Lead Java Engineer
3 days ago
Manchester
. Lead Full-Stack Software EngineerTier 1 Investment & Business Banking Location: Manchester (Hybrid)Engagement: Contract-to-PermanentRate: Inside IR35 via Umbrella Overview A leading Tier 1 financial institution is expanding its Manchester technology hub and seeks an experienced Lead Full-Stack Software Engineer to play a pivotal role in the transformation of its digital business banking platforms. This position offers a rare opportunity to enter on a high-value contract while transitioning into a permanent senior leadership role within a globally recognised organisation. The successful candidate will combine technical authority, architectural vision, and people leadership in a complex, regulated environment. Key ResponsibilitiesTechnical & Modernisation Leadership • Lead the modernisation of large-scale legacy systems, transitioning from monolithic architectures to scalable, API-driven microservices., • Drive architectural best practices across performance, reliability, security, and maintainability.Engineering Leadership & Delivery, • Provide hands-on technical leadership while mentoring and managing a large offshore engineering team (20+ developers)., • Own engineering standards, code quality, and delivery outcomes across distributed teams.Cloud & Platform Transformation, • Oversee the migration of enterprise platforms from legacy middleware (e.g., WebSphere) to containerised Kubernetes environments across GCP, AWS, or internal cloud platforms (IKP)., • Champion DevOps practices, automation, and CI/CD maturity.Stakeholder & Architecture Engagement, • Act as a senior technical interface between engineering, architecture, product, and business stakeholders., • Translate complex regulatory and financial requirements into low-level technical designs and implementation plans.Full-Stack Development Leadership, • Design and build secure, high-performance applications using Java 17+, Spring Boot, and Angular., • Set standards for frontend engineering, API design, and backend service orchestration.Data & Platform Evolution, • Support the modernisation of legacy SDLC tooling and data platforms., • Lead or contribute to complex data migrations, including Elasticsearch upgrades and distributed data pipelines.Technology StackBackend, • Java 17+, Spring Framework, Spring Boot, • Microservices & RESTful API designFrontend, • Angular, TypeScript, • HTML5, CSS3, SASSCloud, DevOps & Infrastructure, • Kubernetes (GKE / IKP / AWS EKS), • Docker, Terraform, • CI/CD: GitHub Actions, JenkinsMessaging, Streaming & ETL, • Apache Kafka, • Apache Flink, Apache Beam, • RedisDatabases, • PostgreSQL, • Oracle, • MongoDBSecurity & Compliance, • OAuth 2.0, Okta, • Enterprise security scanning: Checkmarx, Aqua Security, • Strong understanding of banking-grade security and regulatory control frameworksCandidate ProfileExperience & Background, • Proven experience within Tier 1 financial institutions (e.g. Goldman Sachs, HSBC, Barclays, or equivalent)., • 20+ years' experience in enterprise Java and web-based platforms.Leadership & Influence, • Demonstrated success leading large engineering teams across onshore and offshore models., • Strong ability to coach, mentor, and develop senior engineers while influencing technical strategy.Technical Excellence, • Deep expertise in Agile delivery (Scrum/Kanban), TDD, and enterprise design patterns., • Track record of delivering complex system transformations in regulated environments.Education, • MSc in International Banking & Finance and/or, • BSc in Computer Information Systems (or equivalent)Why Join?, • Play a visible leadership role in large-scale digital transformation, • Transition from contract flexibility to permanent leadership, • Work within a globally recognised Tier 1 banking environment, • Influence architecture, people, and platform strategy at enterprise scale