{"id":589922,"url":"https://alion.io/job/dvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead","title":"Java Software Engineering - Competency Lead","company":{"id":57384,"name":"DVT","domain":"dvt.co.za","url":"https://alion.io/company/dvt","size_band":"201-500","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"services","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Recruitee","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":88,"open_postings":4,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.5,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":55,"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"}},"role":"Backend","role_family":"Backend","seniority":"lead","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Johannesburg, South Africa"],"countries":["ZA"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":39000,"max_usd":115000,"period":"year","method":"global_role_cell_scaled_by_country","sample_n":1965},"experience_years_min":8,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"Apache Kafka","optional":false},{"name":"AWS","optional":false},{"name":"Azure","optional":false},{"name":"Claude Code","optional":false},{"name":"Copilot","optional":false},{"name":"Cursor","optional":false},{"name":"Docker","optional":false},{"name":"FastAPI","optional":false},{"name":"GCP","optional":false},{"name":"Go","optional":false},{"name":"GraalVM","optional":false},{"name":"GraphQL","optional":false},{"name":"gRPC","optional":false},{"name":"Java","optional":false},{"name":"Kotlin","optional":false},{"name":"Kubernetes","optional":false},{"name":"LLM","optional":false},{"name":"LLM Guardrails","optional":false},{"name":"Nest.JS","optional":false},{"name":"Node JS","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Quarkus","optional":false},{"name":"RAG","optional":false},{"name":"Rest API","optional":false},{"name":"Spring Boot","optional":false},{"name":"JavaScript","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-05-20T13:30:19Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-05-20","last_verified_at":"2026-10-17T21:31:05Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":150,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":0,"flags":[],"days_open":149},"description":"DVT is one of the top software development companies on the continent. Our software engineers are consulting on cutting-edge applications at top companies in South Africa, as well as consulting globally. You will have the opportunity to work alongside some of the most established developers in the country and globally with the latest technologies.\nWe are looking for a senior Java / JVM engineering leader to define, govern, and continuously evolve our Java engineering competency ensuring we consistently deliver high-quality, scalable backend solutions across all client engagements.\nAs the most senior JVM engineer in the organisation, you will set the technical direction for Java engineering, establish and enforce standards, and raise the bar across delivery teams. You will also provide technical oversight across the broader open-source backend strategy, including Node.js, Python, and Go.\nThis is not a delivery management role. You define what good Java engineering looks like and make it the norm.\nRequirements\nWhat You'll Do\nCompetency Strategy & Evolution\nDefine and evolve the Java / JVM engineering strategy, including oversight of Node.js, Python, and Go streams\n\nEstablish and maintain engineering standards, tooling, and best practices\n\nBuild reusable reference architectures and accelerators, including a Java Modernisation accelerator for legacy estates\n\nDrive adoption of AI-assisted development tools and modern engineering practices\n\nTechnical Authority & Quality\nAct as the Java technical authority across all engagements and solution contexts\n\nDefine and govern coding standards, architectural patterns, and quality guardrails\n\nReview and guide architecture decisions across engagements\n\nIntervene in high-risk or technically complex delivery scenarios to protect quality\n\nAI Enablement\nDrive adoption of AI development tools across Java teams\n\nBuild a reference implementation for LLM integration in Java services using LangChain4j (RAG patterns, event-stream integration)\n\nIdentify modern Java approaches that improve delivery speed and reduce technical debt\n\nTalent Development & Mentorship\nDefine Java technical competency standards at each career level (graduate to principal)\n\nProvide structured assessments and development feedback for engineers\n\nIdentify and advocate for engineers with senior or principal potential\n\nHiring & Technical Quality Bar\nAssess candidates on backend fundamentals (distributed systems, API design, database patterns) and Java-specific depth\n\nDefine and maintain technical assessment criteria and coding assessments\n\nProvide clear hire / no-hire recommendations for shortlisted candidates\n\nCommunity & Thought Leadership\nDefine the quarterly Java community of practice agenda\n\nChampion knowledge sharing and sponsor engineers as session contributors\n\nContribute to external thought leadership in Java / JVM engineering\n\nClient & Pre-sales Support\nServe as the Java technical subject matter expert on bids and proposals\n\nDevelop and maintain reusable Java technical assets for proposals\n\nAttend client technical workshops when engineering expertise is needed\n\nInnovation\nIdentify innovation opportunities within the Java stream\n\nOwn the development of Java / JVM accelerators, reference architectures, and reusable delivery assets\n\nContribute technical expertise to new service and product development initiatives\n\nTechnical Skills\nJava / JVM Ecosystem: Spring Boot 3.x, Kotlin, Quarkus, GraalVM, Apache Kafka\n\nAPI Design: REST, GraphQL, gRPC\n\nCloud & Infrastructure: Docker, Kubernetes, AWS / Azure / GCP\n\nEngineering Standards: Defining and enforcing coding standards, architectural patterns, and quality guardrails across multiple teams\n\nAdjacent Stacks: Working knowledge of Node.js / NestJS (BFF patterns), Python / FastAPI (AI service layers), or Go (cloud-native workloads)\n\nAI & LLM Integration: Familiarity with AI-assisted development tools (Copilot, Cursor, Claude Code) and LLM integration using LangChain4j\n\nLeadership Profile\nThis role requires someone who leads through influence rather than authority. You will shape engineering culture, mentor talent from graduate to principal level, and drive adoption of standards across autonomous teams.\nStrategic Thinking: Define technical direction and align the Java competency to business strategy\n\nExecution: Ensure standards are adopted, quality gates are active, and commitments are followed through\n\nInfluence: Drive adoption of engineering practices across teams without direct line authority\n\nCollaboration: Build trust across engineering, delivery, and client-facing teams; enable effective mentorship\n\nExperience & Qualifications\nEducation\nBSc IT, BEng, or equivalent technical degree (beneficial)\n\nCertifications in AWS or relevant cloud platforms\n\nExperience\n8-12+ years in software engineering with a strong Java / JVM focus\n\nProven experience leading an engineering team or technical competency stream\n\nHow Success is Measured\nMaturity and adoption of Java standards and practices across active engagements\n\nProgression and retention of Java engineers through a defined competency framework\n\nQuality of Java technical outcomes on client engagements\n\nAvailability of reusable Java proposal assets and technical input on all Java-relevant bids\n\nDelivery of LangChain4j reference implementation and AI tooling adoption across teams\n\nWhat This Role Is Not\nTo set expectations clearly: this role does not carry delivery accountability or day-to-day project execution. You will not have operational line management of consultants on engagements, nor will you own bid responses, you provide the technical input when called upon.\nWho we are:","description_format":"text","description_chars":5664,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":8,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["IT Consulting & Digital Transformation","Software Testing & QA","Custom Software Development"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-09-10T09:40:41Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":17,"band":"cold","label":"Long shot","p_open":1,"p_active":0.606,"p_room":0.28,"age_days":149,"expected_fill_days":55,"reasons":["conf:0","velocity","win:tail","crowd:"],"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/dvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/dvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-17T21:53:21Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":6651,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-18T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":57384},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=57384"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fdvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fdvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fdvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/dvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fdvt-java-software-engineering-competency-lead"}]}