Director of R&D

About Rakuten Viber

Rakuten Viber is one of the world's most popular and trusted apps - connecting hundreds of millions of people through messaging, calls, communities, and business solutions. We're on a mission to make everyday connections meaningful - from personal chats with loved ones to managing business relationships and pursuing passions.

Joining Viber means joining a company where technology and impact meet at global scale - and where you'll help shape the future of our journey to becoming a true super-app.

About the Role

We're looking for an experienced, hands-on R&D Director to lead the development of Viber's next generation of business communication capabilities - shaping how companies integrate and leverage Viber as a communication platform to engage with their customers at scale.

In this role, you'll drive the technology that enables businesses to connect, interact, and build trust with hundreds of millions of Viber users worldwide through secure, high-performance, and intelligent communication experiences.

This is a strategic, high-impact leadership position where you'll blend deep technical expertise with product vision - defining how Viber evolves as a platform for business engagement and customer connection.

What You'll Do

• Work with high-performing engineers to deliver scalable, high-quality products.
• Stay hands-on with backend development - developing, mentoring, reviewing, and guiding engineers through complex Java-based systems.
• Drive execution of strategic product goals in partnership with Product, Business, and Senior Management.
• Architect and evolve our infrastructure for performance, reliability, and scale.
• Foster excellence - hire, coach, and grow world-class engineering talent.
• Champion innovation, exploring new technologies (including AI-assisted development) to increase productivity and quality.
• Measure and optimize system performance, scalability, and developer velocity.

What We're Looking For

• At least 8 years of backend development experience in Java - MUST
• At least 3 years leading engineering teams - MUST
• Proven experience in B2B/B2C communications platforms or API-driven businesses at scale - MUST
• Hands-on experience with AI tools to boost developer productivity or product decision-making - MUST
• Technical depth across both client and backend stacks (Java, C++, NodeJS, Kotlin, Swift, Objective-C)
• A track record of building, scaling, and optimizing distributed systems
• Strong communication skills and the ability to translate complex technical challenges into clear business value
• Passion for leadership, mentorship, and technical excellence

Nice to Have

• Proven experience with AWS and cloud-based architectures
• Experience with Big Data technologies and event-driven pipelines
• Hands-on experience with Couchbase or similar NoSQL databases