Backend Architect/Backend Solutions Architect/Senior Backend Architect/Sr. Backend Architect

Job Title: Backend Architect

Location: Denver, CO (Hybrid)
Duration: Long Term

Job Description:

• We're seeking an experienced hands-on Backend Technical Architect to lead architecture design, technical delivery, and system optimization across our platform.
• This is a hands-on role requiring deep technical expertise, leadership capabilities, and end-to-end ownership of critical systems.

Architecture & Design:

• Design and evolve system architecture for scalability, reliability, and performance
• Create and maintain architectural documentation and technical specifications
• Evaluate and recommend technology stack improvements
• Conduct architecture reviews and provide technical guidance to development teams

Technical Leadership:

• Break down complex initiatives into actionable tasks with clear acceptance criteria
• Provide accurate Level of Effort (LOE) estimates for projects and features
• Mentor and guide junior developers through code reviews and pair programming
• Own end-to-end delivery of critical features and systems
• Establish engineering best practices and coding standards

Problem Solving & Optimization:

• Troubleshoot and resolve critical production issues
• Analyze system bottlenecks and implement performance improvements
• Conduct capacity planning and scaling analysis
• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across the technology stack
• Platform & Infrastructure Optimization
• DynamoDB: Query optimization, indexing strategies, capacity planning, cost optimization
• Kafka: Consumer/producer tuning, partition strategies, throughput optimization, monitoring
• Circuit Breakers: Implement resilience patterns, fault tolerance, and graceful degradation
• TypeScript: Code quality improvements, type safety enhancements, refactoring legacy code
• Performance: Latency reduction, caching strategies, load testing, profiling

Technical Expertise:

• 8+ years of software engineering experience with 3+ years in architecture roles
• Expert-level proficiency in TypeScript/Node.js
• Deep understanding of distributed systems, microservices architecture, and event-driven design
• Production experience with AWS services (DynamoDB, Lambda, ECS, API Gateway, etc.)
• Strong knowledge of Kafka or similar event streaming platforms
• Experience implementing resilience patterns (circuit breakers, retries, bulkheads, timeouts)
• Proficiency in performance profiling, optimization, and scaling strategies

Leadership & Delivery

• Proven track record of owning and delivering complex technical projects
• Experience mentoring developers and conducting technical interviews
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to balance technical excellence with business priorities

Nice to Have:

• Knowledge of observability tools (DataDog, Splunk, New Relic, CloudWatch, Grafana)
• Background in SRE practices and DevOps methodologies
• Experience with GraphQL, REST API design, and API gateway patterns
• Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines and deployment automation
• Experience with infrastructure as code (Terraform, CDK, CloudFormation)

Deliverables & Success Metrics:

• Architectural designs and technical specifications
• Task breakdowns with accurate LOE estimates
• Performance improvement implementations with measurable results
• Reduced system latency and improved throughput
• Mentorship of junior team members with demonstrable skill growth
• Successful delivery of assigned projects within timeline and scope

Education:

• BA/BS in Information Technology, Computer Science, related field or equivalent combination of education and experience