Full Stack Lead Architect

Role Description The Full Stack Lead Architect will lead the end-to-end technical architecture, design, and development of a large-scale, cloud-native digital payment platform hosted on AWS . The role requires deep expertise in Next.js, React Native, NestJS, PostgreSQL, Redis, and AWS infrastructure. You will define the technical roadmap, lead design reviews, oversee code quality, ensure data security and compliance with data sovereignty laws, and mentor a multi-disciplinary engineering team across frontend, backend, and mobile domains. Key Responsibilities Architecture & Design Define and document the system architecture for K-Bills, including microservices, APIs, and integrations with M-Pesa, banks, and vendors. Design scalable backend services using NestJS and AWS ECS/Fargate , ensuring modularity and maintainability. Oversee frontend architecture for both Next.js (web) and React Native (mobile) apps. Design and optimize the database schema (PostgreSQL) and caching layer (Redis). Establish best practices for API design, authentication, and orchestration. Technical Leadership Lead a team of full-stack developers, mobile engineers, and DevOps resources. Conduct architecture reviews, design walkthroughs, and code reviews. Collaborate closely with the Product Manager, UI/UX team, and QA engineers. Translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions. DevOps & Cloud Infrastructure Oversee setup and configuration of AWS environments (VPC, ECS, RDS, ElastiCache, CloudFront, Route 53, IAM, WAF). Implement infrastructure as code (Terraform/CDK) and CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions). Establish monitoring, logging, and alerting through CloudWatch and X-Ray. Ensure 99.5% uptime SLA and seamless auto-scaling for high traffic. Security & Compliance Ensure platform compliance with Kenya Data Protection Act and ISO 27001 principles. Manage IAM roles, KMS encryption, and secure API integrations. Implement multi-factor authentication, secure session management, and audit logging. Integration & Payments Architect integration workflows with M-Pesa (Daraja API) , banks, and vendor systems. Build robust reconciliation and reporting systems for transaction validation. Ensure real-time event processing with SQS/SNS and WebSockets for notifications. Mentorship & Documentation Mentor junior engineers and provide technical training. Maintain detailed technical design documents, API specs, and architecture diagrams. Contribute to technology roadmap and sprint planning. Technical Skills Required Core Stack Frontend: Next.js, TypeScript, Tailwind, React Query Mobile: React Native (Expo), Firebase/FCM Backend: NestJS (Node.js), TypeScript, ExpressJS, RESTful APIs Database: PostgreSQL, TypeORM / Prisma ORM Cache & Queues: Redis, BullMQ, SQS/SNS CI/CD: GitHub Actions, AWS CodeBuild, Docker, ECR Infra: Terraform / AWS CDK, ECS Fargate, CloudFormation Monitoring: CloudWatch, Grafana, X-Ray Bonus Skills Microservices & API gateway design Event-driven architecture with EventBridge Familiarity with fintech integrations (M-Pesa, card payments) Multi-language apps (English/Swahili) Knowledge of Flutterwave or banking APIs Qualifications Bachelor’s or Master’s in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field. 8+ years of professional full-stack experience. 3+ years in a technical leadership / architect role. Proven record designing scalable, cloud-native SaaS or fintech platforms. Deep understanding of security, performance tuning, and DevOps best practices. Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.