Technical Lead - Java/AWS

About the Role

We’re looking for a hands-on Tech Lead to help us scale our engineering team and systems as we grow. This role is for someone who likes being in the middle of real engineering work,  designing systems, writing code, reviewing implementations, unblocking teammates, and making sure delivery stays on track. You won’t be joining as a pure manager or a slide-deck architect. You’ll be a technical force multiplier for the team, someone who can step into tough problems, bring clarity to decisions, raise the quality bar, and help engineers move faster with confidence. You’ll work closely with the Engineering Manager and play a key role in shaping how the team builds and delivers.

Key Responsibilities

  • Lead technical design and implementation for core backend systems
  • Write, review, and improve production-grade code
  • Unblock engineers when things get messy, ambiguous, or technically hard
  • Drive strong engineering decisions around architecture, scalability, reliability, and maintainability
  • Help convert sprint goals into clear technical execution
  • Mentor engineers through code reviews, design discussions, and hands-on guidance
  • Work closely with backend, frontend, QA, and DevOps to keep delivery moving smoothly
  • Push for better engineering practices, better technical judgment, and stronger ownership across the team
  • Contribute to building scalable, performant, and low-latency systems

What We’re Looking For

  • 6-8+ years of software engineering experience
  • Strong hands-on experience with Java and Spring Boot
  • Strong working experience with AWS
  • Solid experience building and running scalable backend services and APIs
  • Strong system design fundamentals
  • Ability to lead from the front while staying hands-on
  • Experience mentoring engineers and improving team execution
  • Strong ownership mindset, communication, and problem-solving ability

Nice-to-Haves:

  • Experience with high-scale and low-latency API systems
  • Exposure to data-intensive systems
  • Working knowledge of React
  • Experience working in a startup or product-driven environment

What Success Looks Like

  • The team is not blocked on technical decisions or implementation challenges.
  • Sprint delivery becomes smoother and more predictable.
  • Engineers grow stronger through active mentoring and technical support.
  • Code quality and engineering discipline improve over time.
  • Technical decisions balance speed today with scalability tomorrow.

The Team

You’ll work with a growing engineering team of 15+ members across backend, frontend, QA, and DevOps, and will report to the Engineering Manager. 

You’ll probably enjoy this role if you:

  • Like solving real engineering problems instead of just discussing them.
  • Enjoy mentoring others without moving away from code.
  • Can switch between system design, debugging, reviews, and execution.
  • Naturally take ownership when things are unclear or blocked.
  • Want to have real influence on how a team builds.

This role is not for you if:

  • You’re looking for a pure people-management role.
  • You prefer staying only at the architecture/review level.
  • You don’t enjoy being hands-on with code and delivery.

Why join us?

This is a chance to play a meaningful technical leadership role in a growing team where your work will directly influence engineering quality, delivery velocity, and how systems are built going forward.

About Trestle

Trestle is a technology company based in Bellevue, Washington, building the next generation of identity data products. Our APIs help businesses across industries (from contact centers and financial services to insurance and lead generation) improve customer onboarding, lead management, and call operations through accurate validation, verification, and enrichment. Enterprise customers like Twilio, ActiveProspect, and Best Buy trust us to handle 500M+ queries per month.

Our founders bring deep identity data expertise, having helped grow a startup to an $850M acquisition. Today, Trestle is profitable with over a thousand business customers and massive growth potential, backed by top investors and entrepreneurs with decades of experience building industry-leading technology companies.

Our mission is to make identity data accessible, accurate, and actionable for every business. We’re guided by our core values: 

  • Growth Mindset: We invest in people who want to grow. We’re committed to hiring individuals eager to push beyond their comfort zone, even if their experience isn’t traditional.
  • One Team: We succeed together. With our flat organizational structure and collaborative culture, supporting colleagues happens naturally.
  • Customer First: Doing right by our customers guides every decision we make. We prioritize responsiveness, build genuine trust, and invest in relationships that endure.
  • Figure It Out: We thrive in ambiguity. We embrace new challenges head-on and relentlessly find solutions, even when the path forward isn’t clear.
  • Incremental Innovation: We believe small improvements compound into transformative change. Our innovation is steady, thoughtful, and ongoing, driven by continuous experimentation and iterative learning.

Trestle is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

How to Apply

Please submit your resume via email to careers@trestleiq.com. In the subject line of your email, please include “Technical Lead Application – [Your Name].”