Staff Software Engineer in Austin, TX

Role Responsibilities

As a Staff Software Engineer supporting the Global Bill Payments platform at Western Union, you are an Individual Contributor (IC) responsible for the architectural integrity and technical evolution of mission-critical systems. You will be a key technical leader shaping the architecture for future high-scale, mission-critical bill payments platform. You will combine deep hands-on engineering with architectural influence on design systems that are resilient, scalable, and built for global impact. This role offers the opportunity to drive technical direction, simplify complex legacy flows, and help build a modern, cloud-ready platform that supports customers across US and IST time zones.

• Lead the design and evolution of a simplified, high-performance, and globally scalable Bill Payments architecture
• Define and influence architectural decisions across services, APIs, data flows, and infrastructure strategy
• Design and implement microservices-based systems supporting high-volume, real-time financial transactions
• Partner with engineers, product managers, and business stakeholders across global teams to deliver end-to-end solutions
• Act as a trusted domain expert for Bill Payments, guiding technical direction and system evolution
• Improve system reliability, performance, and scalability through deep technical analysis and hands-on optimization
• Ensure architecture and implementations meet enterprise-grade standards for security, compliance, and resilience
• Translate complex business requirements into elegant, scalable, and maintainable technical solutions
• Champion engineering best practices including CI/CD, automated testing, and modern Agile delivery practices
• Contribute to strengthening engineering culture through collaboration, mentorship, and technical leadership
• Explore and evaluate emerging technologies, including AI-enabled development tools, to enhance engineering efficiency and system intelligence

Role Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or related field with 8+ years of experience, or master’s degree with 6+ years of experience
• Strong hands-on software engineering experience in Java/J2EE, frameworks such as Spring Boot,
• Strong hands-on experience with AWS, RDS, Postgres
• Deep expertise in computer science fundamentals including data structures, algorithms, OOP, and system design
• Proven experience designing and delivering distributed, microservices-based architectures at scale
• Strong experience with SQL databases, data modeling, and building reliable data-driven systems
• Hands-on experience building APIs, web services, and enterprise system integrations (XML/JSON)
• Solid experience with AWS cloud services and cloud‑native application design
• Strong experience with CI/CD pipelines, automated testing frameworks, and Test-Driven Development (TDD)
• Demonstrated ability to lead architecture design discussions and influence technical direction across teams
• Experience working in Agile environments with iterative, fast-paced delivery cycles
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to thrive in complex and ambiguous environments
• Experience collaborating across globally distributed engineering teams and time zones
• Ability to operate effectively as a hands-on engineer while driving architectural strategy in an IC role
• Strong communication skills with ability to influence and align technical and business stakeholders
• Nice to have experience in financial services, payments, or highly regulated domains
• Nice to have experience with hybrid cloud architecture
• Nice to have exposure to AI platforms, prompt engineering, explainable AI, or applied AI in enterprise engineering workflows
• Nice to have experience modernizing monolithic or legacy systems into cloud-native, distributed architectures
• *Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis. Western Union will not sponsor applicants for work visas for this position.

Work Shift

HYBRID - Western Union values in-person collaboration, problem solving, and ideation whenever possible. We believe this fosters common ways of working and supports how we execute initiatives for our customers. The expectation is to work from the office a minimum of three days a week.

Location: 11902 Burnet Rd., Suite 350, Austin, TX 78758

BENEFITS AND OTHER DETAILS

Benefits

You will also have access to short-term incentives, multiple health insurance options, accident and life insurance, and access to best-in-class development platforms, to name a few (https://careers.westernunion.com/global-benefits/). Please see the benefits below specific to your country. If applicable, additional role-specific benefits will be mentioned during your interview process or in an offer of employment.

Your United States specific benefits include: 

• Medical, Dental, Vision, and Life Insurance 
• Tuition Assistance Program 
• Employee Discount Program
• Parental Leave 
• 401K Plan

For residents of Colorado, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania: Please do not respond to any questions on this initial application that may seek age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You may also redact this information from any materials you submit during the application process. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.

Salary

The base salary range is $125,000 - $155,000 per year; total on-target earnings include a base salary and short-term incentives that align with individual and company performance. Actual salaries will vary based on candidates’ qualifications, skills, and competencies.

Other Details

As part of the application process, all applicants are required to take assessments. Western Union has partnered with a 3rd party provider to administer these tests. Applicants will need to provide their name and email address in order to process the assessments. If you have any questions, you may reach out to careers@westernunion.com.

We are passionate about honoring our employee's identity and fostering a feeling of belonging. Our commitment is to provide an inclusive culture that celebrates the unique backgrounds and perspectives of our global teams while reflecting the communities we serve. We do not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, religion, political affiliation, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, marital status, or veteran status. The company will provide accommodation to applicants, including those with disabilities, during the recruitment process, following applicable laws.

Estimated Job Posting End Date:

05-18-2026

This application window is a good-faith estimate of the time that this posting will remain open. This posting will be promptly updated if the deadline is extended or the role is filled.