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Senior Backend Engineer Jobs in Iowa (NOW HIRING)

Software Engineering Manager

Coralville, IA · On-site

  • Medical

  • Dental

  • Vision

  • Retirement

  • PTO

In this role, you will manage and grow a team of backend and platform engineers responsible for ... Collaborate with senior architects and the VP of Engineering on platform roadmaps and architectural ...

Developer

Des Moines, IA · On-site

$85K - $125K/yr

... based backend applications, microservices, and APIs. • Build scalable RESTful APIs and ... Senior Engineer, Technical Lead, or Solution Designer. Salary Range- $85,000-$125,000 a year #LI ...

Senior Manager, Solution Architect

Des Moines, IA · On-site

  • Medical

  • Dental

  • Vision

  • Retirement

  • PTO

Industry/Sector Not Applicable Specialism Product Innovation Management Level Senior Manager ... engineering teams on modern development frameworks (React, Angular, Vue.js) and backend ...

Role - Senior Technology Architect/Fiori Developer Technology - SAP Fiori Location - Spain Today ... backend (ABAP/OData/CDS/RAP). • Expertise in extending SAP standard FIORI applications. • ...

The Technical Team Lead partners closely with QA Management, Software Engineering, Product ... Perform hands-on manual and automated testingsupportacross web, mobile, and backend systems ...

Showing results 41-57

Senior Backend Engineer information

See Iowa salary details

$19.1K

$142.5K

$199.6K

How much do senior backend engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 15, 2026, the average yearly pay for senior backend engineer in Iowa is $142,543.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $121,100.00 and $167,200.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a senior backend engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Senior Backend Engineer, you need advanced proficiency in server-side programming languages (such as Java, Python, or Node.js), database management, and experience with scalable system architecture, typically supported by a relevant degree and several years of professional experience. Familiarity with frameworks, APIs, containerization tools (like Docker and Kubernetes), and cloud platforms (such as AWS or Azure) is essential, along with knowledge of version control systems like Git. Strong problem-solving abilities, effective communication, and mentorship skills help you collaborate across teams and guide junior developers. These skills ensure the delivery of robust, efficient, and maintainable backend systems that support business objectives and seamless user experiences.

What are some common challenges senior backend engineers face when scaling backend systems, and how are they typically addressed?

Senior Backend Engineers often encounter challenges related to system scalability, such as database bottlenecks, latency issues, and maintaining system reliability under increased load. Addressing these challenges typically involves optimizing database queries, implementing caching strategies, and designing microservices architectures to distribute workloads efficiently. Collaboration with DevOps and frontend teams is also crucial to ensure seamless integration and monitoring. Proactively identifying potential scalability issues and participating in code reviews are key responsibilities in this role.

What does a senior backend engineer do?

A senior backend engineer designs, develops, and maintains server-side applications and systems that support web and mobile platforms. They often work with programming languages like Java, Python, or Node.js, and use databases, APIs, and cloud services to ensure scalable and efficient backend operations. Additionally, they review code, mentor junior developers, and ensure system security and performance standards are met.

What is a senior backend engineer?

Senior Backend Engineers are experienced software professionals responsible for designing, developing, and maintaining the server-side components of web applications or systems. They work with databases, APIs, and application logic to ensure robust, scalable, and efficient backend operations. Their role often involves collaborating with frontend engineers, managing system architecture, reviewing code, and mentoring junior developers. Senior Backend Engineers also play a key role in optimizing performance, ensuring security, and integrating new technologies into existing systems.

What are the most commonly searched types of Backend Engineer jobs in Iowa?

The most popular types of Backend Engineer jobs in Iowa are:

What cities in Iowa are hiring for Senior Backend Engineer jobs?

Cities in Iowa with the most Senior Backend Engineer job openings:

Infographic showing various Senior Backend Engineer job openings in Iowa as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 88% Full Time, 7% Part Time, and 5% Contract. Highlights an 85% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 10% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $142,543 per year, or $68.5 per hour.

Software Engineering Manager

VIDA Diagnostics

Coralville, IA • On-site

Full-time

Medical, Dental, Vision, Retirement, PTO

Re-posted 4 days ago


Job description

About VIDA

VIDA is the global leader in AI-powered Biomarker Intelligence Solutions. We use our secure, cloud-native medical imaging technology to create quantitative imaging biomarkers. Our engineering teams sit at the intersection of large-scale data processing, AI/ML, and distributed computer vision workloads.

This position is Hybrid out of our Coralville, IA or Edina, MN office.

Role Overview

As a Software Engineering Manager at VIDA, you will have a strong technical depth in cloud-native, distributed data processing systems – high-throughout, horizontally scalable architectures capable of processing millions to billions of events, managing fan-out/fan-in workflows, and orchestrating large-scale data movement across distributed compute clusters. In this role, you will manage and grow a team of backend and platform engineers responsible for building VIDA’s distributed compute and data backbone: high-volume ingestion pipelines, scalable workflow engines, secure data storage layers, and AI/ML-supporting infrastructure for the VIDA Intelligence Platform and VIDA Biobank. You’ll partner closely with Product, Data Science, QA, Security, and Operations to deliver highly reliable, compliant, multi-tenant systems that support pharma trials, large-scale imaging research, and next-generation AI workloads.

As a Software Engineering Manager, your key responsibilities will be:

Team Leadership & Delivery

  • Lead, mentor, and develop a team of software engineers focused on backend services, distributed systems, and cloud infrastructure.
  • Build and engineering culture grounded in reliability, observability, automation, and high accountability.
  • Drive execution of critical platform initiatives: scalable DICOM ingestion, distributed workflow orchestration, batch data processing pipelines, and date lake/lakehouse systems.
  • Ensure Engineering best practices across code quality, testing, CI/CD, IaC, and operational readiness.

Technical Ownership & Architecture

  • Provide strong hands-on technical guidance in system design, distributed systems patterns, and cloud-native architecture.
  • Own the reliability and performance of distributed components such as:
    • Event-driven pipelines (Kinesis, Kafka, Pub/Sub equivalents)
    • Workflow orchestration (Step Functions, Temporal, Airflow)
    • Scalable microservices for multi-tenant data access
  • Collaborate with senior architects and the VP of Engineering on platform roadmaps and architectural evolution.
  • Champion modern distributed systems practices including idempotent operations, partitioning, caching, backpressure management, and autoscaling.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

  • Work with Product Management to break down features into clear technical plans and deliverable increments.
  • Partner with Data Science/ML teams to support model training, inference workflows, and large-scale compute jobs.
  • Coordinate with Security, Compliance, and DevOps to ensure systems meet HIPAA, SOC2, GDPR, and GxP standards.
  • Collaborate with Customer Success and Support teams to diagnose issues and improve platform-level SLAs.

Required Qualifications

  • 7+ years of experience building large-scale backend or distributed systems; 2+ years managing or leading technical teams.
  • Deep experience with cloud-native distributed architectures (AWS preferred).
  • Hands-on knowledge of:
    • Event-driven systems (Kafka/Kinesis/PubSub)
    • Microservices at scale (ECS/EKS/Lambda)
    • Distributed data storage (S3, RDS, DynamoDB, Delta Lake)
    • Workflow orchestration frameworks
    • LLM Coding tools (Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, or Gemini Antigravity
  • Strong design and distributed systems fundamentals: consensus, partitioning, caching, backpressure, idempotency, retries, stream processing.
  • Proficient in modern programming languages (Python, Go, Java, or similar).
  • Experience building or managing multi-tenant SaaS systems with strict SLAs.
  • Experience operating systems in compliance-sensitive environments (healthcare, finance, enterprise SaaS).
  • Strong experience with aligning teams to adopt AI assisted programming methodologies

Preferred Qualifications

  • Experience with medical imaging, DICOM, or AI/ML data processing.
  • Familiarity with lakehouse architectures, Databricks, large-scale batch compute platforms.

All VIDA employees are expected to be flexible and have an entrepreneurial mindset.  Other duties may be assigned as needed. In addition, VIDA offers a wide selection of benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision), retirement planning (401k), and paid time off to name a few. 

VIDA is an equal opportunity employer.  Qualified applicants receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran’s status, age or disability.