Backend Developer (Java/Spring Boot)

Quick Summary

🕛 Hours: Full-time
🌎 Location: Fully remote
🇪🇺 Time Zone: Looking for people in Europe or LATAM
📅 Project Duration: 5 months, project engagement through February 2027
🇬🇧 Language: Professional English required. Spanish is a strong bonus.
🤠 Experience: 3+ years of professional backend development experience, with strong hands-on experience in Java, Spring Boot, and PostgreSQL.
💸 Salary: €3,000 /month gross, B2B contract

About Afternow

We are partners in your digital journey. We bring together strategy, design, and technology to build systems that flex as your future unfolds. Afternow creates the digital systems brilliant companies are built on. Strategy, identity, web and product design, and technology that scales. Every part of the process supports and informs the other, creating an environment that works today and adapts to wherever the business goes next. We work primarily with ambitious, digitally focused organizations navigating change. From startups finding their footing, to scale-ups building momentum, to established enterprises reshaping their digital foundations. Our partnerships are built on clarity, craft, and care. Since 2012, we've grown from our roots on Island Krk, Croatia, to a fully remote team of more than thirty talented people working across the globe. We've partnered with companies including AWS, ThoughtSpot, Progressive, Descartes, ShipBob, Quillbot, Teachable, Crisp, CloudZero, Kinetik, and many more. 🏆 4.6 Glassdoor Rating: Join our team and discover why our people consistently rate us so highly.

The Role

We are looking for a Mid-Level Backend Developer to join our Product Development team and strengthen one of our client project teams through February 2027.

You will work on backend systems for a modern digital product, building APIs, services, database models, integrations, and business logic using Java and Spring Boot.

You will collaborate closely with other backend developers, frontend engineers, QA engineers, DevOps, Technical Product Managers, designers, and client-side stakeholders.

We are looking for someone who already has solid professional experience and can independently deliver backend features while knowing when to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and involve other team members.

This is not a role where you simply close tickets. We value developers who understand the broader context of what they are building, communicate dependencies early, care about code quality, and take responsibility for getting their work properly tested and delivered.

What You'll Do

• Backend Development: Write clean, maintainable, testable, and efficient Java code using Spring Boot and modern backend engineering practices.
• API Development: Build and maintain REST APIs and backend services that are secure, reliable, and easy for other systems and frontend applications to integrate with.
• Database Development: Work with PostgreSQL, Hibernate, database schemas, queries, indexes, migrations, and data models.
• Business Logic: Translate product and business requirements into reliable backend functionality.
• Microservices: Develop and maintain services within a distributed backend architecture.
• Integrations: Implement third-party integrations, internal services, and other backend integrations depending on project requirements.
• Data Accuracy: Pay close attention to validation, edge cases, data consistency, and correctness.
• Testing: Write and maintain automated tests and work closely with QA engineers to make sure features are properly covered.
• Feature Delivery: Take responsibility for assigned backend features from implementation through testing and release.
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Work closely with Frontend, QA, DevOps, product, and design to help complete full product features rather than isolated backend tasks.
• Problem-Solving: Raise unclear requirements, technical risks, dependencies, and potential issues early instead of waiting until they become blockers.

What We're Looking For

• 3+ years of professional backend development experience.
• Java: Strong practical knowledge of modern Java development. Experience with Java 21 is preferred.
• Spring Boot: Strong hands-on experience building backend applications and services with Spring Boot.
• Hibernate / JPA: Practical experience working with ORM-based persistence.
• PostgreSQL: Good understanding of relational databases, SQL, data modeling, and query performance.
• REST APIs: Experience designing, implementing, testing, and consuming RESTful APIs.
• Testing: Experience with automated backend testing and an understanding of why testing is part of development, not something added at the end.
• Git: Comfortable working with Git, pull requests, code reviews, and collaborative development workflows.
• Architecture: Familiarity with microservices and distributed systems. Experience with Domain-Driven Design or Event-Driven Architecture is a plus.
• AWS Familiarity: Experience working with AWS or another cloud environment is a plus. ECS/Fargate experience is particularly useful.
• Domain Experience: Experience in Fintech, SaaS, HR, Payroll, ERP, AI-enabled products, or complex Enterprise platforms is a plus.
• Ownership: You can independently handle assigned features and communicate clearly when requirements, dependencies, or technical decisions need discussion.
• Collaboration: You are comfortable working closely with PMs, Frontend developers, QA, DevOps, designers, and other backend engineers.
• Problem-Solving: You can take a business requirement, understand the expected behavior, and turn it into well-structured backend logic.
• AI-assisted development: Experience using tools such as Claude Code or similar is a bonus. You know how to use them to improve productivity without replacing engineering judgment.
• Language: Fluent professional English is mandatory. Spanish is a significant advantage, particularly when working with LATAM stakeholders.

What To Expect

• Project-focused engagement: You will join a client project that is currently expected to run through February 2027.
• Flexibility: We have standard 40-hour work weeks. While our agency working hours are from 9 am to 7 pm CET, you'll have the freedom to organize your working hours. The majority of your working time should overlap with this window.
• Remote work & Tooling: We operate as a fully remote team. We use HubStaff for time tracking and work transparency, helping us keep administration simple across distributed teams.
• Collaboration: You'll work as part of a cross-functional product team, with backend, frontend, QA, DevOps, product, and design working closely together.
• Culture: We value clarity, collaboration, curiosity, growth, craft, and care. We expect people to communicate openly, learn continuously, and contribute to improving how the team works.
• Autonomy and responsibility: You'll be trusted to manage your responsibilities efficiently, communicate progress clearly, and raise issues before they become blockers.

Hiring Process

1. Application Review: We'll review your experience, technical background, availability, and overall fit for the role.
2. Video Call with HR: An initial conversation about your experience, availability, expectations, and working preferences.
3. Interview with Leadership: If there is a strong match, you might meet with members of our Leadership team. We'll discuss your technical experience, communication style, problem-solving approach, collaboration, and how you work within a product team.
4. Welcome to Afternow!

Afternow is an equal opportunity employer. We believe diverse teams build better products and create better experiences. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.