Senior Backend Engineer - Contractor (Outside of IR35)

Overview

Senior Software Engineer - Java (Contract - Outside of IR35)

Duration: 3 Months Plus

Start Date: ASAP in November

Day Rate: £400 - 500 per day

As a Senior Software Engineer (Java) - Contractor at Pulselive, you'll be focused on delivering robust, high-performance backend services and APIs that power digital experiences for millions of sports fans globally. This role is ideal for an experienced, hands-on engineer with strong Java and Spring expertise who thrives in a collaborative and fast-paced delivery environment.

You'll work closely with cross-functional teams to build, integrate, and optimize systems that handle real-time sports data, video, and live commentary. This position is project- and delivery-focused, with no line management or people-leadership responsibilities required.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop scalable backend systems using Java and Spring Boot
• Deliver well-structured, maintainable, and testable code aligned with project requirements
• Build and maintain RESTful APIs to support web and mobile applications
• Integrate with third-party data providers (e.g. sports data, video, commentary)
• Use Git to manage code versioning and contribute to shared repositories
• Manage deployments across multiple environments (Dev, Test, Staging, Prod)
• Ensure systems are performant, secure, and resilient
• Identify and manage project-level technical dependencies
• Participate in sprint planning and delivery-focused meetings with the wider team
• Write and maintain clear technical documentation
• Contribute to code reviews and uphold development best practices

Core Skills & Experience

Expert-level knowledge of:

• Java 11+
• Spring Boot and Spring Framework (v5+)
• JPA/Hibernate and ORM principles
• Designing and building microservice architectures
• Creating and consuming RESTful APIs
• Git for version control and collaborative development
• JSON and working with structured data
• Unit testing with frameworks like JUnit
• Task management tools like JIRA
• Writing technical documentation for APIs and backend components

Proficient with

• SQL (PostgreSQL, MySQL, or similar)
• Kafka or other messaging/event-driven platforms
• Docker containerization
• Kubernetes for orchestration
• AWS services (e.g., S3, Lambda, EC2, etc.)
• Maven for build and dependency management
• CI/CD pipelines and deployment automation

Basic understanding of

• Python (scripts, tools, integrations)
• Frontend technologies: HTML, CSS, JavaScript (for context when integrating with frontend)