Lead Software Engineer

Our Purpose Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential. Title and Summary Lead Software Engineer Overview Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments industry, focused on powering an inclusive, digital economy that makes transactions safe, simple, smart, and accessible. Using secure data and networks, our innovations enable individuals, financial institutions, governments, and businesses worldwide to realize their greatest potential. About the Role The Mastercard Treasury Services Program owns the settlement platform for all Mastercard’s transactions. The primary purpose of this role will be to lead a team of software engineers to deliver the next generation of this settlement platform. Role Software Design & Architecture • Lead end-to-end software design and architecture, translating business and system requirements into scalable, reliable, and maintainable solutions • Define high- and low-level design artifacts, including APIs, data models, system interactions, and component boundaries • Establish and enforce architecture standards, design patterns, and engineering best practices across teams • Apply deep knowledge of data structures, algorithms, and distributed system design to solve complex performance and scalability challenges Software Development Excellence • Own delivery of robust, secure, and high-performance software across backend platforms • Drive engineering excellence in coding standards, modular design, and maintainability • Build and enhance internal developer platforms using Backstage or similar frameworks, leveraging plugin-based architectures • Develop data-driven user interfaces that surface observability and operational insights Testing Strategy & Quality Engineering • Define and implement comprehensive testing strategies, including: • Unit testing • Integration testing • Functional/end-to-end testing • Embed automated testing within CI/CD pipelines to enforce quality gates and prevent regressions • Ensure systems meet correctness, reliability, and backward compatibility requirements at scale Performance Engineering • Lead performance engineering initiatives, including system benchmarking, load testing, and capacity planning • Analyze system bottlenecks and optimize latency, throughput, and resource utilization across distributed architectures • Ensure applications meet strict performance SLAs in high-volume, mission-critical environments Secure Coding & Compliance • Enforce secure coding practices and integrate security into every phase of the SDLC • Design systems that meet enterprise security, regulatory, and compliance requirements • Partner with security teams to proactively identify and remediate vulnerabilities Troubleshooting & Incident Management • Serve as a senior escalation point for complex production issues across distributed systems and user-facing platforms • Lead root cause analysis, incident resolution, and postmortem activities • Drive systemic improvements to prevent recurring issues and improve system reliability Code Review & Technical Leadership • Lead rigorous code reviews, ensuring adherence to best practices in design, performance, security, and maintainability • Mentor engineers and elevate team capability in software design, testing, debugging, and operational excellence • Provide hands-on guidance in so