterprise in the financial services industry, is seeking an experienced Engineering Team Lead / Lead Software Engineer to lead the development and modernization of a large-scale identity and access management platform. This is a hands-on technical leadership opportunity for an experienced Java engineer who enjoys building backend applications while guiding a team of developers. The ideal candidate will bring deep expertise in Java, Spring Boot, microservices, and AWS, along with the ability to own technical architecture, drive engineering decisions, and collaborate with cross-functional stakeholders. This position balances hands-on engineering and architecture with technical leadership, mentoring, and planning, offering the opportunity to influence the direction of a complex enterprise platform. What the Right Candidate Will Enjoy: Taking ownership of the technical direction and architecture of a large-scale enterprise application within the financial services industry. Remaining hands-on with Java and Spring Boot development while leading and mentoring a team of software engineers. Designing and developing backend microservices, REST APIs, and business logic within a modern AWS cloud environment. Leading application modernization initiatives, including framework upgrades, architectural improvements, and technical debt reduction. Collaborating with product teams, engineering leadership, and business stakeholders to translate requirements into scalable technical solutions. What Type of Experience Does the Right Candidate Have:12+ years of professional software development experience, including at least 3 years in a technical lead, lead engineer, or similar leadership capacity. Expert-level hands-on experience with Java and Spring Boot, including backend development, microservices architecture, REST APIs, and complex enterprise applications. Strong experience developing and deploying applications in AWS, including ECS/Fargate, EC2, Lambda, API Gateway, RDS/Aurora, SQS, and S3.Experience with PostgreSQL, SQL, Hibernate/JPA, and Liquibase, along with Docker, CI/CD pipelines, GitLab CI or Jenkins. Demonstrated experience owning system-level architecture, making technical decisions, mentoring developers, conducting code reviews, and guiding engineering teams while remaining hands-on. Strong communication and problem-solving skills, with experience collaborating with product teams and business stakeholders to translate requirements into technical solutions. Experience with Elasticsearch or AWS OpenSearch is highly preferred; familiarity with Angular/TypeScript, IAM technologies (Active Directory, LDAP, PingOne), or regulated financial environments is a plus. What the Responsibilities Are of the Right Candidate: Lead the design, development, and modernization of enterprise-scale backend applications using Java, Spring Boot, microservices, and AWS.Serve as the primary technical lead for the engineering team, providing architectural direction, mentoring developers, conducting code reviews, and guiding technical execution. Remain actively involved in hands-on development, building business logic, REST APIs, and microservices that support critical identity and access management functionality. Own technical architecture decisions, establish engineering standards, and lead modernization efforts involving framework upgrades, scalability improvements, and technical debt reduction. Develop, deploy, and support cloud-native applications within AWS while working with PostgreSQL, database migrations, Docker, and CI/CD pipelines. Collaborate with product teams, business stakeholders, and other engineering groups to define requirements, evaluate technical solutions, and ensure successful project delivery. Drive continuous improvement across application performance, security, reliability, and software quality while supporting identity platform modernization initiatives.

Before you apply

Applying takes about a minute. These four things decide how fast it moves after that.

Your profile is current

It's what we read first. Occupations, seniority and locations matter more than a long history.

Two examples you can talk through

Not a portfolio — just two pieces of work where you can explain the decisions and what you'd change.

A number in mind

What you're on now and what would make you move. We negotiate better when we know both.

Your notice period

Employers plan around it, and it's the question that stalls offers most often.

Once you apply, someone reads it and calls you before anything reaches the employer — usually within two working days.

More like this