Tech Lead - Java

Location: Lisbon

Model: Hybrid - 2 times a week at Lisbon's office | Availability for monthly travel to Watford

Duration: 12+ months

Languages: English (mandatory)

Engagement: Full-time consulting

Seniority: Tech Lead / Senior Java Engineer

Industry: Gaming / Lottery / Digital Platforms

About the Role

We are seeking an experienced Tech Lead - Java to join our engineering team. This role requires a strong technical leader capable of driving architectural decisions, mentoring developers, ensuring code quality, and contributing hands-on to backend development using modern Java frameworks. The Tech Lead will collaborate with Product Owners, Architects, Senior Developers, and QA teams to design, build, and maintain highly scalable and reliable backend services.

Main Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

• Lead and mentor a team of Java developers across multiple workstreams.

• Provide technical guidance, code review, and best-practice enforcement (coding standards, testing, architecture).

• Coordinate with solution architects to ensure alignment on system design.

• Drive technical decision-making and ensure platform scalability and maintainability.

Software Design & Development

• Lead the design of backend components in Java, Spring, Spring Boot, Hibernate/JPA.

• Develop new modules, APIs, and integrations in a large-scale distributed environment.

• Ensure the implementation of robust and efficient solutions aligned with business needs.

• Maintain and improve existing features, ensuring optimal performance.

Architecture & Integration

• Translate functional requirements into technical specifications.

• Oversee integration with Oracle and MySQL databases.

• Design RESTful services following best security and performance practices.

• Ensure compatibility with frontend, middleware, and third-party services.

Quality & Delivery

• Ensure high quality through automated tests, CI/CD, and code reviews.

• Collaborate with QA to guarantee full traceability of requirements → features → test cases.

• Use Azure DevOps for backlog management, pipelines, and documentation.

Cross-Team Collaboration

• Act as the bridge between engineering, product, QA, and business teams.

• Contribute to sprint planning, backlog refinement, and architectural discussions.

• Coordinate with internal engineering teams distributed globally.

Key Requirements

Core Technical Skills

• 8+ years of professional experience in Backend Java Development.

• Strong expertise in:

  • Java (8+)

  • Spring & Spring Boot

  • Hibernate / JPA

  • REST APIs

  • SQL databases (Oracle, MySQL)

• Solid experience designing scalable backend systems.

• Familiarity with CI/CD tools and version control (Git, Jenkins, etc.).

• Experience with cloud environments (Azure or AWS) is a plus.

Technical Leadership

• Previous experience leading small teams or acting as senior reference developer.

• Strong knowledge of software architecture, patterns, and best practices.

• Ability to guide developers through complex debugging and architectural challenges.

Soft Skills

• Strong communication skills and ability to work with cross-functional teams.

• Ownership mindset with a proactive approach.

• Fluent in English (mandatory).

• Ability to collaborate in an international environment.

Nice to Have

• Knowledge of Scala or other JVM languages.

• Experience with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes).

• Familiarity with gaming or high-transaction environments.

• Exposure to Agile methodologies (Scrum).

Other Details

This is a hybrid role based in Lisbon with a requirement for remote collaboration and availability for periodic travel to the UK.