**This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for a Staff Backend Engineer based in South Africa.** This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced backend engineer to take ownership of large-scale systems powering a global workforce platform. In this role, you will design, build, and evolve backend services while contributing to architectural decisions and long-term technical strategy. You will work across Python and Java ecosystems, helping modernize existing systems and introduce scalable engineering practices. As a senior technical leader, you will influence product direction, mentor engineers, and collaborate with international teams in a fully remote environment. The position offers significant autonomy, technical depth, and the chance to solve complex challenges impacting businesses worldwide. If you enjoy building reliable systems, driving engineering excellence, and owning products from concept to delivery, this role provides a high-impact opportunity. ### Accountabilities - Design, develop, maintain, and improve backend services using technologies such as Python, Java, Spring Boot, FastAPI, PostgreSQL, and Kafka. - Take ownership of backend architecture decisions, defining sustainable solutions, domain boundaries, and appropriate distributed system patterns. - Support the strategic evolution of existing systems by improving legacy architecture and gradually transitioning components toward modern solutions. - Collaborate closely with product, design, operations, and engineering teams to build reliable products that solve real customer challenges. - Drive engineering best practices including test-driven development, continuous delivery, API-first design, and site reliability principles. - Contribute as a technical leader by reviewing code, sharing knowledge, mentoring engineers, and promoting high-quality development standards. - Improve system performance, scalability, reliability, and maintainability across globally distributed services. - Participate in technical discussions and help shape engineering culture through collaboration, documentation, and continuous improvement initiatives. ## Requirements - 8+ years of professional backend software development experience with a strong track record of building scalable systems. - Advanced experience with Python frameworks such as Django, FastAPI, Flask, or similar technologies. - Strong professional experience with Java, ideally using Spring Boot. - Experience designing and consuming RESTful APIs and working with modern backend architectures. - Strong knowledge of relational databases including PostgreSQL or MySQL, with exposure to NoSQL databases considered an advantage. - Experience with unit testing, integration testing, and test-driven development practices. - Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines, Git workflows, and modern software delivery practices. - Deep understanding of microservices architecture, distributed systems, cloud environments, and scalability challenges. - Experience with cloud platforms such as AWS is preferred. - Excellent problem-solving abilities, attention to technical quality, and strong written and verbal communication skills in English. - Ability to mentor engineers, influence technical decisions, and collaborate effectively with both technical and non-technical stakeholders. ## Benefits - Fully remote position with flexibility to work from South Africa. - Opportunity to build and scale products used in a global business environment. - High level of ownership, autonomy, and influence over technical decisions. - Exposure to international engineering teams and modern software development practices. - Opportunity to work on complex backend challenges involving distributed systems and cloud technologies. - Strong culture focused on ownership, trust, transparency, collaboration, and customer impact. - Chance to contribute to meaningful products that are transforming how organizations operate globally. **How Jobgether works:** We use an **AI-powered matching process** to ensure your application is reviewed quickly, objectively, and fairly against the role's core requirements. Our system identifies the top-fitting candidates, and this shortlist is then shared directly with the hiring company. The final decision and next steps (interviews, assessments) are managed by their internal team. We appreciate your interest and wish you the best! [Why Apply Through Jobgether?](https://jobgether.com/how-jobgether-works) **Data Privacy Notice:** By submitting your application, you acknowledge that Jobgether will process your personal data to evaluate your candidacy and share relevant information with the hiring employer. This processing is based on legitimate interest and pre-contractual measures under applicable data protection laws (including GDPR). You may exercise your rights (access, rectification, erasure, objection) at any time. #LI-CL1