Lead Software Engineer

Our Purpose

Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we're helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential.

Title and Summary

Lead Software Engineer

Overview

Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry, focused on powering an inclusive, digital economy that makes transactions safe, simple, smart, and accessible. Using secure data and networks, our innovations enable individuals, financial institutions, governments, and businesses worldwide to realize their greatest potential.

About the Role

Within Mastercard's Builders Enablement Program (ONE Division), we are building a standardized, secure, cloud first software delivery ecosystem and delivering a world class developer experience.

We are seeking a Lead Software Engineer to design, build, and advance internal developer platforms through modern, data-driven user interfaces. This role requires deep technical expertise, end-to-end ownership, and the ability to lead complex engineering initiatives across architecture, development, and operations.

Role

Software Design & Architecture:

* Lead end-to-end software design and architecture, translating business and system requirements into scalable, reliable, and maintainable solutions

* Define high- and low-level design artifacts, including APIs, data models, system interactions, and component boundaries

* Establish and enforce architecture standards, design patterns, and engineering best practices across teams

* Apply deep knowledge of data structures, algorithms, and distributed system design to solve complex performance and scalability challenges

Software Development Excellence:

* Own delivery of robust, secure, and high-performance software across backend platforms and frontend applications (React, Type Script)

* Drive engineering excellence in coding standards, modular design, and maintainability

* Build and enhance internal developer platforms using Backstage or similar frameworks, leveraging plugin-based architectures

* Develop data-driven user interfaces that surface observability and operational insights

Testing Strategy & Quality Engineering:

* Define and implement comprehensive testing strategies, including Unit testing, Integration testing, and Functional/end-to-end testing

* Embed automated testing within CI/CD pipelines to enforce quality gates and prevent regressions

* Ensure systems meet correctness, reliability, and backward compatibility requirements at scale

Performance Engineering:

* Lead performance engineering initiatives, including system benchmarking, load testing, and capacity planning

* Analyze system bottlenecks and optimize latency, throughput, and resource utilization across distributed architectures

* Ensure applications meet strict performance SLAs in high-volume, mission-critical environments

Secure Coding & Compliance:

* Enforce secure coding practices and integrate security into every phase of the SDLC

* Design systems that meet enterprise security, regulatory, and compliance requirements

* Partner with security teams to proactively identify and remediate vulnerabilities

Troubleshooting & Incident Management:

* Serve as a senior escalation point for complex production issues across distributed systems and user-facing platforms

* Lead root cause analysis, incident resolution, and postmortem activities

* Drive systemic improvements to prevent recurring issues and improve system reliability

Code Review & Technical Leadership:

* Lead rigorous code reviews, ensuring adherence to best practices in design, performance, security, and maintainability

* Mentor engineers and elevate team capability in software design, testing, debugging, and operational excellence

* Provide hands-on guidance in solving high-complexity technical problems across system layers

Collaboration & Ownership:

* Partner with product, platform, and business stakeholders to shape technical roadmaps and delivery priorities

* Own and deliver cross-functional initiatives spanning frontend, backend, and platform engineering

* Contribute to the Software Engineering Guild by sharing reusable frameworks, patterns, and innovations

All About You

We are looking for someone who demonstrates strong experience:

* Across software development, system design, and architecture

* In data structures, algorithms, and distributed systems

* Working across backend platforms and frontend applications

* Leading with a quality-first mindset, emphasizing testing, security, and performance

* Excelling at troubleshooting complex systems and driving resolution under pressure

* Proactively improving operability, reliability, and developer experience

* Influencing technical direction and…