Frontend Engineer at Pleo in London, England, United Kingdom

ABOUT PLEO Messy spend management is tricky business. And tedious processes are a lose-lose situation for all involved, not just finance. At Pleo, we're changing that. We build spend solutions that make managing money seamless, empowering, and surprisingly effective for finance teams and employees alike - with a vision to help all businesses ‘go beyond’. The word ‘Pleo’ actually means ‘more than you’d expect’, and living by that mantra has been the secret to our success over the last 10 years. Now, we’re at a pivotal moment in our journey; every move we make has a direct impact on our 40,000+ customers, our business, and our collective success. We need people who take pride in uncovering customer needs, who turn complex problems into simple solutions, challenge the way things are done (respectfully), and always aim high. With great ambitions driving us forward, we can’t say we’ve got this whole thing figured out. And frankly, that’s half the fun! What we can say is that we’re a driven, progressive, and, importantly, a kind bunch of 850+ people from over 100 nationalities, all committed to delivering the future of business spending, together. ABOUT THE ROLE We're looking for a Senior Backend Engineer to join our team at Pleo. In this role, you'll help build and scale our backend systems and be part of exciting projects as we continue to grow our product and service offerings. If you're passionate about solving complex technical challenges and want to work in a culture that values transparency, collaboration, and a deep commitment to innovation then this role is for you. WHO YOU’LL BE WORKING WITH AND REPORTING TO You’ll report to our Engineering Manager and work closely with cross-functional product teams, including Credit , Platform, Partnerships, SMB and more. Our collaborative team is dedicated to building world-class solutions, and you’ll have the opportunity to partner with other departments to drive success. While the specific team you'll be working with will be decided later, our hiring process remains streamlined and consistent across all roles. This allows us to evaluate your skills and potential, ensuring a great fit for the team you eventually join. No matter which domain you land in, you will be part of a dynamic, collaborative environment where you'll tackle complex challenges, build reusable components, and contribute to shaping the future of our product. WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING As a Senior Backend Engineer, you will: - Lead initiatives to design, build, and maintain scalable microservices primarily using Kotlin. - Collaborate with cross-functional teams to develop innovative solutions across Platform, Services, SMB, and other domains. - Analyze system performance and implement optimizations to ensure high reliability and scalability. - Participate in code reviews, post-mortems, and provide mentorship to other engineers. - Proactively address technical debt and guide the team through technical challenges and migrations. WHAT YOU BRING You'll thrive in this role if you have: - Expertise in server-side languages, especially Kotlin, and experience with distributed systems, microservices, and cloud environments (e.g., AWS, Kubernetes). - Proficiency with relational databases like PostgreSQL, testing frameworks (e.g., JUnit, Testcontainers), and observability tools like Grafana. - Strong problem-solving skills and a collaborative mindset to mentor and upskill your teammates. - A proven ability to lead large projects, manage ambiguity, and maintain high standards for code quality and reliability. - A passion for innovation and driving impactful solutions within a fast-paced scale-up environment. WHY IS THIS ROLE A GOOD FIT FOR YOU This role is a good fit for you if: - Highlight reason 1 - Highlight reason 2 - Highlight reason 3 This role is not a good fit for you if: - Highlight reason 1 - Highlight reason 2 - Highlight reason 3 HOW YOU’LL DEVELOP IN THIS ROLE In your first six months at Pleo, you’ll: - Lead backend initiatives to improve system performance and scalability.Collaborate with teams to drive innovation in product and infrastructure.Grow your expertise in Kotlin and distributed systems while mentoring other engineers.Contribute to shaping the future of our product as Pleo scales globally. - We’re committed to supporting your growth, whether through taking on larger projects, stepping into leadership roles, or expanding your technical expertise. THE LOCATION Please note: We can hire on a remote, hybrid or in-person set-up in any of the locations listed on the advert but you will need to be physically based in the country of your choice with a valid right to work. We are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role in any of the listed locations. SHOW ME THE BENEFITS! 💳 Your own Pleo card (no more out-of-pocket spending!) 🍜 Lunch is on us for your work days - enjoy catered meals or receive a lunch allowance based on your local office 🏥 Comprehensive private healthcare - depending on your location, coverage options include Vitality, Alan or Médis 🌴 We offer 25 days of holiday + your public holidays 🏠 For our Team, we offer both hybrid and fully remote working options 🏖️ Option to purchase 5 additional days of holiday through a salary sacrifice ❤️‍🩹 We use MyndUp to give our employees access to free mental health and well-being support with great success so far 👶 Paid parental leave - we want to make sure that we're supportive of families and help you feel that you don't have to compromise your family due to work THE INTERVIEW PROCESS We want to ensure you are set-up for success and understand what will be expected of you. If your application is successful, our interview process is as follows: 1. Intro call: A 30-minute chat with our Talent Partner to discuss the role and your background. 2. Describe stage 2 3. Describe stage 3 Transparency is important to us so we also wanted to share some insights about what we’re looking for in applications to ensure you can set yourself up for success! Last time we hired a [job title], we received a total of XXX applications but only XX were selected for an intro call. Some of the key reasons why previous candidates didn’t make it past the application screening stage include: - CV writing and content: we receive a lot of CVs, and many of them are AI-generated. We love seeing people leverage AI—it’s a big focus for us internally too—but without human intervention, these CVs can sometimes become generic and fail to show a candidate in the best light. What we're really looking for is the specific details of real impact that only you know from your previous experience. A top tip from us is to use the “Achieved X, as measured by Y, by doing Z” formula (credit: Laszlo Bock, ~2014) to give a really clear picture of what you’ve worked on. A final note: including links to your previous companies' websites is a huge help and allows us to truly understand your background! - Application care: every single application we receive is reviewed by a human (yes, hundreds of them) because we believe that candidates' efforts should be matched by an equal level of human care. This means that we expect a similar level of attention put into your application. Read and answer the application questions carefully, they make a huge difference in our decision-making process. - Profile to role fit: highlight most important aspects of the role, points that might get misunderstood, any specific industry requirements etc. ABOUT YOUR APPLICATION - English first. Since it's our company language, please submit your application in English. You’ll be using it a lot if you join us. - A fair look for everyone. Our talent team reads every single application to ensure the process is fair. To keep things running smoothly, we only accept applications through our system—our support team can’t pass on calls or emails. - Diversity drives us. We can only reach our goals if our team reflects the world around us. That starts with you hitting apply, even if you don't tick every single box. We encourage people from all backgrounds and experiences to join us. - Interview at your best. We want you to feel comfortable throughout the process. If you have any accessibility requirements or need a specific format, email belonging@pleo.io. We’ll design a process that works for you. - Your data is safe. When you apply, we process your personal data as a data processor. For more information on how Pleo processes personal data, read our Privacy Policy here https://www.pleo.io/en/legal. - Applying for multiple roles? Nothing is stopping you, and we assess every role independently. However, we do look for alignment, so make sure you can explain why your interest and experience are right for each specific role. - Reapplying. If you’re applying for the same role again, please wait six months from your last decision before hitting submit.