Software Engineer Backend (f/m/d) (Fixed-Term Parental Leave Cover)

Role overview

You’ll join Design Experience, the team behind the tools customers use to turn an idea into something they can actually wear. You’ll help evolve the backend systems powering the Create-omat design editor, AI-assisted design generation, templates/text handling, embroidery-related services, and design services across brands. The role is a fixed-term position covering parental leave and is not a placeholder—the backend work will shape the team’s architecture roadmap for the next two years.

What you’ll do

• Extract business logic from the Create-omat backend-for-frontend (BFF) into reusable services.
• Build a design generation backend that provides a pipeline for:
  • moderation
  • image generation
  • design enhancement
  • background removal
• Remove duplication by unifying functionality across split systems (e.g., Spring service for Partner Area vs. existing functionality).
• Design and build system-layer APIs for core data entities (Scene, Template, Design) so MongoDB/S3 are not directly accessed by every consumer.
• Modernize designer-service-api (a Java service used by other teams): increase test coverage, retire vulnerable dependencies, and coordinate contract changes.
• Own production services, including:
  • observability
  • alerting
  • on-call quality logging
  • performance work for rendering and image pipelines
• Work in an agile team with a product owner, designers, and frontend engineers; connect your work to outcomes like designs being completed and added to baskets.

Requirements

• Several years of professional backend experience with services you built, took to production, and operated.
• Strong JVM backend skills: Java or Kotlin with Spring, including data modeling, migrations, and production-relevant service concerns.
• Working proficiency in Node.js and TypeScript, able to be productive in a Next.js BFF early on.

Nice-to-haves / additional signals (from context)

• Experience working with AI pipelines and/or external model providers.
• Familiarity with CI/CD, Kubernetes, and production-grade observability practices.