Job Title: Lead Backend Engineer

Position Type: Full-Time, Remote

Working Hours: U.S. Business Hours

About the Role

We are hiring a Lead Backend Engineer to own the entire technical function of an early-stage SaaS platform. This is a hands-on leadership role where you will write production code daily while making architecture, infrastructure, and AI system decisions for a platform operating at scale.

You will be accountable for backend architecture, system reliability, AI pipelines, and guiding a small development team in a fast-moving startup environment.

Responsibilities

Backend Architecture & Engineering
Design, build, and maintain a .NET 8.0 / C# backend using Clean Architecture and DDD principles
Own the architecture and codebase across 14+ independently deployed microservices
Deliver new features, refactor existing systems, and resolve performance bottlenecks
AI Systems & LLM Orchestration
Design and operate production-grade AI pipelines across multiple LLM providers
Optimize prompts and workflows for batch processing, personalization, and segmentation at scale
Manage rate limits, failover strategies, and cost optimization across AI providers
Databases & Data Infrastructure
Manage MySQL, Redis, and MongoDB in production environments
Oversee bulk writes, caching strategies, event streams, and analytics pipelines
Ensure data consistency and performance across distributed services
Infrastructure, Reliability & Monitoring
Own Linux-based infrastructure, CI/CD pipelines, and service deployments
Implement centralized logging, monitoring, alerting, and uptime tracking
Proactively identify and mitigate reliability and scalability risks
API Integrations & System Resilience
Manage 25+ third-party API integrations used in production
Design retry, fallback, and graceful degradation strategies
Ensure system stability when external providers fail or degrade
Team Leadership & Engineering Standards
Lead and mentor a small engineering team through code reviews and architectural guidance
Set and enforce engineering standards, workflows, and best practices
Collaborate closely with the founder on product direction and technical strategy

What Makes You a Perfect Fit

You are a senior, hands-on engineer who enjoys owning systems end-to-end
You are comfortable being the most experienced technical person on the team
You balance fast execution with long-term architectural thinking
You take ownership of reliability, performance, and technical outcomes
You thrive in early-stage startup environments

Required Experience & Skills

Deep expertise in .NET 8.0, C#, ASP.NET Core, and Entity Framework Core
Experience with distributed systems and independently deployed services
Strong production experience with MySQL, Redis, and MongoDB
Hands-on DevOps experience with Linux servers and CI/CD pipelines
Experience managing large numbers of third-party API integrations
Proven experience building and operating AI/LLM systems at scale
Familiarity with AI-assisted development tools and workflows
Strong understanding of monitoring, observability, and incident prevention
Experience leading small engineering teams
Strong English communication skills

What Does a Typical Day Look Like ?

Write and review production backend code
Make architectural decisions across services, databases, and AI pipelines
Monitor system health and resolve reliability issues
Guide developers through code reviews and technical feedback
Collaborate with the founder on product and system evolution

In short: You own the technical foundation of the platform and ensure it scales reliably while enabling rapid product development.

Key Metrics for Success (KPIs)

System uptime and service reliability
Backend and AI system performance improvements
AI cost efficiency and pipeline stability
Code quality and deployment reliability
Team execution and delivery quality

Interview Process

Initial Screening Call
Technical Interview with Pavago Recruiter
Client Interview
Offer & Onboarding

Lead Backend Engineer

Job Description

Key Skills Required