[Remote] Senior Software Engineer II

Note: The job is a remote job and is open to candidates in USA. IBM is hiring a Senior Software Engineer II to lead development of cloud-native Stream Governance services for Confluent’s data streaming platform. The role focuses on architecting and operating scalable, highly available backend systems, providing technical leadership, and mentoring engineers.

Responsibilities

• Develop and architect the cloud-native Stream Governance platform - a multi-tenant, highly available, and scalable service for Kafka and real-time data
• Own and lead the end-to-end design and implementation of complex backend services within a cloud-native, microservices-based environment
• Drive projects from requirements and design through implementation, rollout, and ongoing operation in production
• Make architecture and technical decisions that thoughtfully balance reliability, scalability, performance, and operability
• Solve complicated technical projects with high quality, provide specialized technical guidance to the team, and mentor/support other engineers through code reviews and design reviews
• Evaluate and enhance the efficiency of our platform's technology stack, ensuring we keep pace with industry trends and adopt state-of-the-art solutions
• Take responsibility for developing, managing, and maintaining a mission-critical service with a 99.99 SLA running across 100+ AWS, GCP, and Azure regions
• Partner across engineering and with other key stakeholders to create and execute the overall roadmap for delivering a top-notch Data Streaming Platform
• Contribute to a culture of continuous improvement, inclusive collaboration, and high technical standards

Skills

• Bachelor's Degree
• 8+ years of industry experience designing, building, scaling, and operating backend systems in production
• Deep proficiency in at least one major backend programming language (e.g., Java, Go, C/C++, or Python) and strong fundamentals in data structures, algorithms, and system design
• Hands-on experience with distributed systems, such as event-driven architectures, high-throughput services, or large-scale data pipelines. A strong understanding of consistency, fault tolerance, and performance tradeoffs
• Strong experience running production services in a public cloud (AWS, GCP, or Azure), including containerized workloads (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes)
• Expertise in cloud-native technology, including networking & security, and experience being part of an on-call rotation
• Proven experience in leading and mentoring technical teams
• A track record of technical leadership: driving projects, influencing architecture, and coordinating work across multiple engineers or teams
• Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to align stakeholders, explain complex ideas clearly, and drive decisions
• BS, MS, or PhD in computer science, engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience
• IBM will not be providing visa sponsorship for this position now or in the future. Therefore, in order to be considered for this position, you must have the ability to work without a need for current or future visa sponsorship
• Master's Degree
• Experience building or operating mission-critical, multi-tenant, or multi-region services with strict availability and latency requirements
• Familiarity with data streaming technologies such as Apache Kafka, Flink, or similar systems
• Demonstrated impact beyond your immediate team, such as driving cross-org initiatives or technical vision
• Contributions to open source, technical writing, or speaking that showcase technical depth

Benefits

• Remote work arrangement
• Healthcare benefits including medical & prescription drug coverage, dental, vision, and mental health & well being
• Financial programs such as 401(k), cash balance pension plan, the IBM Employee Stock Purchase Plan, financial counseling, life insurance, short & long- term disability coverage
• Opportunities for performance based salary incentive programs
• Paid time off including 12 holidays, minimum 56 hours sick time, 120 hours vacation, 12 weeks parental bonding leave in accordance with IBM Policy, and other Paid Care Leave programs
• Paid family leave benefits to eligible employees where required by applicable law
• Training and educational resources on our personalized, AI-driven learning platform, including industry-recognized certifications
• Diverse and inclusive employee resource groups
• Giving & volunteer opportunities
• Discounts on retail products, services & experiences

Company Overview