Lead Software Engineer (Java)

"We Power the Magic!" Our team creates world-class digital experiences and the platforms behind them for the Company's premier brands. This role sits within the Merchandise & Publishing Technology portfolio, which builds and runs the systems that move products and stories from creation to Guest and consumer: product lifecycle and licensing platforms, publishing workflows, and the merchandise systems that connect them. The team works closely with engineers, product owners, Licensing and Publishing business leaders, vendors, and application support teams. 

The Lead Software Engineer will report to the Manager, Software Engineering. 

What You'll Do

• Lead and build. Design and develop scalable, secure, well-documented applications, APIs, and RESTful services for Merchandise and Publishing. Remain hands-on with coding from technical specifications through delivery using Java, Node.js, Angular, AWS/cloud-native platforms, relational and NoSQL databases, and messaging.
• Drive AI-first engineering. Embed GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Amazon Q, Claude, and Kiro across design, coding, code review, testing, documentation, and troubleshooting. Establish standards for prompting, context management, AI-generated code review, security, IP, and quality, while measuring impact on delivery speed, defect rates, and developer experience.
• Build AI into products. Design and deliver AI-enabled capabilities, including intelligent search, metadata extraction and validation, AI-assisted PRD and artifact generation, and agentic workflows. Evaluate build-vs-buy options for LLM platforms, APIs, and orchestration frameworks, taking proofs of concept through production.
• Apply AI to operations. Partner with application support and SRE teams to improve incident triage, ticket-to-incident automation, knowledge discovery across documentation and JIRA history, root-cause analysis, and proactive risk detection.
• Set architectural direction. Translate complex business, functional, and technical requirements into solution architecture. Partner with Architecture and IT stakeholders to evaluate software, hardware, SaaS/PaaS, build-vs-buy decisions, and technology roadmaps aligned with reference architecture.
• Own production health. Ensure always-on systems remain reliable through troubleshooting, root-cause analysis, observability and alerting, incident response, and on-call participation. Proactively manage risks involving certificates, key management, vendor services, and upstream integrations.
• Oversee vendors and partners. Set technical expectations for vendor engineering teams, review delivery and engineering quality, and surface risks early.
• Raise engineering quality. Lead code and design reviews, automated testing, and continuous improvement of engineering processes, tooling, and coding practices.
• Collaborate across the business. Partner with product owners, Licensing and Publishing stakeholders, delivery managers, business analysts, and engineering teams to align solutions, estimate delivery, and communicate technical decisions and business value.
• Mentor and multiply. Coach engineers on AI-assisted development practices and help teams across the portfolio adopt effective approaches.

Required Qualifications & Skills

• 7+ years of experience building large-scale software systems and web applications, leading engineering teams and projects, and delivering solution and application architecture.
• Strong hands-on experience with Java 21+, Spring, microservices, and RESTful APIs.
• Hands-on Node.js experience developing services and APIs using asynchronous and event-driven patterns.
• Proficiency developing Angular applications, including component architecture, state management, and backend integration.
• Deep experience with DynamoDB, Aurora, MySQL, Kafka, Docker, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Demonstrated production use of AI coding assistants and agents, including Copilot, Cursor, Amazon Q, Claude, and Kiro, with measurable impact.
• Experience integrating LLMs into applications, including prompt and context design, retrieval-augmented generation, tool/function calling, evaluation, and cost and latency management using Amazon Bedrock or comparable platforms.
• Experience operating distributed production systems using Splunk, Grafana, or AppDynamics, with ownership of always-on services.
• Proven ability to lead cross-domain architectural initiatives and technical decision-making.
• Experience with enterprise architecture repository tools, including BlueDolphin.
• Hands-on familiarity with AWS, API-led integration, security-by-design, and data architecture principles.
• Strong understanding of object-oriented design, coding best practices, and Agile/Test-Driven Development.
• Ability to independently lead complex projects, set technical direction, solve challenging problems, and guide testing and debugging.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and make timely decisions in high-pressure environments.
• Experience working with distributed/remote teams and external vendors.
• Strong mentoring skills with the ability to train, guide, and review the work of junior engineers.
• Clear, concise communication skills with the ability to summarize risks, decisions, and next steps for product owners, business partners, and senior leaders.
• Adaptable and comfortable working in fast-changing, ambiguous environments.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in Disney, media, publishing, licensing, consumer products, or retail/merchandising domains.
• Familiarity with product lifecycle management (PLM), digital asset or rights management, content workflows, or merchandise planning and supply chain systems.
• Experience with AI governance, responsible AI practices, and IP and data-protection considerations in media or licensing environments.
• Experience developing agentic workflows or internal AI tooling that replaces manual, cross-team coordination.
• Experience with ITSM tooling, including ServiceNow, and automating support intake and incident workflows.

Required Education

Bachelor's or foreign equivalent degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software, Electrical or Electronics Engineering, or a comparable field of study, and/or equivalent work experience.

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PAY TRANSPARENCY

The hiring range for this position in Orlando, FL is $150,500 to $201,800 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

This position is with Walt Disney Attractions Technology LLC, which is part of a business we call Disney Experiences.

To learn more about Disney's guidelines on the use of AI for candidates, click here.

Walt Disney Attractions Technology LLC is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.

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The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, visit the Disney candidate disability accommodations FAQs. We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.

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