Senior Java Developer

Overview

We’re looking for a Senior Java Developer to join one of our clients on a fixed-term contract. This is a hands-on role where you’ll be building and improving backend services that support business-critical platforms used in a real, production environment.

You’ll be working across both new development and existing systems, helping to ensure stability, scalability, and clean integration across the tech landscape. This is a great opportunity for someone who enjoys solving complex problems, working within real-world constraints, and delivering practical, high-quality solutions.

This is a parental leave cover contract starting in April and running through to the end of September.

We’re ideally looking for someone available to start on 1 April.

👉 Please only apply if you are specifically open to contract roles.

NB! Applicants must be based in Cape Town (Hybrid).

Purpose

You’ll take ownership of backend development across a range of systems – designing, building, and maintaining services that are reliable, maintainable, and aligned to business needs.

This includes working on existing platforms, improving performance and stability, and contributing to integrations across internal and external systems.

Tasks include:

Building & Supporting Backend Services

• Designing and developing backend services and APIs

• Building and maintaining RESTful interfaces

• Writing clean, structured, and maintainable code

• Troubleshooting and resolving production issues

Improving Systems

• Enhancing and maintaining existing applications

• Refactoring code to improve performance and reliability

• Supporting framework and library upgrades

• Contributing to ongoing system improvements

Working with Data & Integrations

• Building and maintaining system integrations

• Working with relational databases (schema design, optimisation)

• Ensuring data integrity across systems

• Assisting with data-related troubleshooting

Delivery & Collaboration

• Contributing to CI/CD pipelines and deployments

• Working closely with DevOps and infrastructure teams

• Participating in release planning

• Following structured engineering practices

• Quality & Best Practice

Participating in code reviews

• Following coding standards and best practices

• Supporting testing (unit & integration)

• Contributing to continuous improvement

Requirements:

Core Skills

• 7 years’ experience in Java backend development

• Strong experience with Spring Boot (or similar frameworks)

• Solid understanding of REST API design

• Strong relational database experience (e.g. MySQL)

• Good grasp of object-oriented design principles

Experience that matters

• Experience working on live, production systems

• Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting ability

• Experience working with and improving existing codebases

• Understanding of performance optimisation

Tools & Tech

• Git-based version control

• CI/CD tools (e.g. GitHub Actions, Jenkins or similar)

• SQL and database tooling

• Exposure to API gateways and integrations

Nice to have

• Docker or containerisation experience

• Exposure to cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, etc.)

• Experience in financial services or regulated environments

The kind of person who’ll thrive here

• Practical, solutions-focused thinker

• Takes ownership and follows through

• Comfortable working within existing systems and constraints

• Detail-oriented with a strong quality mindset

• Communicates clearly across technical and business teams