Senior Software Engineer I - Backend (Java)

<div class="content-intro"><p>Our vision is to give everyone the belief they can make their move. We aim to make moving simpler, by giving everyone the best place to turn to and return to for access to the tools, expertise, trust, and belief to make it happen.</p> <p>We’re home to the UK’s largest choice of properties and are the go-to destination for millions of people planning their next move, reading the latest industry news, or just browsing what’s on the market.&nbsp;</p> <hr> <p>&nbsp;</p></div><p></p> <h4 style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182); font-weight: bold;">Role:&nbsp;</span>Senior Backend Engineer I (Java)</span></h4> <h4 style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182); font-weight: bold;">Location:&nbsp;</span>London (Hybrid - 2 days in the London Office)</span></h4> <h4 style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182); font-weight: bold;">Reports to:&nbsp;</span>Engineering Manager - Customer Tooling</span></h4> <p style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;"></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182); font-size: 10pt;"><strong>The role</strong></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">At Rightmove, we’re on a mission to make home moving easier and simpler for everyone. Every month, millions of people spend over a billion minutes on our platform, with more than 140 million visits across our website and apps. Behind that experience is a team of passionate engineers building the tools and services that power how we operate.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">We’re looking for a Senior Backend Engineer to help shape and deliver innovative solutions for our internal users. You’ll work on in-house applications and microservices, integrating with third-party platforms to support our core business. This is an opportunity to solve meaningful problems at scale, with real impact across the organisation.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Our teams are autonomous and cross-functional, combining design, product, engineering and testing expertise. You’ll collaborate closely with others to deliver high-quality, reliable solutions that support millions of users, thousands of agents, and hundreds of Rightmovers. You’ll play a key role in defining scalable, maintainable, and high-performance solutions to both business and technical challenges.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 10pt;">To find out more about our tools, tech and people, head to our<span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182);"> </span><a href="https://rightmove.blog/"><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182);">tech blog.</span></a> ✍️</span></p> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182);"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">What you'll be doing</span></strong></span></p> <ul> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Designing and building new features and enhancements using Java 17+, Spring Boot, Elasticsearch, Kafka, Gradle, Hibernate, Couchbase, SQL, and Docker.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Collaborating with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to shape solutions and align on priorities.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Taking ownership of key technical decisions and delivering projects end-to-end.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Balancing new feature development with technical debt, making thoughtful, pragmatic trade-offs.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Writing high-quality, secure, and extensible code that supports both current needs and future growth.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Communicating effectively with stakeholders and third parties to ensure solutions meet business objectives.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Championing new and emerging technologies that add value and align with our roadmap.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Mentoring and supporting junior engineers, helping to build a culture of growth, ownership, and continuous improvement.</span></li> </ul> <p><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 182);"><strong><span style="font-size: 10pt;">We're looking for someone who</span></strong></span></p> <ul> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Brings strong commercial experience with Java 17+, Spring Boot, and Kafka.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Has successfully led complex projects, including coordinating work across multiple engineers.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Is highly collaborative, organised, and solution-focused in their approach.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Has a deep understanding of TDD practices and pipeline optimisation, including left-shifting.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Can balance technical priorities with business OKRs through pragmatic decision-making.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Is passionate about performance, scalability, and understanding user behaviour.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Proactively introduces new ideas, technologies, and ways of working to improve team outcomes.</span></li> <li><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Is committed to sharing knowledge, fostering team ownership, and contributing to a psychologically safe and inclusive environment.</span></li> </ul><div class="content-conclusion"><hr> <h3><span style="color: rgb(0, 4, 67);"><strong>About Rightmove</strong></span></h3> <p>Our vision is to give everyone the belief that they can make their move. We aim to make moving simpler by giving everyone the best place to turn to and return to for access to the tools, expertise, trust and belief to make it happen.</p> <p>We're home to the UK's largest choice of properties, and are the go-to destination for millions of people planning their next move, reading the latest industry news, or just browsing what's on the market.</p> <p>Despite this growth, we’ve remained a friendly, supportive place to work, with employee #1 still working here!&nbsp; We’ve done this by placing the Rightmove Hows at the heart of everything we do. These are the essential values that reflect our culture, and include:</p> <ul> <li><strong>We&nbsp;create&nbsp;value…</strong>by delivering results and building trust with partners and consumers.</li> <li><strong>We&nbsp;think&nbsp;bigger…</strong>by acting with curiosity and setting bold aspirations.</li> <li><strong>We&nbsp;care&nbsp;deeply…</strong>by being real, having fun, and valuing diversity.</li> <li><strong>We&nbsp;move&nbsp;together…</strong>by being one team - internally collaborative, externally competitive.</li> <li><strong>We&nbsp;make&nbsp;a difference…</strong>by focusing on delivering measurable impact.</li> </ul> <p>We believe in careers that open doors and help our team develop by providing an open and inclusive work environment, offering ongoing training opportunities, and supporting charity fundraising events. And with <strong>88% of Rightmovers saying we’re a great place to work</strong>, we’re clearly doing something right!<strong>&nbsp;</strong></p> <p><strong><span style="color: rgb(0, 222, 180);">If all of this has caught your eye, you may well be a Rightmover in the making......</span><br></strong></p> <h4><span style="color: rgb(0, 4, 67);"><strong>People are the foundation of Rightmove - We’ll help you build a career on it.</strong></span></h4> <h4><span style="color: rgb(0, 4, 67);"><strong>What we offer&nbsp;</strong></span></h4> <ul> <li>Cash plan for dental, optical and physio treatments.</li> <li>Private Medical Insurance, Pension and Life Insurance, Employee Assistance Plan.</li> <li>27 days holiday plus two (paid) volunteering days a year to give back, and holiday buy schemes.</li> <li>Contributory stakeholder pension.</li> <li>Life assurance at 4x your basic salary to a spouse, family member or other nominated person in your life.</li> <li>Competitive compensation package.</li> <li>Paid leave for maternity, paternity, adoption &amp; fertility.</li> <li>Travel Loans, Bike to Work scheme, Rental Deposit Loan.</li> <li>Charitable contributions through Payroll Giving and donation matching.</li> <li>Access deals and discounts on things like travel, electronics, fashion, gym memberships, cinema discounts and more.</li> <li>We offer hybrid working with a minimum of 2 days in the office. For our roles, such as Field or Home-based positions, different working arrangements apply - full details will be shared during the recruitment process.</li> </ul> <p></p> <hr> <h4><em>As an Equal Opportunity Employer, Rightmove will never discriminate based on age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage / civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity or sexual orientation.&nbsp;<br></em><br><em>At Rightmove, we believe that a diverse and inclusive workforce leads to better innovation, productivity, and overall success., We are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for all employees, regardless of their background or identity, to develop and promote a diverse culture that reflects the communities we serve.</em></h4> <hr> <h4>By applying, you confirm that you are aged at least 18 or over and&nbsp;that you’ve read and understood our <a class="decorated-link" href="https://www.rightmove.co.uk/c/privacy-policy/" target="_blank" data-start="192" data-end="259"><strong data-start="193" data-end="211">Privacy Policy</strong></a>, which explains how we handle and protect your personal information during the recruitment process.</h4></div>