Principal Java Engineer – up to £105k + Bonus (Hybrid)

About the role

We are looking for a Principal Java Engineer to lead the design and delivery of large‑scale, cloud‑native platforms used by millions of customers. You will shape engineering strategy, drive technical excellence and work closely with senior stakeholders to align technology with business goals.

Key responsibilities

• Define and evolve engineering standards, best practices and technical strategy across multiple teams.
• Lead technical direction for on‑shore and offshore engineering groups, ensuring high‑availability and scalability.
• Design, oversee and deliver distributed systems using Java, Spring Boot, Kafka and AWS.
• Provide expert guidance on architectural risk, prioritisation and technical decisions.
• Champion DevOps, CI/CD, automation and modern engineering practices.
• Leverage AI and intelligent automation to improve productivity.
• Mentor staff engineers and foster a strong engineering culture.

Required profile

• Extensive hands‑on experience with Java, Spring Boot, micro‑services and Kafka.
• Proven track record delivering high‑performance, scalable systems on AWS.
• Experience managing on‑shore and offshore development teams.
• Strong leadership, mentoring and stakeholder‑engagement abilities.
• Deep understanding of software architecture and engineering standards.

Required skills

• Java
• Spring Boot
• Microservices
• Kafka
• AWS
• DevOps
• CI/CD
• Automation

What we offer

• Competitive salary up to £105,000 per year.
• Performance‑based bonus and comprehensive benefits.
• Hybrid working model (2 days onsite per week).
• Opportunity to influence technology strategy at a global organisation.