Lead Software Engineer | Backend, Level 5

Agoda is one of the largest online travel platforms, and this is a Level 5 lead backend role in Gurugram. The posting is unusually clear about what lead means here: own critical systems end to end, drive technical direction, lead large initiatives, and influence engineering decisions beyond your immediate team, while combining architecture, execution and technical leadership. The requirement most worth reading twice is the last one, which states that recent and ongoing hands on coding experience in production is required. At eleven or more years that is a rare and welcome thing to see written down, because lead titles at this band often quietly mean you stop coding. Stack is Java, Scala, Kotlin or Go, with distributed systems, API design and microservices depth.

Published requirements: 11+ years building and operating large scale backend systems in production environments; proven experience delivering complex distributed systems at scale; strong expertise in Java, Scala, Kotlin or Go; strong software architecture skills with a track record of driving architectural decisions within and across teams; proven experience leading technical initiatives, projects or engineering teams with end to end ownership; and recent and ongoing hands on coding experience in production, which the posting states is required rather than preferred. Deep expertise is expected in distributed systems and architecture, API design and microservices. The role is described as owning critical systems end to end, driving technical direction, leading large initiatives, combining architecture, execution and technical leadership, influencing engineering decisions beyond the immediate team, and mentoring engineers. Location is Gurugram, and the posting names it in the title as Gurugram based, so treat it as an on site expectation in the National Capital Region rather than flexible. That is worth flagging positively: most senior backend roles on this board are Bangalore, so a genuine Level 5 backend seat in the NCR is scarce. Employer note worth carrying into the interview: Agoda is unusually specific about hands on expectations. A comparable staff backend posting from the same company states outright what proportion of working time is spent on coding and system design, which is a number most companies leave vague at this level. Given this posting also makes hands on coding a stated requirement, it is entirely fair to ask the hiring manager for the same specificity here and to hold them to the answer. Good fit for a senior backend engineer with eleven or more years who wants architectural scope without giving up code, and who is in or willing to be in the NCR.