Staff Software Engineer

At Navan, our mission is to power the in-person connections that move people, ideas, and businesses forward. We help travelers focus on being there, not getting there. Our engineering organization plays a critical role in delivering seamless, reliable, and intelligent experiences across travel and expense management at global scale.

We are looking for a Staff Software Engineer to join our Expense Platform team in Berlin. In this role, you will lead the design and evolution of distributed systems that power the full expense lifecycle — from expense creation and approvals to reimbursements and financial reconciliation. You will partner closely with engineering leaders, product managers, designers, and cross-functional stakeholders to drive technical strategy, platform scalability, and engineering excellence across the organization.

As a senior technical leader, you will influence architecture decisions, mentor engineers, improve developer productivity, and help shape the future of Navan’s expense platform as we continue to scale globally.

• Architect, build, and scale backend microservices using Java and Spring Boot
• Lead the design of event-driven systems leveraging Kafka, AWS SQS, and distributed messaging patterns
• Drive technical strategy and long-term platform architecture decisions
• Design and develop high-performance REST APIs and integrations with external financial and payment systems
• Own critical expense workflows including reimbursements, cash advances, mileage, per diem, and approvals
• Improve receipt ingestion, OCR processing pipelines, and automation capabilities
• Ensure platform reliability, scalability, observability, and operational excellence
• Champion engineering best practices including testing, CI/CD, code quality, and incident management
• Mentor and guide engineers across teams through technical leadership and design reviews
• Collaborate cross-functionally with product, operations, and finance teams to deliver impactful solutions
• Identify opportunities to improve engineering velocity, system resilience, and developer experience

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience, with significant backend and distributed systems expertise
• Strong experience building scalable systems using Java, Spring Boot, and microservices architecture
• Deep understanding of distributed systems, asynchronous processing, and event-driven architectures
• Strong experience with Kafka, AWS SQS, or similar messaging technologies
• Expertise in relational databases and data modeling (MySQL or PostgreSQL)
• Experience designing and operating cloud-native applications on AWS
• Proven track record leading large technical initiatives and influencing engineering direction
• Strong understanding of system reliability, observability, performance optimization, and scalability
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and modern software delivery practices
• Ability to mentor engineers and drive technical excellence across teams
• Strong communication and collaboration skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Passion for building platforms that enable speed, innovation, and exceptional customer experiences

Navan (Nasdaq: NAVN) is the global AI-powered business travel and expense platform that makes travel easy for frequent travelers. From finding flights and hotels to automating expense reconciliation with 24/7 support along the way, Navan delivers an intuitive experience travelers love and finance teams rely on.

Learn more at navan.com.

About Navan

Navan (Nasdaq: NAVN) is the global AI-powered business travel and expense platform that makes travel easy for frequent travelers. From finding flights and hotels, to automating expense reconciliation, with 24/7 support along the way, Navan delivers an intuitive experience travelers love and finance teams rely on. See how Navan customers benefit and learn more at navan.com.

Culture of Excellence

Our team is our competitive edge — a high-performance group of smart, driven people committed to winning together. This dedication to excellence is why we’ve been recognized as a Best Place to Work by Built In (2023–2026), a G2 Best Global Software Company (2025–2026), Forbes Cloud 100 (2022–2025), and CNBC Disruptor 50 (2022–2025). At Navan, we provide an environment where top talent excels, offering the autonomy and fast-paced trajectory needed to build a defining career and do the best work of your life.

Our Benefits

Navan offers a comprehensive benefits program designed to support your well-being, financial security, and life outside of work. Our benefits, thoughtfully tailored by country to meet local needs, include healthcare coverage, insurance offerings, and wellness resources for you and your family.

We support long-term financial growth through retirement savings programs and opportunities to participate in our equity plans, so you can share in Navan’s success. To promote balance, we offer flexible time off, country-specific holidays, and paid parental leave for all new parents. Additional benefits include connectivity and commuting support*, mental health resources, and exclusive travel-related perks. Wherever you’re based, our benefits evolve with you.

Workplace Policy

Navan believes in the value of in-person connections, whether that’s sitting down to have lunch with one another, taking a walking 1:1, or collaborating in a room together. The connections forged through face-to-face interactions improve company culture and drive business results. Navan invests in global office spaces — in the U.S., Europe, and Asia, among others — that feel welcoming. In-office perks such as company-provided lunches and happy hours create a strong team environment to help you do your best work. Our employees work from the office four days a week. Please expect this policy for all roles that are tied to an office.

Equal Opportunity

Navan is an equal opportunity employer. We make all employment decisions based solely on merit. We provide equal employment opportunity to all applicants and employees without discrimination on the bases of race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. We prohibit any such discrimination or harassment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including hiring.

Accommodations

Navan complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), as amended by the ADA Amendments Act, and all applicable state or local law. Navan will reasonably accommodate qualified individuals with a disability in connection with applications for employment as required by law.

If you need any assistance or accommodations due to a disability, you are welcome to email us at [email protected].

Candidate Privacy Notice and Use of AI

As part of the recruitment process, certain personal data may be processed using automated tools, including tools that use AI. For details on how Navan collects and uses your personal data, please review Navan's Candidate Privacy Notice here.

Job Search Best Practices

We have been made aware of recruitment scams involving fraudulent attempts to lure job seekers into sending money or personal information in return for fake job offers or coerce them into purchasing equipment by electronic funds transfer (Zelle, Venmo, etc.) Legitimate Navan recruiters will never ask for money in any recruitment or onboarding activities. All available job openings at Navan will be posted on Navan’s website and all Navan recruiters will be reachable through an email address ending in “@navan.com” or “@navan.tech” or "@talent.navan.com".

*Applies to select locations.