About the position
The API & Services Architect is responsible for defining and evolving YouVersion’s core backend services, APIs, and infrastructure architecture to ensure scalability, reliability, and security. This role provides technical leadership in designing high-performance, resilient systems while collaborating with cross-functional teams to align backend strategies with business objectives. By establishing best practices and guiding engineering teams, the API & Services Architect plays a key role in shaping a robust and extensible technology ecosystem that supports the continued growth of YouVersion applications. The API & Services Architect utilizes their skills to deliver technical outcomes that align with the direction of their team to further Life.Church’s mission and to reach people for Christ.
Responsibilities
- Own the architecture and evolution of YouVersion's API services and infrastructure, ensuring a seamless and efficient experience for engineering teams.
- Design and govern the architecture of API services and supporting infrastructure, ensuring interoperability, scalability, and security.
- Develop and evolve YouVersion's API services architecture to support global reach, higher concurrent user capacity, reliability, and flexibility.
- Lead the design and implementation of core system components, such as API Gateway, identity services, service orchestration, and serverless environments.
- Collaborate with the Security Architect and Infrastructure teams to ensure effective security design and best practices across all system components, focusing on authentication, data protection, compliance, and secure service communication.
- Ensure high availability and fault tolerance through resilient architecture and redundancy strategies.
- Define architectural principles, patterns, and best practices to guide engineering teams.
- Collaborate with engineering teams to define backend system capabilities, enabling seamless application development.
- Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend improvements to enhance YouVersion’s technology strategy.
Requirements
- Ability to self-motivate, make independent decisions, and solve problems with innovation.
- Effective at multi-tasking and time management to meet strict deadlines while remaining flexible and open to change.
- Excellent verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills to clearly explain complicated processes and foster partnerships.
- Effective at process and organizational management to coordinate, structure, and provide vision to projects.
- Strong leadership skills and understanding of developing and guiding others.
- Proficiency in containerization and orchestration (Kubernetes, Docker, service mesh).
- Strong knowledge of observability best practices (monitoring, logging, tracing).
- Familiarity with data modeling, caching strategies, and database scalability.
- Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to balance trade-offs between technical constraints and business needs.
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.
- 8+ years of experience in software engineering, with at least 4 years in API and backend system design and development.
- Relevant certifications in cloud architecture, such as AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Google Professional Cloud Architect, or Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect, are preferred but equivalent hands-on experience will also be considered.
- Strong expertise in cloud-native architecture on AWS, Azure, or GCP.
- Deep understanding of microservices, API design, and distributed systems.
- Hands-on experience with Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, Pulumi, CloudFormation, etc.), with a preference for Terraform.
Benefits
- Paid parental leave, including maternity, paternity, and adoption leave.
- Generous employer-paid leave for the use of vacation, sick time, and other qualifying reasons.
- Innovative and comprehensive Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance that provides team members with useful resources and savings to navigate their holistic health.
- Life insurance policy provided for all staff members at 2x annual salary at no cost. Additional life insurance coverage is available to purchase.
- Short-Term and Long-Term disability is covered at 100% for full-time qualified staff members.
- Comprehensive wellness and mental health benefits allow staff to proactively invest in their physical and emotional health.
- Generous 401(k) retirement plan allowing a team member to have up to 12.5% contributed into their account in their first year.
- $160 annually in development dollars for team members to invest in their professional growth.
- Casual dress and work environment.
