Senior Full Stack Engineer (Java, Node.js, or PHP)

About the role

As a Senior Full-stack Developer, you will take on the maintenance and evolution of the web presence of a global human settlement mapping project for our Client, a large international public sector organisation, supporting the implementation of the exposure mapping component of a European emergency management service. You will review the existing architecture and design new components and building blocks that improve the user experience, while owning the performance, security, and accessibility of applications that deliver scientific and geospatial data to users worldwide, including those on limited-bandwidth connections. The working environment is multicultural and multilingual, with a strong emphasis on work ethics, diligence, and discretion when handling personal or confidential data.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain features across the entire stack — front-end website architecture, user interactions on web pages, back-end web applications and core business logic — from designing user interfaces and consuming APIs to implementing server-side logic and database interactions
• Monitor, test, and optimise Web GIS application architecture for rendering and network performance, availability, scalability, and compliance with applicable IT standards, including the delivery of interactive applications to users with limited-bandwidth connections
• Review the existing architecture and design and develop new architecture components and building blocks to improve the user experience, as required by the appropriate project and service managers
• Design and implement data-transformation processes, automation scripts, and custom software components that convert scientific and geospatial source data, including XLS and TIFF datasets, into web-ready formats such as JSON, GeoJSON and, where required, Cloud Optimized GeoTIFFs
• Apply data and web application security best practices, including input validation and sanitisation, XSS mitigation, OWASP Top 10-oriented vulnerability scanning, analysis of findings, and implementation of appropriate remediation and mitigation measures
• Ensure web applications are optimised for performance and functionality across different browsers and devices, design responsive applications, and integrate REST APIs while developing application-specific server-side proxy services and endpoints
• Create graphical elements using the Adobe suite or open-source alternatives, along with interactive data visualisations, infographics, and data-driven publication templates, ensuring consistency with the applicable visual identities
• Participate in the design and creation of scalable software, write clean functional code and maintain code integrity and organisation, perform testing, debugging, fixing and validation of code changes, troubleshoot by analysing data, processes and code, deliver solutions that fulfil functional and non-functional requirements, and write technical documentation

Requirements

• A university degree corresponding to: a minimum of 10 years of relevant IT professional experience with a Master's degree; a minimum of 12 years with a Bachelor's degree; or a minimum of 17 years where only secondary education has been completed.
• Minimum of 15 years of professional experience in website development, including front-end and back-end development and web mastering
• Minimum of 10 years of professional experience in geospatial web programming
• Minimum of 10 years of professional experience in User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) design
• Minimum of 5 years of professional experience with collaborative code and data management tools, including Git and an understanding of legacy systems using SVN
• Proficiency with fundamental front-end languages (JavaScript, HTML, CSS) and experience with jQuery, Kendo UI Professional for jQuery, OpenLayers, legacy JavaScript ES3/ES5 and modern ES6+, and modern build tools (Webpack, Vite)
• Proficiency in Java, Node.js, or PHP back-end stacks with Spring Boot, Hibernate, and REST API development; PHP for lightweight server-side functionality including modular page composition, cache busting, security-related processing, HTML-to-PDF generation, and SQLite-backed tile proxy functionality; Node.js for offline scripting, automation, and data transformation; and SQLite with SQL-based data access and integration
• Recognised certification or professional training in IT Security or Web Application Security; the IBM Data Science Professional Certificate or equivalent; the IBM AI Engineering Professional Certificate or equivalent, covering AI and machine-learning methods relevant to AI/ML-derived scientific and geospatial data products; a recognised digital accessibility certification or professional training; and UX research certification or professional training
• Very good knowledge of English and Italian, both spoken and written, corresponding to Level B2 or higher (CEFR).