Java Developer - Intermediate

Job Title: Software Engineering - Java J2EE Location: Columbus, OH - Full-time in-office schedule, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. On-call rotation every 8 weeks from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM. Occasional evening production deployment support. Duration: Contract - 6 months Pay Range: $50/hr - $52/hr (W2) Interview process: One panel round with live coding, preferred in person. About BCforward BCforward is a leading global IT consulting and workforce solutions firm providing services and support to Fortune 500 and government clients. Founded in 1998, BCforward has grown with our customers needs into a full-service business solutions provider. With delivery centers and offices across North America and India, we take pride in building long-term relationships and delivering excellence through innovation, collaboration, and integrity. Job Description We are seeking a Software Engineer with Java, Spring Boot, Microservices, Kafka, and AWS expertise to join our dynamic team. The ideal candidate will have strong experience in building secure, scalable services and event-driven systems and a proven ability to deliver high-quality production code, troubleshoot complex issues, and improve system resiliency. Responsibilities: * Execute software solutions across design, development, and technical troubleshooting while thinking beyond conventional approaches to solve problems. * Create secure, high-quality production code and maintain algorithms that run synchronously with integrated systems. * Leverage enterprise-authorized AI coding assist tools to improve code quality, delivery speed, and productivity, validating outputs with peer review, automated testing, and secure coding standards, and share reusable patterns with the team. * Apply SDLC toolchain knowledge, including AI-assisted development and automation capabilities, to increase value from automation. * Produce architecture and design artifacts for complex applications and ensure software meets design constraints. * Gather, analyze, and synthesize data to develop visualizations and reporting that drive continuous improvement of applications and systems. * Proactively identify hidden problems and patterns to improve coding hygiene and system architecture. Required Skills & Qualifications: * 5+ years of hands-on software engineering experience with formal training or certification in software engineering concepts. * Proficiency in Core Java, Spring Boot, Microservices, Kafka, and AWS. * Practical experience in system design, application development, testing, and operational stability in large corporate environments. * Experience with database querying languages and modern programming languages in production settings. * Hands-on use of enterprise-authorized AI-assisted development tools for coding, testing, troubleshooting, and documentation, with ability to validate outputs for correctness, performance, and security. * Understanding of responsible AI practices, including data sensitivity, secure handling of inputs and outputs, and adherence to resiliency and security expectations, with ability to guide peers. * Solid knowledge of the Software Development Life Cycle, Agile methodologies, CI/CD, application resiliency, and security. * Experience using AI coding assistants such as GitHub Copilot, Cursor, or Claude to accelerate development and coach teams on adoption. Preferred Skills: <