At Mara, your role as an engineer transcends feature development—you will design and implement the foundational “trust infrastructure” critical to ensuring every financial resource reaches its intended destination, thereby empowering locally led organizations to execute hyper-proximate interventions for women and girls in the greatest need.
Key Engineering Pillars encompass a robust framework of technical expertise, structured to drive innovation, scalability, and operational excellence. The role demands a deep proficiency in software architecture, system design, and performance optimization, ensuring solutions align with business objectives and industry best practices. Candidates must demonstrate hands-on experience with modern development methodologies, cloud infrastructure, and security protocols, alongside a strong problem-solving aptitude. Responsibilities include leading cross-functional technical initiatives, mentoring engineering teams, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement and knowledge sharing. Proficiency in relevant programming languages, frameworks, and tools is essential, as is the ability to translate complex technical concepts into clear, actionable strategies for stakeholders.
Developing a streamlined Fintech solution under the “single-contract” framework, this initiative focuses on building financial infrastructure that meets government procurement demands while enabling dynamic capital reallocation across diverse geographic regions.
AI-powered verification and fraud prevention leverage the advanced Tito platform to streamline data collection and validate tangible results, eliminating the need for labor-intensive, high-cost audits in favor of continuous, high-accuracy real-time insights.
Designed to function as a comprehensive platform, Ecosystem-Scale Architecture aims to serve the broader sector, extending capabilities beyond Tito to accommodate diverse organizations and funders within a cohesive and transparent framework.
Ensuring the highest security standards for sensitive health and educational data, this role upholds data integrity to advance the principle that “paying for what works” becomes the global benchmark in philanthropic accountability.
We are actively seeking qualified candidates who are currently residing in South Africa or Kenya to fill this role.
The Job
Our Java Engineering Team Lead will spearhead the development and growth of a team of software engineers while overseeing the creation and ongoing maintenance of the Mara Impact software. This role encompasses a range of key responsibilities, including:
Guide and nurture your team members, fostering their professional growth and development while cultivating a collaborative and high-performing environment.
Design, implement, and maintain innovative features for the Mara Impact software platform.
As part of our dynamic team, you will actively engage in our agile workflows and collaborative processes, contributing to our iterative methodologies and daily stand-ups.
The software engineering team’s tasks are organized and managed to ensure efficient workflow and collaboration.
Employing software engineering methodologies to architect, construct, maintain, validate, and assess our software solutions.
Your responsibility will involve implementing comprehensive measures to safeguard software integrity and ensure robust data protection standards.
You ensure your work is thoroughly documented, maintaining clarity and accessibility for future reference by colleagues.
About You
You possess extensive hands-on development expertise in Java, with a proven ability to architect and implement software solutions from the ground up. A structured and analytical problem solver by nature, you are driven by the desire to leverage your technical capabilities to deliver meaningful contributions.
Requirements:
With a minimum of eight years of specialized experience in backend engineering, particularly within JVM-based languages, candidates should demonstrate a deep technical proficiency and a proven track record in the field.
With at least three years of hands-on leadership experience, this role requires overseeing a team of Java backend engineers and evaluating their performance through structured reviews.
Proven experience in designing, developing, and managing Microservices architectures, coupled with hands-on expertise in leveraging AWS services to build scalable, resilient, and secure cloud solutions.
You bring a wealth of hands-on experience with the Spring framework, complemented by proficiency in a diverse range of Java backend tools and frameworks.
Proficiency in Salesforce CRM constitutes a valuable asset for this position.
You aspire to do more than merely write code—you aim to engineer robust, scalable systems that uphold the highest standards of quality.
You should be located in Kenya or South Africa.
You possess outstanding proficiency in English, both written and verbal.
Qualifications
BA/BSc/HND
Experience Required
8 years
