Lead Backend Engineer

Gardens

. Manage, mentor, and grow a team of backend engineers .

Posted 11/7/2026full-timeRemote • United States, CanadaSenior💰 $196,000 - $203,000 per yearWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

Use this summary to align your resume positioning with the role.

Demonstrates expertise in backend engineering management, including mentoring and growing teams, while ensuring high-quality software architecture and effective communication across cross-functional teams. Proficient in Kotlin or Java, with hands-on experience in scaling backend systems and managing live-service game operations.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Backend Engineering ManagementKotlin or Java ProficiencyKubernetes FamiliaritySoftware Architecture GraspCross-Functional Collaboration

ATS Keywords

Tailor your resume

Applicant Tracking System Keywords

Tip: use these terms in your resume and cover letter to boost ATS matches.

Hard Skills

Backend DevelopmentKotlinJavaSoftware ArchitectureDebuggingMonitoringAlertingLoad-TestingIncident ResponseService Level Objectives

Soft Skills

Strong CommunicationMentoringTeam LeadershipGoal SettingFeedback Delivery

Tools & Technologies

KubernetesGrafanaTerraform

Industry Keywords

Games DevelopmentLive-Service DevelopmentIndependent Studio ExperienceMid-Size Studio ExperienceNorth American Time Zones

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

GrafanaJavaKotlinKubernetesTerraform

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Manage, mentor, and grow a team of backend engineers
Set goals, run 1:1s, give feedback, and support career development
Create hiring plans and interview technical candidates
Own team processes including planning, code review standards, on-call/bug triage, and work scoping and estimation
Create a healthy, high-trust engineering culture
Review pull requests and unblock engineers on difficult technical problems
Own the evolution of backend architecture and write production code on critical-path systems
Own reliability, service level objectives, incident response, and infrastructure cost
Partner with game design, marketing, and production to scope features and align engineering with creative vision
Partner with the Technical Director to create a realistic technical roadmap
Communicate engineering status, risks, and trade-offs to studio leadership
Report to the Technical Director
Lead the Backend Engineering team
Partner with Gameplay, Technical Direction, Production, Design, Marketing, QA, and the broader engineering organization

Requirements

What you’ll need

6+ years of professional backend experience, with games/live-service development strongly preferred
2+ years of experience directly managing or leading engineers
Strong Kotlin or Java skills
Familiarity with Kubernetes, Grafana, Terraform, and load-testing tools
Hands-on experience scaling backend systems to a global audience
Experience with debugging, monitoring, and alerting backend systems
Solid grasp of software architecture and design patterns
Experience working cross-functionally with design, marketing, and production on a shipped or in-development game
Comfortable operating with high ownership in a lean team
Strong communication skills
Experience taking a live-service game through launch and post-launch operations (nice to have)
Experience at an independent or mid-size studio (nice to have)
Must be legally authorized to work in the United States or Canada
Must be willing to work within North American time zones (EST–PST)

Benefits

Comp & perks

Stock options
Medical, dental, and vision coverage (100% for individuals, 90% for dependents)
Life insurance
Short-term and long-term disability coverage
Additional benefits
401(k) contributions (U.S.)
RRSP + DPSP contributions (Canada)
Paid parental leave
Fully distributed remote studio across North American time zones
Competitive salaries and pay transparency