Engineering Lead - Payments & AI Enabled SDLC

About the Role We are seeking an experienced Engineering Lead to help shape the next stage of our payments technology platform and software delivery model. This is a hands-on role that combines active software development, technical leadership, team development, and AI-enabled software delivery. The ideal candidate will lead by example through code, strengthen engineering practices across a distributed team, mentor engineers, and help define practical, responsible AI-assisted and agentic SDLC practices across requirements, design, development, testing, code review, release readiness, and production support. Why This Role Matters This is a high-impact opportunity for an engineering leader who wants to influence how a growing fintech technology organization builds, tests, releases, and operates modern payment platforms. You will help shape engineering standards, guide rising engineers, modernize delivery practices, and define how AI-enabled software delivery is adopted in a practical, secure, and responsible way. Key Responsibilities Lead and mentor engineers while coordinating effectively across distributed teams and multiple time zones Remain hands-on with coding, design, debugging, troubleshooting, and implementation while using those contributions to set quality standards and guide the team Model strong technical ownership by creating clarity, driving decisions, removing ambiguity, communicating proactively, and helping the team consistently deliver production-ready solutions Coach engineers through architecture, design, implementation, testing, code review, and production support while helping them grow in technical judgment and ownership Help size, decompose, and sequence engineering work, then coach the team to improve its own estimation, planning, and delivery confidence over time Design and build scalable, secure, cloud-native payments platform capabilities using Java, AWS, microservices, event-driven architecture, and serverless technologies Partner with engineering, product, architecture, DevOps, QA, and technology leadership to shape the technical roadmap for payments platforms, integrations, modernization efforts, and delivery practices Strengthen delivery and release practices through strong hands-on usage of Git branching methodologies, source control hygiene, Jira traceability, CI/CD collaboration, deployment readiness, and reliable production cutovers Champion AI-assisted and agentic SDLC practices, including spec-driven development, AI supported requirements clarification, design documentation, code generation, test creation, code review, documentation automation, and release readiness Collaborate with QA and DevOps to shift quality earlier in the SDLC through test strategy, automation, observability, CI/CD practices, and production readiness reviews Contribute to secure, resilient, and reliable financial technology systems through strong engineering practices, root cause analysis, technical debt management, and continuous improvement Required Qualifications 10+ years of software engineering experience, with strong Java experience and working knowledge of modern backend languages such as Node.js, Python, or JavaScript Strong hands-on coding ability with the expectation to contribute directly to design, development, debugging, and technical problem solving 5+ years in a technical leadership role leading distributed engineering teams and influencing delivery across multiple functions Demonstrated ability to model ownership through leadership by example, clear communication, practical decision-making, and strong technical judgment Experience mentoring engineers and improving team capability through design reviews, code reviews, pairing, engineering standards, and practical coaching Experience helping teams estimate, size, break down, and sequence technical work while improving their ability to plan independently Experience designing and operating cloud-native systems on AWS, including services such as Lambda, Step Functions, ECS/EKS, S3, RDS, and related platform services Strong understanding of microservices, event-driven architecture, serverless patterns, APIs, high-availability systems, and resilient transaction processing Experience in financial services, B2B payments, commercial card, virtual card, settlement, reconciliation, processor/acquirer integrations, or related regulated technology environments Strong understanding and practical usage experience with Git branching methodologies, release management, Jira-based planning, CI/CD practices, and traceability from requirements through deployment Experience applying AI-assisted development tools, coding copilots, or agentic engineering workflows in a professional software delivery environment Excellent communication skills with the ability to create clarity, drive alignment, and coordinate work across Product, QA, DevOps, business stakeholders, and offshore teams Proven track record of delivering complex, mission-critical systems in a secure, reliable, and production-focused environment Preferred Qualifications Knowledge of payment protocols and networks such as ISO 20022, SWIFT, ACH, card networks, processor integrations, or acquirer integrations Experience with workflow orchestration, event sourcing, distributed systems, and high-volume transaction platforms Familiarity with observability tools such as Datadog, CloudWatch, or similar platforms Experience with infrastructure as code using Terraform, CloudFormation, or similar tooling Exposure to Salesforce, CRM integrations, customer onboarding workflows, or enterprise workflow automation Understanding of security, compliance, vendor risk, and responsible AI considerations in a financial technology environment Technical Environment Languages: Java primary, with Node.js, Python, and JavaScript as complementary backend and automation languages Cloud & Platform: AWS, Lambda, Step Functions, ECS/EKS, S3, RDS, Kubernetes, and cloud native architecture Architecture: Microservices, event-driven architecture, APIs, serverless patterns, distributed systems, and resilient transaction processing Delivery & Release: Git branching methodologies, source control hygiene, Jira traceability, CI/CD pipelines, deployment readiness, release management, and production support Payments & Integrations: B2B payments, commercial card, virtual card, settlement, reconciliation, processor/acquirer integrations, and related fintech workflows AI-Enabled SDLC: AI-assisted development, agentic workflows, spec-driven development, documentation automation, test generation, code review support, engineering productivity, and responsible AI guardrails