• Lead and mentor a team of backend engineers, providing technical guidance and coaching • Own backend architecture and service design across the platform • Design, develop, and maintain services using .NET Core / ASP.NET Core • Build and evolve microservices-based architectures with clear boundaries and contracts • Design and manage SQL-based data models and work extensively with relational databases • Use Entity Framework and related ORM tools effectively • Implement event-driven and pub/sub patterns using Kafka or similar messaging systems • Build resilient, scalable services deployed on AWS or equivalent cloud platforms • Review code, enforce standards, and ensure best practices around performance, security, and reliability • Maintain a strong test-driven development mindset using xUnit, NUnit, or similar • Collaborate with product and frontend teams on system design and integration • Stay hands-on with development while leading architecture and delivery