Associate Director Staff Engineer

Key Responsibilities (Top 5) Architecture Design & Domain-Aligned SolutionsDefine and evolve scalable, resilient architectures for communication platforms supporting customer engagement (voice, messaging, digital channels)Design solutions aligned to industry-specific requirements:Financial Services: security, compliance, auditabilityCommunications: real-time processing, high availabilityMarTech: personalization, event-driven engagementEnsure alignment with enterprise target-state architecture and platform strategy Hands-on Engineering (≈50%)Design and implement backend services, APIs, and integration layersBuild and deploy applications using containerized environments and Kubernetes orchestrationDevelop production-grade code, prototypes, and reference implementations API, Data & Integration ArchitectureArchitect API-first ecosystems, including GraphQL and RESTful servicesDesign event-driven and streaming architectures to support real-time communication and marketing workflowsIntegrate with enterprise platforms such as:CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce)Contact center / CPaaS platformsMarketing automation and customer data platforms Cross-functional Leadership & InfluenceCollaborate with engineering, product, and enterprise architecture teams to ensure solution alignment and executionAct as a thought partner, introducing innovative approaches and improving system design qualityInfluence decisions across teams without formal authority Standards, Governance & Continuous ImprovementEstablish and enforce architecture standards, reusable patterns, and engineering guardrailsDrive simplification, scalability, and reduction of technical debtEvaluate emerging technologies and recommend pragmatic adoption aligned to business value Technical Skills Required Skills & Experience Strong expertise in backend architecture and distributed systems designHands-on experience with:Kubernetes and containerization (Docker, orchestration patterns)GraphQL and modern API architectures (REST, event-driven systems)Microservices and cloud-native platformsObservability: Distributed tracing (X-Ray/OpenTelemetry), structured logging, metrics/alerting pipelines.Messaging & Orchestration: SQS/EventBridge or equivalents (Pub/Sub, Service Bus); DLQs; workflow engines.CI/CD: Automated pipelines with tools including Github Actions, Jenkins or equivalent experienceExperience building or supporting real-time or high-throughput systemsProficiency in backend technologies (e.g., Java, Kotlin, Node.js, Go, or similar)Bachelor's Degree in Information systems, Computer Science or a related field. Domain Experience (Preferred) Candidates should have experience in one or more of the following: Financial ServicesSecure, compliant systems (PII, PCI, regulatory constraints)Transactional platforms (payments, lending, servicing)Communications / MarTech / Contact CenterLow-latency, high-availability distributed systemsPersonalization engines, campaign orchestrationVoice, messaging, IVR, or omnichannel engagement platforms Architecture & Engineering Capabilities Ability to operate across strategic architecture and hands-on implementationStrong grounding in:scalability, resiliency, and performance engineeringAPI lifecycle and governancesystem integration and orchestration patternsExperience aligning solutions to enterprise target-state architecture Personal Attributes Self-starter: Proactively drives outcomes with minimal oversightThought provocateur: Challenges existing paradigms and elevates architectural thinkingCollaborative: Builds alignment across engineering, product, and architecture teamsPragmatic: Balances long-term vision with near-term delivery needsInfluential communicator: Clearly conveys complex technical concepts to varied stakeholders