Backend Team Lead (C++)

XTEND, a global leader in advanced human-guided autonomous drone systems, is looking for a Backend Team Lead to join our R&D organization and lead the development of the core software powering our real-time autonomous and mission-critical systems used by defense and security forces worldwide.

In this role, you will combine hands-on technical leadership with people management, guiding a team of backend developers while actively contributing to the design and implementation of high-performance C++ systems. You will play a central role in shaping the technical direction of backend development, ensuring scalability, robustness, and production-readiness of mission-critical systems operating in real-world environments.

This is a unique opportunity to lead and influence development at the intersection of robotics, autonomy, and high-performance software engineering.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and grow a team of backend developers, fostering ownership, accountability, and technical excellence
• Take full ownership of backend delivery, from design through production deployment
• Act as a hands-on contributor to high-performance C++ development in real-time and mission-critical environments
• Collaborate closely with diverse (software and hardware) teams across all XTEND to deliver integrated solutions
• Ensure high performance, reliability, and efficient resource utilization in production systems
• Conduct code and design reviews, enforce best practices, and maintain high development standards
• Manage sprint planning, task prioritization, technical roadmap alignment, and delivery timelines within an Agile framework
• Support recruitment, onboarding, and professional development of backend engineers
  
  

• 7+ years of hands-on software development experience, including strong expertise in C++
• Proven experience leading or mentoring engineers in a technical team environment
• Strong system design and architectural experience
• Deep understanding of software engineering fundamentals: OOP, memory management, multithreading, and concurrency
• Experience developing complex real-time software
• Strong experience working in Linux environments
• Experience with Git-based workflows and modern development tools
• Strong ownership mindset and ability to lead technical initiatives end-to-end
  
  

• Experience with ROS2 and robotics software stacks
• Familiarity with DDS-based communication protocols
• Background in robotics, autonomous systems, or real-time distributed systems
• Experience with Docker and containerized deployments
• Experience scaling teams or leading multi-disciplinary projects