Technical Lead - Payments Systems

Who We Are 

At KEV, we build mission-critical financial software for K–12 schools on a massive scale. Our platform delivers real-time control and visibility into every dollar collected, whether cash, check, or digital, replacing fragmented workflows with secure, modern systems.  

Trusted by 27,000 K–12 schools and districts managing over $8B annually, KEV operates at the intersection of payments, accounting, and reporting—where complexity is high and engineering excellence matters. Headquartered in Toronto with teams across North America, we are scaling fast and investing deeply in cloud-native, data-driven technology.  

If you want to build high-impact SaaS products that solve hard problems, scale with purpose, and make your work matter in public education, KEV is the place to do it. 

About the Role 

We are seeking a highly skilled Technical Lead to lead the design, development, and operation of our payment platform capabilities. This role is responsible for guiding a team of software engineers building customer-facing payment experiences, integrating with third-party payment processors, and ensuring secure, reliable, and scalable transaction processing.

The successful candidate will provide technical leadership across the full payment lifecycle, including payment page development, payment gateway integrations, transaction orchestration, fraud prevention, operational excellence, and compliance requirements. They will partner closely with Product Management, Engineering Leadership, Security, and external payment partners to deliver best-in-class payment solutions.

How You’ll Contribute 

Technical Leadership

• Define and drive the technical strategy and architecture for payment systems and related services.

• Lead the design and implementation of secure, scalable, and highly available payment solutions.

• Make key technology and architectural decisions balancing business priorities, customer experience, reliability, and cost.

• Establish engineering best practices, coding standards, and architectural guidelines.

Payment Platform Development

• Lead development of customer-facing payment pages and checkout experiences.

• Drive integrations with payment processors, gateways, digital wallets, and alternative payment methods.

• Design and maintain APIs and services supporting payment authorization, capture, refund, reconciliation, and settlement workflows.

• Ensure payment solutions support future business growth and expansion requirements.

Team Leadership & Mentorship

• Provide day-to-day technical guidance for a team of software engineers.

• Lead design reviews, architecture discussions, and code reviews.

• Mentor engineers in software design, payment systems, security practices, and operational excellence.

• Foster a culture of accountability, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Reliability & Operational Excellence

• Ensure high availability, performance, and reliability of payment services.

• Drive observability practices including logging, monitoring, alerting, and dashboarding.

• Lead incident management, root cause analysis, and post-incident improvements.

• Identify and address technical debt while improving platform maintainability.

Security & Compliance

• Ensure solutions adhere to PCI DSS and internal security standards.

• Partner with Security and Risk teams to implement appropriate controls and safeguards.

• Drive secure development practices for handling sensitive payment and customer data.

• Support audit, compliance, and regulatory requirements impacting payment systems.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Product Managers to define technical requirements and delivery plans.

• Collaborate with payment processor partners and vendor teams to support integrations and issue resolution.

• Work closely with Architecture, Infrastructure, Security, and other engineering teams to align on enterprise standards.

• Communicate technical direction, risks, and trade-offs effectively to stakeholders.

Who You Are 

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field.

• 12+ years of software development experience.

• 5+ years of experience in a technical leadership role.

• Hands-on experience building and operating payment systems, financial transaction platforms, or e-commerce payment solutions.

• Strong experience integrating with payment processors, gateways, and third-party financial services.

• Solid understanding of payment workflows, including:

  • Authorization

  • Capture

  • Settlement

  • Refunds

  • Chargebacks

  • Reconciliation

• Experience designing and developing distributed systems and APIs.

• Strong programming skills in one or more modern languages such as C#, Java, TypeScript, Python, or Go.

• Experience with cloud-native architectures and public cloud platforms (Azure preferred).

• Strong understanding of application security and secure software development practices.

• Excellent communication, problem-solving, and stakeholder management skills.

What We Offer 

• Competitive compensation 

• Meaningful health and dental benefits 

• Retirement savings support, including RRSP matching in Canada and 401(k) contributions in the U.S. 

• Professional development and continuing education opportunities 

• Hybrid and flexible work environment 

• Flexible PTO with close to 4 weeks of vacation and a company-wide holiday closure 

• Collaborative, supportive colleagues 

Salary Range - $130,000 - $150,000

Note: We set standard base pay ranges for all roles based on function, level, and country location, benchmarked against similar stage growth companies. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including skills, depth of work experience and relevant licenses/credentials, and may vary from the amounts listed above.

Why You’ll Love Working at KEV

• Make a real difference every day – At KEV, your work supports children, parents, and schools across North America. We don’t just build software, we create solutions that simplify lives and strengthen communities. Our mission is rooted in impact, and every team member plays a vital role in shaping the future of K-12 education.

• The KEV Way – At KEV, you’ll never feel stuck in the status quo. You’ll be part of a team that’s constantly questioning, improving, and innovating—always with one guiding focus: How does this help our schools and the students they serve? It’s a culture that challenges you to do your best work while reminding you why it matters.

• Grow with us – We’re scaling fast, and so are our people. At KEV, you’ll have real opportunities to learn, develop, and shape your career. Whether advancing in your role or exploring a new path, you’ll be supported every step of the way.

• Work alongside excellence – You’ll be part of a team with integrity who treat their colleagues with respect. who are accomplished but humble, collaborative but accountable. It’s a place where you can do your best work while feeling supported and inspired by the people around you.

• Celebrate Community and Culture – At KEV, we connect, recognize, and celebrate our people. Hear directly from customers in our Voice of Customer Series, stay aligned with Townhalls, and be inspired by the KEVite Awards, where top contributors are recognized by their peers.

This job description indicates the general nature and level of work expected. It is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities required by an individual joining the KEV team in this or any other capacity.

KEV Group is pleased to accommodate individual needs in accordance with the Accessibility of Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 (AODA), within our recruitment process. If you require accommodation at any time throughout the recruitment process, please speak with your recruiter.

KEV Group is an equal opportunity employer who agrees not to discriminate against any employee or job applicant because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, physical or mental disability, or age.

KEV may use AI-enabled tools to support components of our recruitment process. These tools are used to support human decision making. All hiring decisions are made by our People and Culture team in partnership with Hiring Managers.

Visit our website for more information and details about working at KEV.