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Salary: EUR 3,330 - 6,660 / monthly
KAYAK, part of Booking Holdings, is a leading travel search engine processing billions of queries across global metasearch brands including momondo, Cheapflights, and HotelsCombined. This Senior Java Software Engineer role focuses on the Ads platform, where you will design and deliver complex backend features from scoping through production deployment and support.
You will lead technical design reviews and architecture discussions with engineers and architects across teams, write well-tested and maintainable code, and actively participate in code reviews. A key responsibility is mentoring less-experienced engineers through technical guidance and pairing. You'll work closely with product managers and commercial partners to clarify requirements and deliver reliable outcomes.
The role includes on-call rotations to monitor system health, investigate production issues, and document findings. You'll proactively identify opportunities to improve system performance, reduce complexity, and address technical debt. You'll contribute to sprint ceremonies and help improve team delivery processes. The team embraces AI-assisted development tools to enhance productivity and code quality.
You'll collaborate across engineering, data science, and business intelligence teams to deliver integrated solutions for the travel search and ads monetization platform.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Demonstrated experience designing, building, and operating backend systems in production environments
- Strong proficiency in Java or comparable backend language, with comfort in distributed systems and service integrations
- Experience with system design, performance optimization, and debugging in complex, multi-service environments
- Collaborative working style: clear communication, follow-through on commitments, early risk surfacing, and thoughtful questioning
- Professional proficiency in written and spoken English
- Curiosity and willingness to challenge existing approaches with well-reasoned alternatives
NICE-TO-HAVE (not required):
- Familiarity with ad tech systems, bidding logic, or monetization infrastructure
- Experience with server-to-server data integrations or event-driven architectures
- Experience in agile, sprint-based team environments
- Comfort with observability tooling, metrics, and production debugging workflows
- No specific degree required; candidates from non-traditional backgrounds with strong engineering fundamentals and proven delivery track records are welcome
