Staff Engineer – Backend, Java

Fanatics, Inc.

. Drive development, testing, documentation, and deployment of high-quality, scalable software into production .

Posted 11/9/2026full-timeRemote • New York • United StatesLead💰 $144,000 - $235,000 per yearWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

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Demonstrates expertise in building scalable backend distributed systems, with proficiency in Spring, Kotlin, and Java. Strong leadership in driving best practices, mentoring engineers, and collaborating across teams to enhance software quality and operational metrics.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Backend Development Best PracticesSpring Framework ProficiencyAgile Software DeliveryObservability PracticesCross-Functional Collaboration

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

Backend Distributed SystemsKotlinJavaAgile MethodologiesObservabilityCode ReviewsSoftware TestingArchitectural StrategiesEvent-Driven ArchitecturesPerformance Optimization

Soft Skills

Excellent CommunicationTeam-First MentalityMentoringProblem-SolvingAdaptability

Tools & Technologies

KafkaAmazon SQSKubernetesHelmTerraform

Industry Keywords

SportsGamingContent DeliveryHigh-Growth Environment

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

Distributed SystemsJavaKafkaKotlinKubernetesSpringTerraformGo

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Drive development, testing, documentation, and deployment of high-quality, scalable software into production
Develop deep understanding of the industry, product, and roadmap to shape team strategy and organizational direction
Lead end-to-end technical execution of complex features and systems from ideation and architecture through deployment and refinement
Define and enforce engineering principles, guidelines, and best practices
Partner with product, design, and stakeholders on technical decisions aligned with business goals and scalability
Lead incident resolution in the on-call rotation, diagnosing and remediating critical software issues
Identify and remove roadblocks while collaborating across teams on complex projects
Conduct and elevate code reviews
Lead team planning and design discussions and optimize design patterns
Improve software quality, testability, operational metrics, and documentation
Mentor and coach engineers at all levels
Travel occasionally to offices and other locations for conferences, events, meetings, and team-building activities

Requirements

What you’ll need

7+ years of experience building highly scalable, performant and evolvable backend distributed systems
Proficiency in Spring with Kotlin and/or Java is a plus
Demonstrated ability to drive backend development best practices and mentor others in coding and architectural strategies
Knowledge of observability practices, including logging, monitoring, and tracing in distributed systems
Expertise in Agile software delivery and process improvements across teams
Ability to collaborate cross-functionally across diverse teams in large enterprise environments
Excellent communication skills for conveying complex technical concepts to engineers, executives, and non-technical stakeholders
Team-first mentality
Ability to thrive in a high-growth environment with evolving priorities
Preferred: experience in sports, gaming, and content delivery
Preferred: Kotlin, Java and/or Go
Preferred: Kafka or Amazon SQS and event-driven architectures
Preferred: Kubernetes, Helm, and Terraform
Preferred: ability to work in legacy and greenfield codebases across different languages and environments

Benefits

Comp & perks

Bonus in addition to base salary
Occasional travel to Fanatics offices and other locations for conferences, events, meetings, and team-building activities
Full-time employment benefits (details provided at https://benefitsatfanatics.com/)