JAVA Developer Lead at Hollard Insurance

Job Purpose

• Java Team Lead will be responsible for overseeing the development of complex IT platform using Java Enterprise Edition, specifically the IDIT platform. This role includes leading a development team, driving end-to-end project delivery, ensuring technical excellence, and fostering collaboration across business and IT stakeholders. The successful candidate will provide both hands-on coding expertise and leadership in architecture, design, and implementation.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead a team of Java developers, providing technical guidance, mentorship, and performance management. Self-starter who takes accountability for the team’s delivery
• Oversee the design and delivery of end-to-end customer projects, including UI, SQL data models, and business logic implementation.
• Architect and develop integrations with external systems (web services, APIs, and other technologies).
• Collaborate with business analysts, architects, and project managers to translate requirements into robust technical solutions.
• Review and approve technical designs, code quality, and adherence to best practices.
• Drive process improvements and adoption of modern development methodologies.
• Ensure project timelines, quality standards, and budgetary requirements are met.

Application Development

• Develop and maintain Java-based modules for policy, claims, billing, and customer management.
• Customize IDIT metadata, workflows, and UI components to meet business requirements.
• Ensure scalability, performance, and maintainability of all developed components.
• Integration & Interoperability
• Architect and implement integrations with third-party systems (e.g., payment gateways, CRM, regulatory platforms).
• Design and manage APIs (REST/SOAP) for seamless data exchange across platforms.

Requirement Analysis & Solution Design

• Collaborate with business analysts, product owners, and stakeholders to gather and refine requirements.
• Translate business needs into technical specifications and actionable development plans.
• Provide strategic input into product roadmap and platform enhancements.

Testing & Quality Assurance

• Oversee unit, integration, and regression testing strategies.
• Ensure automated testing coverage and CI/CD pipeline integration.
• Conduct code reviews and mentor developers on best practices.

Platform Configuration & Customization

• Deeply understand and leverage IDIT’s metadata-driven architecture.
• Optimize system performance, troubleshoot complex issues, and implement enhancements.
• Stay current with IDIT platform updates and industry trends.

Documentation & Governance

• Maintain comprehensive technical documentation and design artifacts.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory standards (e.g., POPIA, FSCA).
• Support audit and governance processes through traceable development practices

Performance Tuning & Optimization

• Monitor application performance and identify bottlenecks.
• Optimize database queries, caching strategies, and service calls.
• Implement logging and monitoring tools to ensure system reliability.

Security & Compliance

• Ensure applications adhere to data protection regulations (e.g., POPIA in South Africa).
• Implement authentication, authorization, and encryption mechanisms.
• Support audit and compliance reporting features within the platform.

Team Collaboration & Mentorship

• Lead and mentor a team of developers, fostering growth and knowledge sharing.
• Facilitate Agile ceremonies (stand-ups, sprint planning, retrospectives).
• Promote a culture of accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.

Required Knowledge and Experience    
Required Experience (relevant or in a similar role)

• Minimum 10 years in Java Enterprise Edition programming, with at least 3 years in a leadership or team lead capacity.
• Unit testing and mocking frameworks
• Proven experience in translating complex business requirements into detailed technical designs.
• Strong Object-Oriented design principles
• Strong hands-on experience with Spring Boot, Java 11
• Solid understanding of Microservices architecture
• Proficiency with application servers (WebLogic / WebSphere / JBoss – Advantage).
• Experience with MSSQL.
• Strong understanding of software architecture, system integration, and performance optimization.
• End to end implementation of customer projects, including UI, SQL data model and business logic implementation
• Development of interfaces with external systems (web services, other technologies)

Required Knowledge and Skills

• Strong understanding of short-term insurance products and lifecycle
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and leadership skills.
• EJB, SQL, Hibernate – Must; strong understanding of complex data and domain models with large-scale DB tables.
• Agile/Scrum, SDLC, CI/CD pipelines
• Ability to translate functional requirements into technical design and development tasks 
• Analytical thinking, communication, problem-solving, stakeholder engagement
• Experience with application server: WebLogic / WebSphere / JBoss – Advantage
• Experience working with Oracle, DB2, MSSQL (all or one of them) – Advantage
• Team player with excellent communication skills
• Spring Framework

On the job training/familiarisation time

• 3 months

Educational Requirements    

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field

Deadline:18th January,2026