Staff Engineer (Java) - DUBAI

We are looking for a Staff SDE – Java Backend who will serve as a technical leader, driving architectural direction, multi-team initiatives, and the development of highly scalable distributed systems. You will partner with Product, Architecture, DevOps and cross-functional engineering teams to deliver impactful technology solutions across a complex digital ecosystem.

You will independently define and deliver large-scale, multi-phase projects, mentor engineers, and shape technical strategy. The role also includes leveraging LLMs and GenAI-driven tools to enhance engineering productivity, reduce cycle time, and build the next generation of internal developer experience tools.

RESPONSIBILITIES

Technical Leadership

· Drive technical strategy and architecture for complex distributed systems and core platform components.

· Own end-to-end delivery of high-impact, multi-team engineering initiatives.

· Translate ambiguous business requirements into clear, pragmatic technical solutions.

· Define technical roadmaps, sequence projects into phases, and ensure timely execution across teams.

Software Engineering & System Design

· Architect, develop, and optimize microservices using Java, Spring Boot, Spring Cloud.

· Design scalable, resilient, secure cloud-native applications using Azure/AWS.

· Lead system design reviews, architecture discussions, and technical deep dives.

· Solve complex cross-system issues through deep debugging, performance tuning, and root cause analysis.

· Build frameworks and shared libraries to accelerate development across squads.

AI & Engineering Productivity

· Champion adoption of AI-assisted development practices and LLM/GenAI tools across engineering teams to enhance workflows, improve cycle time, and automate routine tasks.

· Define clear guidelines, training, and standards for effective and secure use of AI tools, including prompt engineering, code generation, and review expectations.

· Integrate AI-driven capabilities such as code generation, unit test creation, log analysis, documentation summarization, and code review assistance into the development workflow.

· Establish and enforce engineering best practices for AI-generated code, including human-in-the-loop reviews, coding standards, test automation, secure coding, and design-first development.

· Measure and optimize engineering productivity using AI-related metrics (cycle time, PR throughput, AI-code adoption, defect escape rate, developer satisfaction) and continuously identify opportunities to reduce bottlenecks with AI.

Collaboration & Cross-Functional Impact

· Work closely with Product Owners, Architects, QE, DevOps, and peer engineering teams.

· Communicate technical trade-offs, risks, and decisions clearly to non-technical stakeholders.

· Coordinate across teams to resolve dependencies and align on architectural standards.

· Influence technical direction beyond your immediate team.

Team Leadership & Mentoring

· Mentor engineers across multiple teams, guiding them in design, coding, debugging, and best practices.

· Participate actively in hiring and talent development.

· Raise the engineering bar through code reviews, design critiques, and technical leadership.

· Help define and uphold engineering best practices, coding standards, and architectural principles.

Ownership & Operational Excellence

· Take full ownership of systems from development to deployment, monitoring, and maintenance.

· Ensure engineering deliverables meet performance, reliability, and security criteria.

· Proactively identify areas for improvement and propose scalable, maintainable solutions.

· Lead incident response, post-mortems, and continuous improvement initiatives.

SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS

Must-Have

· 10+ years of professional experience in Java Backend Development.

· Deep expertise in Java, J2EE, Spring, Spring Boot, Spring Cloud, and building microservices-based architectures.

· Proven experience shipping scalable, high-availability, high-performance systems in a microservices environment, including load handling, horizontal scaling, observability, and fault-tolerant design.

· Experience with Kafka, JMS, distributed system patterns, caching, asynchronous processing.

· Hands-on experience with Docker, Kubernetes / OpenShift, and CI/CD pipelines.

· Strong knowledge of working with databases: Oracle, MySQL, MongoDB, Cassandra, etc.

· Experience designing and scaling systems on Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud.

· Excellent problem-solving skills, debugging capabilities, and system-level thinking.

· Strong communication skills, both verbal and written.

· Ability to lead teams, influence stakeholders, and drive technical initiatives.

Good-to-Have

· Experience applying LLMs/GenAI to improve engineering productivity and developer workflows.

· Prompt engineering experience and familiarity with integrating models into applications.

· Experience with Domain-Driven Design, event-driven systems, CQRS, or enterprise integration patterns.

· Familiarity with Linux systems and container-based deployment architectures.

· Experience with application servers such as Tomcat.

· Contributions to internal platforms or open-source projects.

Personal Attributes

· Strong leadership qualities with the ability to influence without authority.

· High levels of self-motivation, ownership, and drive.

· Critical thinking abilities and a strong problem-solving mindset.

· Excellent team collaboration skills and a positive, proactive attitude.

· Adaptability, willingness to learn, and continuous improvement mindset.

· Ability to work under pressure and handle multiple competing priorities effectively.