Informix 4GL Technical Lead

Job Description

Job Summary: We are seeking an experienced and technically driven Lead Software Engineer Informix to provide architectural guidance, lead development efforts, and drive modernization strategies for core applications built on the IBM Informix platform. This role is ideal for a hands-on technical leader who can balance system stewardship with mentoring responsibilities, strategic planning, and continuous delivery. As a lead engineer, you will partner with product owners, business stakeholders, and engineering peers to evolve and support mission-critical software while ensuring scalability, maintainability, and performance across the ecosystem. Primary Responsibilities: Technical Leadership & Architecture Lead technical design and architectural decisions for new features and system enhancements across Informix 4GL-based platforms. Operate confidently in AIX or UNIX environments for application deployment, system troubleshooting, and performance tuning. Define and promote coding standards, design patterns, and best practices across the engineering team. Collaborate with engineering managers and architects to shape modernization roadmaps for legacy applications. Provide hands-on guidance during code reviews, refactoring efforts, and system integrations. Application Development & Support Develop, test, deploy, and maintain enhancements and features in Informix 4GL. Perform complex troubleshooting, debugging, and root cause analysis for production systems. Support end-to-end software delivery, ensuring accuracy, performance, and reliability. Serve as the technical escalation point for application support and incident resolution. Collaboration & Problem Solving Work closely with cross-functional teams including QA, DevOps, product management, and support to ensure alignment on business priorities and technical execution. Participate in agile ceremonies, backlog grooming, and sprint planning to support delivery goals. Partner with business analysts and stakeholders to understand requirements and deliver robust, scalable solutions. Mentorship & Team Development Mentor junior and mid-level developers, providing coaching, guidance, and professional development. Foster a collaborative team culture focused on accountability, quality, and continuous improvement. Champion technical learning, internal knowledge sharing, and onboarding initiatives. Continuous Improvement Evaluate and recommend improvements to existing tools, processes, and system performance. Support automation, documentation, and knowledge management initiatives. Stay current on technology trends that may enhance or replace legacy systems over time. Required Qualifications: Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field. 7+ years of professional experience in software engineering, including substantial experience with IBM Informix and Informix 4GL. Demonstrated success in leading complex development projects or teams. Strong expertise in software architecture, data modeling, and performance optimization. Skilled in using SDLC tools such as Git, Azure DevOps, PVCS, and JIRA. Proven ability to analyze legacy codebases and drive sustainable improvements. Preferred Qualifications: Familiarity with modern design patterns, object-oriented principles, and refactoring legacy systems. Understanding of RESTful APIs, asynchronous programming, and message queueing systems (e.g., RabbitMQ, Azure Service Bus). Exposure to .NET development and integration strategies with legacy platforms. Experience with cloud platforms (Azure, GCP, AWS) and hybrid hosting environments. Ability to lead cross-functional technical discussions and bridge legacy and modern technology stacks. Strong communication skills with the ability to influence technical and business stakeholders.