Software Architect

PayJunction•Santa Barbara, CA

1d•$240,000 - $275,000•Hybrid

About The Position

PayJunction is seeking a hands-on Software Architect to design and build enterprise features and payment integrations used by partners processing billions of dollars annually. The role leads open-ended initiatives from initial concept through production, working with Product and Engineering leadership while continuing to write production Java. The architect will design high-risk systems, guide engineering decisions, develop senior engineers, and help ensure the platform is reliable, secure, and scalable. The position includes architecting enterprise capabilities such as single sign-on, role-based access, audit trails, multi-merchant hierarchies, and versioned partner APIs. It also involves keeping the core platform processor-agnostic and ensuring processor integrations operate optimally, including message mapping, reversals, and settlement reconciliation. Reliability and PCI considerations are to be built in from the start, including defining SLOs and monitoring, reducing single points of failure, leading root-cause analysis, and reducing PCI scope by design. The architect will also promote delivery velocity through AI-assisted development with appropriate review and security guardrails. PayJunction uses a Flex First approach: employees may work remotely or from the Santa Barbara office, and the description also identifies hybrid work as an option. Employees must reside in California, Illinois, Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Georgia, New York, Massachusetts, or Connecticut. The company describes a people-first, collaborative culture focused on long-term relationships, partner success, and employee growth.

Requirements

At least 10 years of professional software engineering experience, including hands-on ownership of production systems.
At least 5 years of architecture experience as an Architect, Staff Engineer, or Principal Engineer, owning designs spanning multiple services or teams.
At least 5 years of Java experience, including web frameworks and the JVM ecosystem, and production Java coding within the last 12 months.
At least 5 years mentoring senior and mid-level engineers through code review, design review, and pairing; formal people management is not required.
Production experience with AWS, Linux (Ubuntu/Debian), relational databases (MySQL preferred), CI/CD (Jenkins or comparable), infrastructure as code (Puppet or similar), and observability tools such as Splunk, Grafana, or Prometheus.
Experience designing and operating a highly available transactional system where downtime or data loss had direct financial or customer impact.
Current day-to-day use of AI coding assistants or agents such as Claude Code, Copilot, Cursor, or comparable tools in production work.
BS in Computer Science or equivalent applied experience.

Nice To Haves

Payments or fintech experience, such as card processing, gateways, or acquiring.
Experience designing within a PCI DSS-regulated environment.

Responsibilities

Lead open-ended initiatives from concept through production with Product and Engineering leadership, breaking down problems, directing engineers, and making decisions that keep teams moving.
Design high-risk systems end to end and write design documents covering requirements, trade-offs, and failure modes.
Write production Java every sprint, review pull requests promptly, and uphold a test strategy suited to high-risk payment paths.
Mentor senior engineers through design reviews, code reviews, and pairing to strengthen the team's design capabilities.
Architect enterprise capabilities including SSO, role-based access, audit trails, and multi-merchant hierarchies, as well as versioned APIs that partners can use without breaking changes.
Keep the core platform processor-agnostic and optimize processor integrations, including message mapping, reversals, and settlement reconciliation.
Design for reliability and PCI from the outset by defining SLOs and monitoring, removing single points of failure, leading root-cause analysis, and reducing PCI scope by design.
Improve delivery velocity using AI-assisted development and establish review and security guardrails for AI-generated code.

Benefits

Health, dental, and vision insurance paid 100% by the company for the employee and dependents.
401(k) with a 6% match.
Flexible Spending Account and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account.
Company-paid long-term and short-term disability coverage.
Eight paid company holidays per year.
Two paid floating holidays per year.
One paid volunteer day per year.
Paid time off.
Home office equipment stipend and equipment allowance for home office essentials.
Annual learning stipend.
Quarterly budgets for team bonding events.
Opportunity for growth within the company.
Remote, in-office, or hybrid work options.
Company-provided equipment for remote and hybrid team members.
Office amenities include stocked snack kitchens, collaborative workspaces, Herman Miller chairs, height-adjustable desks, large 32-inch monitors, and a dog-friendly office.