System Engineer- Platform/API Gateway

The Systems Engineer Platform - API Gateway is responsible for developing, managing, and optimizing enterprise API platforms using both Apigee and Kong. This role ensures secure, scalable, and highly available API traffic across cloud and on-prem environments, supporting enterprise integration and modernization initiatives. The engineer will operate and evolve a dual-gateway strategy, supporting Apigee (cloud-native) and Kong (on-prem / hybrid / cloud), while enabling standardization, observability, and long-term migration.

This is an on-site position located in Springfield, MO.

Responsibilities and Duties:

API Design & Engineering
Design and build secure, high-performance APIs for distributed systems. Define API specifications (OpenAPI/Swagger), enforce consistent standards, and implement traffic management (rate limiting, transformations, logging). Develop API functionality in Java/Python, integrate with microservices and third-party systems, and optimize for Google Cloud Platform services (Cloud Functions, Run, Pub/Sub, Storage).

API Platform Administration (Apigee & Kong)
Manage API gateways (Apigee X, Kong) including proxies, portals, and platform infrastructure across cloud and hybrid environments. Monitor performance, troubleshoot issues, and optimize reliability, latency, and scalability. Develop custom policies/plugins and improve developer onboarding through well-designed portals and documentation.

Infrastructure as Code & CI/CD
Automate infrastructure with Terraform and build CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins) for API proxies and gateway configurations. Support secure, multi-environment deployments with integrated testing, approvals, rollback, and connections to Git, secrets management, and artifact repositories. Leverage Google Cloud Platform tools for scalable pipeline operations.

Security Engineering & Compliance
Implement API security using OAuth2, JWT, SAML, and API keys, integrated with identity providers (Okta, Azure AD). Enforce compliance (PCI, SOC2, HIPAA), apply OWASP best practices, and adopt Zero Trust principles using mTLS, IAM, and network controls to protect data and access.

Observability & Optimization
Monitor APIs using tools like Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, and Google Cloud Platform observability services. Track performance metrics, detect anomalies, and optimize latency and reliability. Define alerts, automate remediation, support on-call operations, and lead incident analysis.

Collaboration & Leadership
Work across architecture, DevOps, and security teams to ensure aligned API design and governance. Mentor engineers, promote API-first development, and contribute to design reviews, resilience testing, and product alignment.

Lifecycle & Governance
Manage the full API lifecycle from design to retirement. Maintain API catalogs, enforce governance standards (naming, access, SLAs), and ensure alignment with Google Cloud Platform policies and audit requirements.

Innovation & Continuous Improvement
Stay current with API and cloud trends, evaluate new tools, and lead PoCs to improve performance, security, and developer experience. Continuously refine services for better scalability and reuse.

Skills:

Required:

• 3+ years in software engineering, platform development, or systems integration, with strong backend and cloud-native architecture experience.
• 2+ years specializing in API management using Apigee (Edge/X) and Kong, including proxy development, policies, security, and traffic management.
• Proven ability to design and implement RESTful and event-driven APIs, integrating Java/Python services within microservices and DevOps environments.
• Hands-on experience with Google Cloud Platform (Cloud Run, Functions, Pub/Sub, Logging, IAM) and deploying/managing APIs in Apigee X.
• 3+ years working with Apigee (Edge/X) and strong experience with Kong API Gateway, including proxy development, custom policies, and managing multiple gateways in parallel.
• Expertise in designing scalable, secure RESTful APIs using OpenAPI/Swagger, with strong knowledge of versioning, rate limiting, quotas, and caching.
• Advanced programming skills in Java and Python for backend services, integrations, and gateway extensions (Node.js/scripting as a plus).
• Hands-on experience with Google Cloud Platform services (Apigee X, Cloud Run, Functions, Pub/Sub, IAM, VPC, Monitoring/Logging) and hybrid/multi-cloud networking.
• Strong DevOps background with CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, Cloud Build), Terraform-based IaC, and Git-driven release workflows.
• Deep understanding of API security (OAuth2, JWT, SAML, API keys), encryption, and compliance standards (PCI, SOC2, HIPAA).
• Experience with observability tools (Cloud Monitoring, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK), including alerting, tracing, dashboards, and RCA.
• Proven ability to integrate APIs with microservices and event-driven systems (e.g., Kafka, Pub/Sub).
• Skilled in API gateway performance tuning, including caching, load balancing, fault tolerance, and low-latency optimization.

Desired:

• Experience with Kubernetes (GKE preferred) and Docker-based containerization, plus familiarity with service meshes like Istio or Linkerd.
• Knowledge of managing and customizing developer portals in Apigee or Kong.
• Exposure to modern API technologies and patterns including GraphQL, gRPC, WebSockets, and asynchronous messaging.
• Experience with advanced API security tools such as Cloud Armor, WAFs, and bot mitigation solutions.
• Proficiency in modern CI/CD tools (GitLab CI, ArgoCD, Spinnaker) and secrets management (HashiCorp Vault, Google Cloud Platform Secret Manager).
• Experience with API testing tools like Postman, SoapUI, ReadyAPI, or Karate.
• Familiarity with observability and tracing tools (OpenTelemetry, Jaeger, Zipkin) and integration with incident response platforms (PagerDuty, Opsgenie).
• Relevant certifications (Google Cloud, Apigee, Professional Cloud Architect, CKA) and industry experience in regulated sectors (e.g., finance, healthcare) with knowledge of standards like GDPR and HIPAA.

O'Reilly Auto Parts has a proven track record of growth and stability. O'Reilly is full of successful career stories and believes in a strong promote-from-within philosophy, encouraging you to grow your career along with the organization.

Total Compensation Package:

• Competitive Wages & Paid Time Off
• Stock Purchase Plan & 401k with Employer Contributions Starting Day One
• Medical, Dental, & Vision Insurance with Optional Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
• Team Member Health/Wellbeing Programs
• Tuition Educational Assistance Programs
• Opportunities for Career Growth

O'Reilly Auto Parts is an equal opportunity employer. The Company does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin or ancestry (including immigration status or citizenship), sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation, and related medical conditions,) age (40 and over), veteran status, uniformed service member status, physical or mental disability, genetic information (including testing or characteristics) or another protected status as defined by local, state, or federal law, as applicable.

Qualified individuals with a disability may be entitled to reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you require a reasonable accommodation during the application or employment process, please send an email to: or call option , and provide your requested accommodation, and position details.