Backend Team Lead

1GLOBAL is a technology-driven global mobile communications provider dedicated to empowering enterprises worldwide to unlock the full growth potential of mobile connectivity. With a best-in-class telecom technology platform, a comprehensive suite of globally viable regulatory licenses, and privileged access to the telecom wholesale market, 1GLOBAL is uniquely positioned to deliver seamless compliance and connectivity solutions. Serving the world's leading banks, corporations, and digital-first businesses—including neo-banks, travel companies, and payment service providers—1GLOBAL connects over 43 million devices globally.

With 2024 full-year revenue exceeding US$100 million and in line to exceed US$200 million in FY25, 1GLOBAL is a profitable business generating significant cash flows to fund its ongoing investments in infrastructure, transformation, and growth. 2024 saw major client wins and marked 1GLOBAL's evolution from a multi-market telecommunication provider to a global technology-driven mobile connectivity powerhouse.

Established in 2022 by experienced tech founders and entrepreneurs Hakan Koç and Pyrros Koussios, 1GLOBAL is a European technology leader driving digital transformation in the global telecommunications market. It operates as a fully regulated Mobile Virtual Network Operator ("MVNO") in ten countries and as a regulated telecommunications operator in an additional 31 countries. Headquartered in the Netherlands, with world-class R&D hubs in Lisbon, Berlin, and São Paulo, 1GLOBAL employs over 450 experts across 15 countries.

Position Overview

We are looking for a talented and experienced engineering leader to join our team and lead the development of the software interface layer that abstracts the Core Network elements. As a Team Lead you will act both as technical authority and engineering manager, responsible for guiding technical direction, ensuring delivery, and fostering team growth. This role blends technical expertise, leadership, and strategic vision to build scalable, reliable solutions.

You'll be part of an international environment, working closely with cross-functional teams to shape and evolve our platform and digital experiences. We value teamwork and embrace a culture of ownership—our engineers are both autonomous and accountable for their deliverables. We are deeply customer-focused and committed to building software that creates real value for our users and the business.

Fluency in English is essential for this role. Please ensure your CV is submitted in English as part of your application.

We are open to hiring for this role in Lisbon or Berlin.

Key Responsibilities

• Interpret business needs from customers and stakeholders to translate technical requirements into actionable development tasks
• Design and document scalable solutions, assessing impacts, effort and resources
• Manage project timelines, prioritize tasks, and ensure on-time delivery
• Own the technical knowledge on how to interact with Core Network elements
• Drive engineering maturity and customer-centric architecture at scale
• Drive best practices in coding standards, code reviews, and system architecture
• Oversee CI/CD pipelines, ensuring smooth deployments and high system reliability
• Lead by example, mentor engineers, and support career development
• Ensure team engagement, motivation, and continuous learning
• Participate in recruitment and uphold engineering quality standards
• Travel frequently (:1 weel / month) to collaborate with distributed team members

Requirements

• Proven technical leadership and people management experience
• Strong emotional intelligence and communication skills
• Business-oriented mindset aligning technical execution with goals
• Ability to balance short-term delivery with long-term vision
• Experience developing and operating scalable, distributed systems
• Commitment to quality, testing, and full software lifecycle ownership
• Proficiency in Java, Go, or similar languages
• Strong software architecture and microservices experience
• Expertise in RESTful APIs and performance best practices
• Deep understanding of concurrency and async workflows
• Solid knowledge of relational (PostgreSQL) and NoSQL databases
• Familiarity with event-driven systems (Kafka, RabbitMQ)
• Knowledge of networking principles and security
• Cloud experience (AWS, GCP, Azure, etc.) and DevOps tools (Docker, CI/CD, IaC)
• Familiarity with observability tools (Prometheus, Grafana, etc.)
• Experience in Telecom is a plus

Benefits

Why 1GLOBAL?

• Growth Opportunities:
   Advance your career in one of the fastest growing telecommunications companies, expanding over 100% year-on-year under the leadership of successful tech entrepreneurs
• Major Transaction Exposure:
   Be in the driver's seat for transactions that will have an impact on the future telco industry
• Work with a Talented Team:
   From the Board and the Founders to the Senior Management Team, you will collaborate daily with the most capable and renowned external advisors, and constantly being exposed to talented and driven individuals
• Dynamic Work Environment:
   Thrive in a collaborative, fast-paced workplace where innovation is encouraged, and every contribution counts
• Professional Development:
   Work alongside industry experts to enhance your skills and knowledge in a cutting-edge field
• International Experience:
   Gain opportunities to work in different 1GLOBAL offices around the world as you grow within the company
• Open Communication Culture:
   Join a team where your ideas are heard, and open dialogue is encouraged, fostering a supportive and transparent work environment
• Get Things Done Attitude:
   Be part of a results-driven team that values efficiency, creativity, and the drive to make a tangible impact in the industry

1GLOBAL is an equal opportunity employer, we value your character as much as your talent. Diversity drives our innovation, and we offer a collaborative, dynamic, and international work environment. We are excited for you to join our mission to revolutionise connectivity globally.