Staff Backend Engineer – Content Platform

Spotify

. Define the technical direction for policy enforcement infrastructure .

Posted 11/5/2026full-timeLondon • United KingdomLeadWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

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

Demonstrates expertise in designing and operating large-scale distributed systems, APIs, and event-driven architectures, with a strong focus on compliance-aware infrastructure and data modeling for auditability. Proven ability to mentor engineers and influence architectural decisions across multiple product teams.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Large-Scale Distributed Systems DesignAPI Development and ManagementEvent-Driven Architecture (Kafka, Pub/Sub)Data Modeling and Storage DecisionsCompliance-Aware Infrastructure

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

JavaKotlinGoEvent-Driven PipelinesRule EnginesWorkflow OrchestrationRelational Storage SystemsNon-Relational Storage SystemsSchema DesignProduction Decision Systems

Soft Skills

MentoringCollaborationInfluencing ArchitectureEnd-to-End Thinking

Tools & Technologies

KafkaPub/SubTemporalAirflowObservability ToolsDistributed TracingStructured Logging

Industry Keywords

Regulatory ComplianceContent ModerationAuditabilityData LineageLegal Consequences

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

AirflowDistributed SystemsJavaKafkaKotlinGo

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Define the technical direction for policy enforcement infrastructure
Architect shared enforcement capabilities for consumption by multiple product teams
Design and evolve multi-signal orchestration systems for configurable, auditable policy enforcement at scale across content types and product surfaces
Build the data foundation that makes enforcement decisions durable and reusable
Own API and contract decisions, including schema design, versioning strategy, and evolution of enforcement interfaces
Establish integration standards for teams onboarding onto shared enforcement infrastructure
Work directly with consuming teams to execute migrations with clean cutoffs and clear end states
Influence architecture across detection, signal processing, and enforcement workflows
Mentor engineers and set standards for API design, data modeling, and compliance-aware infrastructure decisions
Collaborate with Licensing, Trust & Safety, Legal, and Public Affairs to build content moderation and regulatory compliance infrastructure

Requirements

What you’ll need

Deep experience designing and operating large-scale distributed systems, APIs, event-driven pipelines, rule engines, and production decision systems in high-throughput environments
Proficient in backend engineering at scale, with strong command of Java, Kotlin, Go, or similar languages
Experience owning data models, service contracts, and storage layer decisions
Experience with stream processing and event-driven architectures such as Kafka, Pub/Sub, or equivalent
Understanding of batch versus real-time enforcement pipeline tradeoffs
Experience designing systems where schema and contract stability are critical
Experience with workflow orchestration and distributed coordination, including Temporal, Airflow, choreography-based event systems, or hybrid approaches
Experience with relational and non-relational storage systems
Ability to model enforcement data for auditability, immutability, and efficient querying at scale
Understanding of platform engineering patterns, including multi-tenant APIs, configurable rule engines, and policy-driven actioning systems
Familiarity with observability, distributed tracing, structured logging, alerting, and production debugging and auditing tools
Experience in regulated or compliance-adjacent environments
Understanding of legal and audit consequences related to infrastructure design, log retention, schema choices, and data lineage
Comfort working in polyglot environments and navigating existing systems thoughtfully
Systems-level, end-to-end thinking

Benefits

Comp & perks

Equal opportunity employer
Reasonable accommodations during the interview process
Flexibility to work from home
In-person meetings with flexible work arrangements