Software Engineer Lead - Java/Kafka/Apache

Job Profile

Position Overview

At PNC, our people are our greatest differentiator and competitive advantage in the markets we serve. We are all united in delivering the best experience for our customers. We work together each day to foster an inclusive workplace culture where all of our employees feel respected, valued and have an opportunity to contribute to the company’s success. As a Software Engineer Lead within PNC's Retail Technology Event Streaming organization, you will be based in Pittsburgh, PA, Strongsville, OH, or Dallas, TX. The position is primarily based in a PNC location. Responsibilities require time in the office or in the field on a regular basis. Some responsibilities may be performed remotely, at the manager’s discretion.
As a Software Engineer Principal, you will work on our Data Streaming Platform (DSP). In this position, you will be responsible for making sure that data is uploaded properly to the DSP and available as soon as it’s sent. You will develop tools and processes that will enhance availability, as well as optimize the streaming apps, APIs, SQL, etc. Additionally, you will work with our technology partners to perform upgrades to various underlying platforms, as well as work with the business and development teams that are adding data and functionality that requires DSP work. As a Software Engineer Lead, you will also be responsible for serving as a mentor for other members of the team. This role is one of the most critical roles on the Data Streaming Platform team. The ability to build Java applications for data pipelines using Kafka, and Oracle is essential to the platform.
Due to the nature of the position, we are seeking candidates with the following experience:
- Core Java Skills
- Strong understanding of Java
Apache Kafka Basics:
- Understanding of Kafka architecture (brokers, partitions, topics, producers, consumers)
- Experience with Kafka Producers and Consumers using the Kafka Java client
- Knowledge of Kafka topic configurations (retention, replication, partitioning)
- Understanding of the Kafka Streams
Distributed Processing Concepts:
- Familiarity with event-driven architecture
- Knowledge of exactly-once processing vs at-least-once processing
- Understanding of stream-table duality (Kafka Streams vs. KTables)
- Schema Management
- Experience with Avro, Protobuf, or JSON for structured messages
Integration with External Systems:
- Connecting Kafka Streams with databases (PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Cassandra)
- Using Kafka Connect for external data integration
- Knowledge of REST APIs and how to expose data from Kafka Streams
DevOps and Deployment
- Familiarity with Docker and Kubernetes for containerized deployment
- Using CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, Jenkins, GitLab CI)
- Logging and tracing using ELK (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana) or OpenTelemetry
Testing Kafka Streams Applications
- Writing unit tests with Mockito and JUnit
- Using TestContainers for integration testing with Kafka
- Validating Kafka Streams topologies using TopologyTestDriver
API developers:
- Experience building REST APIs using Spring Boot
- Experience with Spring Data/Spring Data JPA for connecting to and reading from databases via APIs
- Experience writing unit tests using JUnit/Spock
- Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines using Jenkins
- Familiarity with SQL/NoSQL databases
Nice-to-have Skills:
- Monitoring and Optimization
- Understanding of Kafka Streams metrics (through JMX, Grafana, Prometheus)
- Profiling performance and tuning configurations (buffer sizes, commit intervals)
- Handling out-of-order events and rebalancing issues
- Knowledge of Apache Flink or KSQLDB for alternative stream processing
- Knowledge of Docker, OpenShift
- Experience with tools like Dynatrace for troubleshooting
PNC will not provide sponsorship for employment visas or participate in STEM OPT for this position.

Job Description

• Creates and leads the technical design and development of software solutions.
• Proposes & designs software solutions to address complex business needs. Prepares technical and procedural documentation required.
• Facilitates complex problem resolution.
• Provides technical guidance and support to colleagues. Reviews coding, testing, and documentation of software.
• Applies modern principles, methodologies and tools to advance business initiatives and capabilities.

PNC Employees take pride in our reputation and to continue building upon that we expect our employees to be:

• Customer Focused - Knowledgeable of the values and practices that align customer needs and satisfaction as primary considerations in all business decisions and able to leverage that information in creating customized customer solutions.
• Managing Risk - Assessing and effectively managing all of the risks associated with their business objectives and activities to ensure they adhere to and support PNC's Enterprise Risk Management Framework.

Qualifications

Successful candidates must demonstrate appropriate knowledge, skills, and abilities for a role. Listed below are skills, competencies, work experience, education, and required certifications/licensures needed to be successful in this position.

Preferred SkillsApplication Development, Business Management, Customer Solutions, Design, Group Problem Solving, Process Improvements, Release Management, Software Solutions, User Experience (UX) Design

CompetenciesApplication Delivery Process, Application Design, Architecture, Application Development Tools, Application Testing, Packaged Application Integration, System Development Life Cycle, Technical Troubleshooting

Work ExperienceRoles at this level typically require a university / college degree, with 3+ years of relevant / direct industry experience. Certifications are often desired. In lieu of a degree, a comparable combination of education, job specific certification(s), and experience (including military service) may be considered.

EducationBachelors

CertificationsNo Required Certification(s)

LicensesNo Required License(s)

Benefits

PNC offers a comprehensive range of benefits to help meet your needs now and in the future. Depending on your eligibility, options for full-time employees include: medical/prescription drug coverage (with a Health Savings Account feature), dental and vision options; employee and spouse/child life insurance; short and long-term disability protection; 401(k) with PNC match, pension and stock purchase plans; dependent care reimbursement account; back-up child/elder care; adoption, surrogacy, and doula reimbursement; educational assistance, including select programs fully paid; a robust wellness program with financial incentives.

In addition, PNC generally provides the following paid time off, depending on your eligibility: maternity and/or parental leave; up to 11 paid holidays each year; 8 occasional absence days each year, unless otherwise required by law; between 15 to 25 vacation days each year, depending on career level; and years of service.

To learn more about these and other programs, including benefits for full time and part-time employees, visit Your PNC Total Rewards.

Disability Accommodations Statement

If an accommodation is required to participate in the application process, please contact us via email at [email protected]. Please include “accommodation request” in the subject line title and be sure to include your name, the job ID, and your preferred method of contact in the body of the email. Emails not related to accommodation requests will not receive responses.  Applicants may also call 877-968-7762 and say "Workday" for accommodation assistance. All information provided will be kept confidential and will be used only to the extent required to provide needed reasonable accommodations.

At PNC we foster an inclusive and accessible workplace.  We provide reasonable accommodations to employment applicants and qualified individuals with a disability who need an accommodation to perform the essential functions of their positions.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)

PNC provides equal employment opportunity to qualified persons regardless of race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, veteran status, or other categories protected by law.

This position is subject to the requirements of Section 19 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDIA) and, for any registered role, the Secure and Fair Enforcement for Mortgage Licensing Act of 2008 (SAFE Act) and/or the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which prohibit the hiring of individuals with certain criminal history.

California Residents

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