Senior Engineer, Payments

Xero4 days ago

Location

CAN: VAN (333 Seymour St)

Type

Full Time

Salary

CAD 155,000 – 205,000

Level

Senior

Role

Senior Engineer

Posted

Jul 10, 2026

Full TimeSenior

The role

Summary

Senior Engineer, Payments at Xero is a senior-level software engineering role based in Vancouver focused on architecting and scaling distributed payment systems. This position demands expertise in designing high-availability systems, modernizing monolithic architectures into microservices, and mentoring junior engineers while contributing to global engineering standards. You'll work with a modern tech stack including C#, .NET, React, AWS, and Kubernetes in a hybrid environment with strong emphasis on technical excellence, CI/CD maturity, and test-driven development practices.

What you'll do

Architect Distributed Systems at Scale: Design and implement scalable, high-availability distributed systems for Xero's global payments infrastructure, moving beyond feature delivery to influence platform architecture and ensure robustness for millions of users worldwide.

Refactor Monolithic Systems: Lead technical initiatives to refactor complex monolithic components into distributed, microservice-based architectures that improve system maintainability, scalability, and operational resilience.

Lead Major Code Design Decisions: Exercise architectural autonomy to make critical code design decisions, establish coding standards, and contribute to global engineering frameworks that guide the organization's technical direction.

Mentor and Coach Engineering Team Members: Provide technical mentorship to junior and mid-level engineers, conduct code reviews, lead knowledge-sharing sessions, and help team members navigate complex technical challenges to accelerate their professional growth.

Enhance Developer Experience and CI/CD Maturity: Mature CI/CD concepts, tooling, and test-driven development practices to improve deployment velocity, reduce technical debt, and enable the team to maintain high engineering standards.

Build and Maintain Diverse Tech Stack: Develop, deploy, and operate systems across C#, .NET, React, AWS, and Kubernetes, ensuring consistency, reliability, and performance across heterogeneous technology components.

Develop Technical Solution Designs: Create and implement technical solution designs that align with long-term engineering frameworks, balance business requirements with technical excellence, and support Xero's strategic platform roadmap.

Collaborate Across Global Engineering Organization: Work with cross-functional teams including product owners, designers, and engineers globally, using agile and delivery practices to ship meaningful, reliable code that drives business value.

What we look for

Technical

Distributed Systems Design and OperationProven experience designing, building, and operating complex, large-scale systems in distributed and high-availability environments. Strong fundamentals in system architecture, consensus protocols, and fault tolerance mechanisms required.

Software Architecture and RefactoringDemonstrated expertise in designing high-quality software architecture, recognizing architectural anti-patterns, and leading large-scale system refactoring initiatives from monolithic to microservice architectures.

Multiple Programming Languages and FrameworksProficiency across a range of programming languages and development frameworks with the ability to ramp quickly on adjacent technologies. Strong background with modern languages such as C#, .NET, or equivalent is essential.

Modern Engineering PracticesExpertise in test-driven development, automated testing frameworks, continuous integration/continuous deployment, code review processes, and refactoring techniques that maintain code quality at scale.

Cloud Infrastructure and ContainerizationHands-on experience with AWS cloud services and container orchestration platforms like Kubernetes for deploying, managing, and scaling distributed applications in production environments.

Code Quality and Technical ExcellenceDeep commitment to writing maintainable, well-tested, performant code with strong attention to design principles, documentation, and long-term codebase health. Experience establishing technical standards and best practices.

Education

Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or Related FieldFormal education in computer science, software engineering, mathematics, or related field is preferred. Equivalent practical experience and demonstrated mastery of core computer science fundamentals are also valued.

Experience

7+ Years Software Engineering ExperienceMinimum 7 years of professional software engineering experience with at least 3+ years at senior or staff engineer level working on large-scale systems and leading architectural initiatives.

Large-Scale System OperationsDemonstrated track record operating and maintaining complex systems at scale, including experience with performance optimization, incident response, and designing for high availability and resilience.

Technical Mentorship and LeadershipProven experience mentoring junior engineers, conducting technical interviews, contributing to hiring decisions, and establishing engineering standards that improve team capability and organizational technical culture.

Cross-Functional CollaborationExperience working effectively with product managers, designers, and other stakeholders in collaborative, agile environments. Ability to communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical audiences.

Skills

Required skills

C# and .NET FrameworkProduction experience building scalable backend systems using C# and .NET, including async/await patterns, LINQ, dependency injection, and entity framework for data persistence.

Distributed Systems ArchitectureDeep understanding of distributed systems concepts including service communication patterns, eventual consistency, transaction handling, and designing systems that handle network failures gracefully.

Microservices DesignExpertise in microservices architecture patterns, service decomposition strategies, API design, and managing dependencies between distributed components at enterprise scale.

Cloud Services (AWS)Hands-on proficiency with AWS services including EC2, Lambda, RDS, S3, SNS/SQS, CloudFormation, VPC configuration, and infrastructure-as-code principles for reliable cloud deployments.

Container Orchestration (Kubernetes)Production experience deploying and managing containerized applications using Kubernetes, including pod management, service discovery, resource allocation, and troubleshooting container orchestration issues.

Automated Testing and TDDProficiency in test-driven development methodologies, writing unit tests, integration tests, and end-to-end tests. Experience with testing frameworks and establishing testing standards across teams.

CI/CD Pipelines and DevOpsExperience designing and implementing continuous integration and continuous deployment pipelines using tools like Jenkins, GitLab CI, GitHub Actions, or similar platforms for automated code quality checks and deployments.

System Performance and OptimizationAbility to identify and resolve performance bottlenecks, profile applications, optimize database queries, implement caching strategies, and design systems that meet strict latency and throughput requirements.

Technical Leadership and MentorshipStrong ability to lead technical initiatives, make architectural decisions, influence engineering standards, and mentor team members through complex problem-solving and code reviews.

Nice to have

React Frontend FrameworkFamiliarity with React.js for building responsive user interfaces, component-based architecture, state management, and integration with backend APIs in full-stack projects.

Payment Systems KnowledgeDomain expertise in payment processing, financial transactions, PCI compliance, card networks, payment gateways, or fintech systems handling sensitive financial data.

Docker ContainerizationExperience creating and managing Docker containers, writing Dockerfiles, optimizing image sizes, and integrating container workflows into development and deployment pipelines.

Agile MethodologiesExperience working in Agile environments using Scrum or Kanban practices, including sprint planning, retrospectives, and iterative delivery in fast-paced team settings.

SQL and Database DesignStrong SQL proficiency for writing optimized queries, designing efficient schemas, understanding normalization, and working with relational databases like PostgreSQL or SQL Server.

Git Version ControlProficiency with Git for version control, code branching strategies, merge conflict resolution, and collaborative development workflows in distributed teams.

System Design and Problem SolvingAbility to approach complex system design challenges holistically, consider trade-offs between different architectural approaches, and defend design decisions with technical reasoning.

Domain-Driven DesignFamiliarity with Domain-Driven Design principles for structuring systems around business domains, defining bounded contexts, and creating maintainable enterprise applications.

Compensation & benefits

Salary

CAD 155,000 – 205,000 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Comprehensive Health and Wellness Programs

World-class health insurance coverage including medical, dental, and vision benefits, plus wellness initiatives and mental health support services for employees and their families.

Retirement Planning and Financial Security

Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) matching and contributions, enabling long-term financial security and retirement planning with employer support.

Equity and Stock Ownership

Eligibility for equity grants and RSU (Restricted Stock Unit) programs, allowing employees to participate in company growth and align compensation with long-term value creation.

Performance-Based Bonuses

Annual bonus programs tied to individual, team, and company performance, enabling employees to earn additional compensation based on results and impact.

Professional Development and Learning

Dedicated professional development budgets for training, certifications, conferences, and courses to support continuous skill growth in software engineering and cloud technologies.

Generous Leave and Time Off

Comprehensive paid vacation, wellness days, and flexible time-off policies enabling work-life balance and mental health support throughout the year.

Hybrid Work Flexibility

Flexible hybrid working model with remote work options and office 'boost days' 1-2 days per week for in-person collaboration, allowing work-life flexibility in Vancouver office.

Inclusive Culture and Team Building

Collaborative team environment with emphasis on diversity, inclusion, and employee engagement through regular team social events and knowledge-sharing initiatives.

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