Lead Software Engineer (Java/Azure) at Amber Labs, Remote, £Contract Rate

Lead Software Engineer (Java/Azure)

Location: Remote

Work Pattern: Contract

The Company:

At Amber Labs, we are a cutting-edge UK and European technology consultancy that prioritises empowering autonomy, promoting experimentation, and facilitating rapid learning to provide exceptional value to our clients. Our company culture is centred around collaboration, where all colleagues, regardless of their role, work together to minimise risk and shorten delivery times. Our team consists of highly-skilled cross-functional consultants, analysts, and support staff.

The Role:

We are seeking a Lead Software Engineer with expertise in Java, SQL, and Azure to provide technical leadership and guide a team in delivering high-quality cloud-native applications. The ideal candidate will have experience working with containerized environments, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud infrastructure while mentoring and leading engineering teams.

You will play a key role in architectural decision-making, driving best practices, and ensuring the successful delivery of scalable, high-performance applications. Experience with Kafka and Kong is a plus but not mandatory.

Key Responsibilities:

Technical Leadership: Lead a team of engineers, providing guidance on software development best practices.

Software Development: Design, develop, and maintain Java-basedapplications with optimized SQL database integration.

Cloud Infrastructure: Architect, deploy, and manage applications on Azure using Kubernetes and containerization.

CI/CD & DevOps: Streamline development workflows by implementing GitLab-based CI/CD pipelines.

Team Mentorship: Mentor junior and mid-level engineers, fostering a culture of learning and growth.

Architecture & Design: Make key technical decisions on system architecture, scalability, and security.

Agile Collaboration: Work closely with Product Owners, DevOps, and other stakeholders to align engineering efforts with business goals.

Performance Optimization: Ensure applications are built with efficiency, scalability, and security in mind.

Optional: Work with Kafka for event-driven architectures and Kong API Gateway for API management.

Requirements:

Proven leadership experience as a Lead Engineer or Senior Software Engineer.

Strong Java development skills, with experience in designing scalable applications.

Expertise in SQL and database optimization techniques.

Azure cloud experience, including deploying and managing cloud-native applications.

Hands-on experience with Kubernetes and containerization.

Strong understanding of GitLab for CI/CD and version control.

Ability to mentor engineers, conduct code reviews, and set engineering best practices.

Strong problem-solving and decision-making skills, with the ability to guide technical teams effectively.

Excellent communication skills, with the ability to work with stakeholders at all levels.

Nice-to-Have:

Experience with Kafka for messaging and event-driven architectures.

Familiarity with Kong API Gateway for managing and securing APIs.

Exposure to microservices architecture and cloud-native development best practices.

Previous experience working in public sector or consulting environments.