Kotlin/Java Backend Engineer

Johan de Vries

Backend Engineer with a pragmatic approach to building scalable distributed systems. I specialize in developing Kotlin (or Java) backend services, event-driven architectures, data pipelines and databases.

I enjoy being hands-on through every stage of the lifecycle, whether that’s refining ideas, specifications into architecture, writing the code or digging into telemetry metrics to improve actionable observability to keep systems running smoothly.


  • 25+ years of experience in backend architectures, API services and system integrations.

  • 15+ years of experience in Java, 8+ years of experience in Kotlin backend development.

  • 8+ years of hands-on experience in building event-driven architectures and data pipelines.

  • Rooted in early Oracle development, I bring a strong focus on both relational and NoSQL, and try to pick the right one for the task.

  • Continuously experience with automated testing, actionable monitoring, and alerting.

  • Extensive experience with running services in production and flag/fix issues early.

  • Experience with gathering, refining requirements and collaborating with engineers and stakeholders across teams.

  • Use AI and agentic development tools when they add value.

Technical skills

  • Languages - Kotlin, Java, SQL.

  • Frameworks - Spring, Ktor, Exposed, jOOQ, Hibernate/JPA.

  • Databases - MySQL, PostgreSQL, Amazon DynamoDB, OracleDB, PL/SQL.

  • Data Analytics - Apache Flink, Kafka.

  • Amazon Cloud - ECS, SNS/SQS, S3, Lambda functions Aurora MySQL, DynamoDB.

  • Google Cloud - GKE, Pub/Sub, , BigQuery.

  • Architectural - REST, API, Event-driven, Domain-driven, Data processing, Data modeling.

  • DevOps - Datadog, Prometheus, Grafana, Terraform, Docker, K8s, Gitlab, Github.