Lead Software Engineer – Platform / Backend (Cloud & DevOps)

About Vanguard Founded in 1975, Vanguard is one of the world's leading investment management companies. The firm offers investments, advice, and retirement services to tens of millions of individual investors around the globe—directly, through workplace plans, and through financial intermediaries. Vanguard India Vanguard’s office in India is a significant milestone in our global expansion. We are committed to establishing an enduring technology center in Hyderabad, Telangana and are excited to be adding talent who will focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI), mobile, and cloud-based technologies that drive our business outcomes and deliver a world-class experience for our clients. Role Summary This role provides expert-level IT technical lead services, including the integration and implementation of technologies, while applying deep backend expertise to optimize performance, ensure secure architecture, and enhance system scalability. Responsibilities Provides expert-level technical leadership across enterprise backend systems, driving architecture, design, and implementation using Java Spring and Node.js across scalable platforms. Defines and evaluates technical solution options, ensuring alignment with enterprise architecture, cloud fundamentals (compute, storage, networking, IAM), and business objectives. Designs robust system and API architectures, clearly documenting trade-offs, scalability considerations, and integration patterns across distributed systems. Oversees end-to-end software development lifecycle, ensuring adoption of secure SDLC practices and delivery of high-quality, secure, and compliant solutions. Establishes and enforces engineering standards, including code quality, Git-based version control, CI/CD pipelines, and automated build/test/deploy frameworks. Leads performance optimization initiatives, applying deep server-side expertise to enhance application performance, database efficiency, and API responsiveness. Implements and promotes observability practices (logging, metrics, tracing) to ensure system reliability, proactive issue detection, and performance monitoring. Reviews and approves technical designs, code, and architecture artifacts; ensures adherence to security, scalability, and enterprise standards. Troubleshoots complex production and system issues, identifying root causes and driving improvements to optimize data flow across services, APIs, and integrations. Acts as a key technical liaison with stakeholders, effectively translating technical concepts, risks, and solution strategies for both technical and non-technical audiences. Mentors and guides engineers on design principles, coding standards, and modern development practices, fostering a culture of continuous learning and engineering excellence. Drives continuous improvement by championing emerging technologies, cloud adoption, DevOps maturity, and engineering best practices across teams and initiatives. Qualifications and Skills Minimum 8 years of experience in software development, architecture, and system integration. Bachelor’s degree (B.E./B.Tech) in Computer Science or IT, or Bachelor’s in Computer Applications (BCA), or Master’s in Computer Applications (MCA). Expertise in software architecture, system design, and technical leadership for enterprise applications. Strong programming skills in Java, Spring Boot, Angular, Node JS, AWS, CloudFormation, ECS, Fargate, DynamoDB, S3, Lambda, IAM. Hands-on experience with Agile, Confluence, JIRA, and monitoring and refining dashboards; knowledge of continuous process improvement for process flows/workflows. Ability to troubleshoot complex technical issues, conduct root cause analysis, and optimize system performance. Strong communication and stakeholder management skills to influence technical decisions. Desired Certifications: AWS Cloud Practitioner, AWS Solutions Architect, AWS Solution Consultant. Experience in mentoring teams, establishing technical standards, and driving continuous process improvement. Location This role is based in Hyderabad, Telangana at Vanguard India. Only qualified external applicants will be considered. Our mission Vanguard adheres to a simple purpose: To take a stand for all investors, to treat them fairly, and to give them the best chance for investment success. Our commitment to you Vanguard takes the same long-term view of your success—at work and in life—with Benefits and Rewards packages that reflect what you care about, throughout all the phases and stages of your life. Our Total Rewards programs provide you and your loved ones with wellness support for key areas in your life: Financial wellness We're committed to enabling your financial success and provide competitive offers and programs. Physical wellness We're committed to providing benefits that support your physical health and wellness. Personal wellness We're committed to providing resources that help support the full scope of your life. How we work Vanguard has implemented a hybrid working model for most of our employees (crew members), designed to capture the benefits of enhanced flexibility while enabling in-person learning, collaboration, and connection. We believe our mission-driven and highly collaborative culture is a critical enabler to support long-term client outcomes and enrich the employee experience.