engineer lead – Data & AI Technology (Hybrid, Seattle WA)

From the beginning, Starbucks set out to be a different kind of company. One that not only celebrated coffee and the rich tradition, but that also brought a feeling of connection. We are known for developing extraordinary leaders who share this passion and are guided by their service to others.

In this role, you will serve as a technical leader driving the design, development, and operational excellence of enterprise data services that are foundational to Starbucks’ technology ecosystem. You will collaborate across engineering, product, and business teams to deliver scalable, secure, and high-performing solutions that enhance both barista and customer experiences. With deep domain expertise, you will guide architectural decisions, lead incident response including on-call support, and champion engineering best practices to ensure reliability, maintainability, and alignment with strategic business goals.

We are seeking a skilled Java Lead Engineer to work with Starbucks product team, lead the development team, collaborate with other software component team and deliver IT application for Starbucks Business. The ideal candidate will design, code, test, debug, document, and implement complex software applications, ensuring high-quality deliverables that meets the business requirements of Starbucks. The candidate will coach and mentor team members, perform cross-training, and facilitate information sharing. Additionally creating prototypes for new technologies or frameworks, automating testing and integration activities for new applications, and adhering to software development standards. Experience with Azure is a plus, as the role involves assisting the CI/CD team & SRE team in rolling out applications and infrastructure to support global solutions.

As a Lead Engineer, you will…

• Drive the design and implementation of scalable, secure, and high-performing systems across multiple domains. Provide technical leadership in architecture, development, and deployment strategies. Initiates improvements for new and existing systems.
• Partner with Architecture team, Product team, Development team, and other Information Technology (IT) team. Facilitate cross-team collaboration, and communicate effectively across technical and non-technical audiences.
• Design and develop scalable application on Java Spring Boot, MongoDB, and related technologies, learning new technologies and solve complex business issues.
• Champion best practices in software development, including code quality, testing, and automation. Contribute to shared libraries, design patterns, and developer tooling.
• Lead efforts in system monitoring, disaster recovery, and security compliance. Ensure platforms are resilient, maintainable, and aligned with enterprise security standards.
• Direct best practices for incident resolution, including on-call production support, root cause analysis, and vendor engagement.

We’d Love To Hear From People With

• Has a total 7+ years of IT development experience including lead experience of 2 to 3 years in an enperise application development
• Requires 5+ years hands-on development experience in Java, Spring, Spring boot and Spring batch
• Experience of data streaming, functional programming using Kafka, event hub or any message broker.
• Experience in working with NoSql databases as well as RDBS
• Experience in working with Linux environment and has cloud application development experience (Prefers Azure)
• Experience of using IDE for java like eclipse, intellij etc.
• Strong experience in core java, multi-threaded programming, data structures and collections with experience of Automating testing
• Work experaince in a complex enterprise application delivery, using agile development methodology
• Bachelor’s in computer science or equivalent work experience
• Additionally Databrics Py-spark, Cassandra, JBehave, Gatling experience will have plus

As a Starbucks partner, you (and your family) will have access to medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, and other voluntary insurance benefits. Partners have access to short-term and long-term disability, paid parental leave, family expansion reimbursement, paid vacation from date of hire*, sick time (accrued at 1 hour for every 25 hours worked), eight paid holidays, and two personal days per year. Starbucks also offers eligible partners participation in a 401(k) retirement plan with employer match, a discounted company stock program (S.I.P.), Starbucks equity program (Bean Stock), incentivized emergency savings, and financial well-being tools. Additionally, Starbucks offers 100% upfront tuition coverage for a first-time bachelor’s degree through Arizona State University’s online program via the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, student loan management resources, and access to other educational opportunities. You will also have access to backup care and DACA reimbursement. Starbucks will comply with any applicable state and local laws regarding employee leave benefits, including, but not limited to providing time off pursuant to the Colorado Healthy Families and Workplaces Act, and in accordance with its plans and policies. This list is subject to change depending on collective bargaining in locations where partners have a certified bargaining representative. For additional information regarding partner perks and more detailed information about benefits, go to starbucksbenefits.com.

• If you are working in CA, CO, IL, LA, ME, MA, NE, ND or RI, you will accrue vacation up to a maximum of 120 hours (190 in CA) for roles below director and 200 hours (316 in CA) for roles at director or above. For roles in other states, you will be granted vacation time starting at 120 hours annually for roles below director and 200 hours annually for roles director and above.

The actual base pay offered to the successful candidate will be based on multiple factors, including but not limited to job-related knowledge/skills, experience, geographical location, and internal equity. At Starbucks, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at the high end of the range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent upon the facts and circumstances of each position and candidate.

If you live in the greater Seattle area, we offer a flexible workplace that allows for hybrid work. Partners can work remotely up to two days per week.

Join us and inspire with every cup. Apply today!

Starbucks Coffee Company is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Qualified applicants with criminal histories will be considered for employment in a manner consistent with all federal, state and local ordinances.

Starbucks Coffee Company is committed to offering reasonable accommodations to job applicants with disabilities. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us at applicantaccommodation or 1(888) 611-2258.