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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Java Full Stack Developer

💰 $85,000 to $130,000 per year

TechnologyFull‑StackWeb Development

🎯 Role Definition

A Java Full Stack Developer is a versatile, end‑to‑end engineer who writes both server‑side and client‑side code, bridges backend logic and frontend user interfaces, and participates across the full software development lifecycle (SDLC). This role works with technologies such as Java, Spring/Spring Boot, RESTful APIs, relational and NoSQL databases, as well as modern frontend frameworks like React, Angular or Vue. The ideal candidate will address business requirements, design and implement full stack solutions, optimise for performance and scalability, and collaborate with product, design, QA and DevOps teams to deliver production‑ready applications.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • Backend Java Developer transitioning into full stack
  • Front‑end Developer with Java/Backend interest
  • Software Engineer with spring‑boot microservices experience

Advancement To:

  • Senior Java Full Stack Developer / Technical Lead
  • Full Stack Architect or Solutions Architect
  • Director of Engineering, Head of Platform or CTO

Lateral Moves:

  • DevOps / Cloud Full‑Stack Engineer
  • API & Microservices Specialist
  • UI/UX Full‑Stack Lead

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  1. Collaborate with product managers and business analysts to gather and analyse requirements, then translate them into technical specifications for both frontend and backend layers.
  2. Design, develop and maintain RESTful APIs and microservices architecture using Java, Spring Boot or similar frameworks, ensuring modularity, scalability and maintainability.
  3. Build responsive, interactive and high‑performing user interfaces using frontend technologies such as React, Angular, JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML5 and CSS3, aligned with UX/UI designs.
  4. Architect and implement database models, data access layers and queries (SQL, NoSQL) supporting application backend and analytics needs, including optimization for large‑volume data.
  5. Integrate backend services with frontend interfaces, third‑party APIs, external systems, and message/event‑driven pipelines (e.g., Kafka, MQ) to enable end‑to‑end functional flows.
  6. Participate in architecture discussions and define system design, modules, integration patterns, security, performance and scalability requirements.
  7. Develop and maintain code following best practices: clean architecture, design patterns, refactoring, automated testing (unit, integration, end‑to‑end) and continuous delivery.
  8. Implement and maintain CI/CD pipelines, version control workflows (Git), build automation (Maven/Gradle), containerization (Docker/Kubernetes) and deployment automation.
  9. Optimize application performance: reduce response times, improve concurrency, manage memory, tuning and monitoring with observability tools (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, ELK).
  10. Troubleshoot production issues: diagnose root causes, debug across stack (UI to DB), coordinate with operations/support teams, implement fixes and document solutions.
  11. Ensure application security, data protection, compliance and role‑based access control, implementing authentication/authorization, encryption, secure coding practices.
  12. Lead code reviews, mentor junior developers, share best practices and promote a culture of continuous improvement and high code quality.
  13. Maintain documentation of system architecture, API contracts, deployment procedures, user guides and technical run‑books to support maintainability and hand‑over.
  14. Participate in agile development ceremonies (sprint planning, daily stand‑ups, backlog refinement, demos and retrospectives) ensuring full‑stack deliverables align with sprint goals.
  15. Work with QA and test automation teams to define test strategies, support TDD/BDD practices and ensure code quality across frontend and backend.
  16. Collaborate with DevOps and infrastructure teams to deploy applications on cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP), manage services, container orchestration and monitor production environments.
  17. Continuously research and evaluate new technologies, frameworks and libraries, propose improvements, drive innovation and adopt modern full‑stack patterns.
  18. Maintain legacy codebases, perform refactoring, address technical debt, upgrade frameworks and modernise architecture to stay competitive and maintainable.
  19. Develop, run and monitor batch or real‑time data jobs when required, ensuring integration with frontend/back‑end services and supporting analytics or reporting modules.
  20. Ensure cross‑browser and cross‑device compatibility, mobile responsiveness, accessibility (WCAG) and high quality user‑experience across product features.
  21. Align full‑stack software development efforts with business KPIs, product strategy, user experience goals and feedback loops, driving measurable impact and iterative enhancements.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad‑hoc data requests, prototype features, exploratory spikes and technical investigations to evaluate new full‑stack capabilities.
  • Contribute to the organisation’s technical roadmap and full‑stack architecture strategy, recommending improvements to processes, stack and team structure.
  • Collaborate with business units to translate their needs into engineering deliverables spanning frontend, backend, database and integration layers.
  • Participate in planning, review, demo and retrospective sessions to refine technical tasks and maintain alignment with agile team priorities.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • Proficiency in Java (Core Java, J2EE), Spring Framework, Spring Boot, Hibernate/JPA.
  • Experience with frontend frameworks: React, Angular, Vue, JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML5, CSS3.
  • Strong skills in RESTful APIs, microservices architecture and backend integration.
  • Solid understanding of relational databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle) and NoSQL databases, including query optimisation and data modelling.
  • Experience with build tools and version control: Maven, Gradle, Git.
  • Familiarity with CI/CD pipelines, Docker, Kubernetes, cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP).
  • Proficient in writing unit tests, integration tests, using frameworks like JUnit, Mockito, Jasmine, Jest for front‑end.
  • Skilled in performance tuning and monitoring of full‑stack applications: observability tools, profiling, load testing.
  • Knowledge of design patterns, object‑oriented programming, data structures, algorithms and clean code principles.
  • Experience in agile methodologies, sprint management, back‑log grooming, DevOps mindset and full‑stack team collaboration.

Soft Skills

  • Excellent analytical and problem‑solving skills: able to dissect front‑end/back‑end issues, query bottlenecks and propose end‑to‑end solutions.
  • Strong communication skills: able to liaise with product owners, designers, developers and operations teams to translate requirements and deliver results.
  • Leadership and mentoring mindset: able to guide junior engineers, conduct code reviews and drive team best‑practices.
  • Ownership and accountability: takes full responsibility for feature delivery from concept through production and iteration.
  • Business and user‑centric perspective: understands how technical features translate into business value, user experience and product metrics.
  • Adaptability and continuous learning: comfortable with evolving technologies, frameworks and shifting project priorities.
  • Time‑management and prioritisation: able to handle multiple front‑end/back‑end tasks, sprint deliverables and production support concurrently.
  • Attention to detail: ensures end‑to‑end code quality, UI/UX polish, performance and scalability standards.
  • Team‑oriented collaboration: works well in agile, cross‑functional environments and fosters knowledge sharing.
  • Resilience under pressure: able to handle production incidents, tight deadlines, shifting requirements and fast‑paced product delivery.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Information Systems or a related technical field.

Preferred Education:

  • Master’s degree or professional certification in software development, full‑stack frameworks or cloud technologies.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Computer Science
  • Software Engineering
  • Web & Digital Development
  • Information Systems

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 3‑5 years of full‑stack development experience with Java backend and web front‑end technologies (React/Angular + Java/Spring).

Preferred:

  • 5+ years of professional experience as a Java Full Stack Developer in enterprise or product environments, with demonstrated skills in microservices, cloud, CI/CD pipelines and mentoring.
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