R&D Team Lead - Apono

At Apono we empower organizations to run in the cloud by aligning operations and security around access management. Our platform provides companies with Just-In-Time and Just Enough access across their hybrid environments reducing the access risk while improving productivity. 
Apono has offices in New York and Tel Aviv and supports dozens of customers across the US and the world, including large Fortune 500 companies and was honored in Gartner's Magic Quadrant for Privileged Access Management.

What are we looking for?
We’re looking for an exceptional Team Lead to build and lead a new team responsible for developing one of Apono’s core infrastructure capabilities. This team will work closely with Product, Architecture, and DevOps to design and build scalable, secure, and highly available services powering our access platform. As the Team Lead, you’ll combine hands-on technical work with strong leadership, mentorship, and cross-functional collaboration. You’ll shape the technical direction of your domain, drive high-impact decisions, and grow the team around you.

Responsibilities:

• Lead a team of backend and full-stack engineers in designing, implementing, and maintaining core features.
• Work closely with Product Managers to define technical requirements and translate them into execution plans.
• Be hands-on,  design, review, and contribute to code in a cloud-native environment (Kubernetes, microservices, Docker).
• Design and manage integrations with compute resources (SSH, RDP), databases (SQL and NoSQL), and identity systems (AD, LDAP, SSO).
• Build and maintain scalable systems for networking, permissions, and protocol-level communication.
• Foster a culture of ownership, curiosity, and technical excellence.
• Take an active role in recruiting, mentoring, and developing team members.
• Drive technical discussions, challenge assumptions, and lead by asking the hard questions and seeking smart, pragmatic solutions.

Requirements:

• 7+ years of hands-on software development experience (backend / infrastructure).
• 2+ years of experience as a team lead or tech lead in a fast-paced, startup environment.
• Strong expertise in infrastructure systems, compute (SSH/RDP), databases (SQL and NoSQL), and Kubernetes.
• Solid understanding of networking, Active Directory, and protocols (e.g., LDAP, RADIUS, Kerberos).
• Proven track record of collaborating with Product and driving complex features end-to-end.
• Experience recruiting, mentoring, and building high-performing development teams.
• Strong communication skills, proactive mindset, and passion for delivering impact.

Nice to Have:

• Background in cybersecurity, access management, or DevSecOps domains.
• Experience with Go and Kotlin.
• Familiarity with observability, scaling, and multi-tenancy challenges.