Lead Software Engineer
Guardian Life · New York, NY
- Hybrid
- Full-time
- $195,000 / year
- New York, NY
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Lead Software Engineer
Guardian Life · New York, NY
Avery Quinn
Hiring Manager · h•••••@guardianlife.wd5.myworkdayjobs.com
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Subject: Interested in the Lead Software Engineer role at Guardian Life
Hi Avery — I came across the Lead Software Engineer opening and wanted to reach out directly. I've spent the last few years doing exactly this kind of work, and Guardian Life stood out because…
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Job highlights
- Lead enterprise API strategy and development.
- Develop seamless data integration using APIs.
- Mentor engineers and champion automation.
- Design, develop, and evolve enterprise APIs.
- Ensure API security, privacy, and performance.
About the role
Lead Software Engineer, Enterprise APIs
As a Lead Software Engineer, you will develop and execute the key technology components of the Enterprise API Technology & Platform strategy and ensure alignment with Guardian’s enterprise digital strategy. You will be an innovative software engineer and will harness deep industry and technical expertise to develop seamless data integration between Enterprise Applications using RESTful APIs, messaging, and event streams.
As a key technical leader, you will mentor team members, design delivery strategies, and champion a culture of automation and continuous improvement within the software delivery lifecycle.
Responsibilities:
- Lead the design, development, and evolution of enterprise APIs, including REST, GraphQL, gRPC, and event‑driven integrations, following API‑first design principles.
- Enable developer productivity and self‑service through reusable API frameworks, platforms, templates, SDKs, documentation (OpenAPI/AsyncAPI), and developer portals.
- Establish best practices & enterprise capabilities for improving API design, governance, testing, documentation, and release management across development teams.
- Drive incident response and resolution for production API and platform issues, lead post‑mortems, and implement preventive and resiliency improvements.
- Research emerging technologies and perform PoCs related to API management, integration patterns, platform engineering, and observability.
- Ensure compliance with security, data privacy, and performance standards in all integration projects.
- Collaborate with a team of software engineers in implementing and maintaining enterprise APIs and platform(s).
- Mentor and guide engineers on best practices, tools and technologies to enhance delivery quality.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
- 10+ years of experience in Software engineering, building and operating distributed systems.
- Strong hands‑on experience developing high‑quality APIs using Java (Spring Boot), Node.js, .NET, or Python.
- Experience with a broad range of web technologies including React, Angular, & Typescript.
- Expertise in Microservices Architecture, Enterprise Integration Patterns (EIP), and Event‑Driven Architectures.
- Strong knowledge of API security including OAuth 2.0, JWT, token lifecycle management, and user access control mechanisms.
- Competency with CI/CD automation tools (e.g., Bitbucket, Jenkins, AWS, GitHub).
- Deep understanding of API protocols and integration patterns: REST, GraphQL, gRPC, SOAP, async/event‑driven architectures.
- Experience implementing API observability using logging, metrics, tracing, and monitoring tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, OpenTelemetry, Splunk).
- Strong experience designing domain‑aligned APIs using OpenAPI / Swagger specifications, with a focus on consistency, reusability, and user/machine readability.
- Deep understanding of containerization & orchestration technologies (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes, Helm) and AWS Cloud services S3, Lambda, Kafka, SQS/SNS, Redis Cache.
- Hands‑on experience working with both SQL and NoSQL databases, designing for scale, performance, and reliability.
Key skills/competency:
- Software Engineering
- API Design
- RESTful APIs
- Microservices
- Event-Driven Architectures
- CI/CD
- AWS Cloud
- Kubernetes
- Java
- Python
Skills & topics
- Lead Software Engineer
- API Development
- Enterprise APIs
- Software Engineering
- Java
- Python
- Node.js
- .NET
- Microservices
- Event-Driven Architecture
- RESTful APIs
- GraphQL
- gRPC
- CI/CD
- AWS
- Kubernetes
- Docker
- Observability
- API Security
- Guardian Life
How to get hired
- Tailor your resume: Highlight your 10+ years of software engineering experience, API development (Java, Node.js, .NET, Python), and distributed systems expertise.
- Showcase API expertise: Emphasize your knowledge of microservices, EIP, event-driven architectures, and API security protocols like OAuth 2.0.
- Demonstrate technical skills: Detail your experience with CI/CD tools, containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), AWS, and observability tools (Prometheus, Grafana).
- Quantify achievements: Use data to show the impact of your API designs and leadership on previous projects.
- Prepare for technical interviews: Be ready to discuss API design principles, system architecture, and problem-solving scenarios.
Technical preparation
Master Java (Spring Boot), Node.js, .NET, or Python.,Review Microservices & EIP principles.,Practice API design with OpenAPI/Swagger.,Study AWS, Docker, and Kubernetes.
Behavioral questions
Describe a complex API integration challenge.,How do you mentor junior engineers?,Share an experience with production incident response.,How do you champion continuous improvement?
Prefer to apply the usual way?
Not recommended alone — most applicants never hear back. Email the hiring manager first.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the work arrangement for the Lead Software Engineer role at Guardian Life?
- This Lead Software Engineer position requires a hybrid work arrangement, with three days per week spent at a Guardian location in New York, NY, Holmdel, NJ, Bethlehem, PA, or Boston, MA.
- What are the primary responsibilities of a Lead Software Engineer at Guardian Life?
- The Lead Software Engineer will develop and execute the enterprise API strategy, design and evolve APIs (REST, GraphQL, gRPC, event-driven), mentor team members, and ensure API security and performance.
- What programming languages are most important for this Lead Software Engineer role?
- Strong hands-on experience developing high-quality APIs using Java (Spring Boot), Node.js, .NET, or Python is highly valued for this Lead Software Engineer position.
- Does Guardian Life sponsor employment visas for the Lead Software Engineer position?
- No, Guardian Life is not currently sponsoring employment visas for this position. Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States without sponsorship.
- What is the salary range for the Lead Software Engineer role at Guardian Life?
- The estimated salary range for this Lead Software Engineer role is $118,980.00 to $195,465.00 annually. The final salary will be determined by the candidate's qualifications and experience.
- What kind of benefits can I expect as a full-time employee at Guardian Life?
- Guardian Life offers comprehensive benefits and resources to support professional and personal goals, including skill-building, leadership development, and philanthropic opportunities. Specifics can be found at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits.
- How does Guardian Life use AI in its recruitment process for the Lead Software Engineer role?
- Guardian Life may use AI tools for preliminary screening of applicant information and resumes. However, AI is not used to replace human judgment in hiring decisions. Applicants can opt-out of AI screening.
- What are the key technologies and architectural patterns required for this Lead Software Engineer role?
- Key requirements include expertise in Microservices Architecture, Enterprise Integration Patterns (EIP), Event-Driven Architectures, API security (OAuth 2.0, JWT), CI/CD, Docker, Kubernetes, and AWS cloud services.