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Backend Java Engineer – Kafka / Distributed Systems Location: Vancouver, BC - Hybrid (3 Days WFO) Key Responsibilities • Design, implement, and optimize backend services handling high-volume data flows with strict performance and reliability requirements. • Develop Java-based components using modern frameworks (Spring/Spring Boot or equivalent). • Build and maintain asynchronous and event-driven workflows using messaging systems such as MQ/Kafka/RabbitMQ. • Implement performance tuning, profiling, and observability to support sub-second latency and 99.99% availability goals. • Drive solutioning and system designs for new features, integrations, and platform enhancements across distributed systems. • Ensure service robustness through automated testing (unit, integration, load tests) and CI/CD workflows. • Apply secure-by-design principles, including threat modeling, safe data handling, API hardening, and least-privilege access. • Implement and support authentication and authorization patterns (e.g., OAuth2, mTLS, JWT, service-to-service auth). • Participate in architecture reviews, offering technical leadership and mentorship to junior engineers. • Diagnose and resolve complex production issues across infrastructure, code, and messaging layers. • Enhance platform reliability via improved logging, monitoring, alerting, and operational tooling. Required Qualifications • 5+ years of hands-on backend development experience in large-scale, high-throughput environments. • Strong proficiency in Java (Java 8+, multithreading, concurrency libraries, performance optimization). • Solid understanding of Linux fundamentals (filesystem, networking basics, shell operations, performance tools). • Extensive experience with Message Queue systems (IBM MQ, Kafka, RabbitMQ, ActiveMQ, etc.). • Deep knowledge of asynchronous programming, non-blocking IO patterns, and event-driven system design. • Good understanding of modern network protocols, including: • gRPC (service-to-service communication, protobuf, streaming patterns) • HTTP/2 (multiplexing, header compression, flow control, performance benefits) • Experience implementing and maintaining CI/CD pipelines and DevOps tooling, including: • Jenkins • Chef Infra / Chef Habitat • Terraform • PCF CLI • Demonstrated ability to design scalable system architectures and evaluate design trade-offs. • Basic understanding of Authentication/Authorization concepts and secure communication patterns. • Familiarity with containerization and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes) is an asset. • Excellent debugging, problem-solving, and performance-profiling skills. Preferred Qualifications • Experience in financial services, real-time scoring, risk systems, or other low-latency domains. • Exposure to observability stacks (Splunk, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK). • Knowledge of DevOps practices, automation, and additional IaC tools. • Hands-on understanding of reliability engineering (circuit breakers, retries, backpressure, failover strategies). • Ability to lead complex technical initiatives and drive cross-team alignment. What We Look For • A strong ownership mindset with a passion for delivering secure, high-quality, and resilient services. • Ability to influence architecture, mentor engineers, and uplift engineering standards. • Strong communication skills and the ability to work in a fast-paced, collaborative environment.
Here's how to pick the right one and stand out in your application.
144.883Jobs
31.687IN
81%EN
That number is real. WorkMundi's database shows 144,883 open engineer roles across the world. India has the most with 31,687 jobs, followed by the United States with 30,084. If you just finished reading one job ad and felt paralyzed by choice, you're not alone—but this scale is actually an advantage. It means you can afford to be selective.
Start by geography and language. The majority of engineer ads—117,837 of them—have the job posting text written in English. Use that as one filter, but remember: the ad text language tells you nothing about whether the role actually requires you to speak English day-to-day. Read the job description carefully. Then check which countries have the volume you're targeting. Singapore, Poland, and Australia round out the top five after India and the US.
Next, learn who's hiring. Accenture has posted 2,801 engineer roles. andurilindustries, speechify, and jobgether are also actively recruiting. If you're applying to one of these names, research their hiring patterns and interview style before you apply. That homework pays off.
When you interview, expect the question every engineer hears: 'Tell me about a time you had to debug a problem that wasn't in your job description.' Have a specific story ready—not a general one. Name the tools, the deadline pressure, and what you learned. Hiring managers listen for whether you see problem-solving as part of the role itself, not a favour.
