Senior Backend Engineer (Kotlin, Python, AI/LLM Systems & Agents)

Bij Albert Heijn werken is niet zomaar een baan. Het is werk met betekenis. Je werkt in een informele cultuur samen met een bevlogen team dat graag voorop wil blijven lopen en verschil wil maken. Met jouw unieke talent maak je impact op het leven van al onze klanten. Je leert van experts in hun vakgebied en we helpen je jouw loopbaan vorm te geven. Je kunt bij ons flexibel werken, zowel vanuit huis als op ons hoofdkantoor in Zaandam. Een baan bij Albert Heijn is niet alleen een baan voor nu, maar ook voor later

• Humor en enthousiasme
• Een echte teamspeler
• Een inventieve instelling
• Een verbindend karakter
• Sterke tech skills
• Een klantvriendelijke instelling

This is not a general backend role. Candidates without hands-on experience with AI/LLM systems are unlikely to be a fit!

We're Albert Heijn, food retail reinventors Albert Heijn goes way back. More than 135 years, to be exact. So for millions of people, food shopping is synonymous with the Albert Heijn brand. We didn't achieve this with a complacent, 'hey, if it works today, it'll work tomorrow' approach, but by continually rethinking our propositions and staying plugged in to customer demands.

• Flexibiliteit
• Een goed salaris
• Doorgroeien

At Albert Heijn we aim to grow, and this is only possible if you grow along with us. As we work together to build our brand and your career, you can count on (based on 40 hours per week):

• An annual salary up to €106K including holiday allowance and a flexible bonus, Depending on your level of seniority and experience

• A minimum of 20 days paid vacation, optionally 12.5 days extra. Do you want to take that extra time off, or would you rather convert the extra days into discounts or sell them for cash? You're the end boss!

• Flexible working hours

• Access to a challengingan extensive training curriculum - AH Tech Academy

• An excellent pension plan where we as an employer contribute 4,5 more than you as an employee

• A travel allowance or a NS-business card for traveling to and from Zaandam by train

• Attractive discounts on various insurance policies

• 10% staff discount on groceries in all Albert Heijn stores, to a maximum of €300 per year

• A free Mijn Albert Heijn Premium membership with many benefits

• A company laptop and telephone

The recipe for maximum impact

• 5+ years of experience as a backend engineer

• Strong experience with Kotlin or Java (willingness to work in Kotlin is required)

• Willingness to work with Python when needed, particularly for AI/LLM-related use cases

• Hands-on experience with Spring / Spring Boot

• Experience with cloud platforms such as Azure, AWS, or GCP

• Experience building and maintaining APIs, integrations, and backend services

• Experience with relational and/or NoSQL databases

• A DevOps mindset, comfortable with CI/CD, deployments, and owning services end to end

• Experience working in Agile product teams

• Strong analytical skills and ability to work in a dynamic, fast-moving environment

• Comfortable using modern developer tooling such as GitHub Copilot and similar assistants effectively

AI / LLM experience (required)

• Hands-on experience building LLM-based or AI-driven applications

We are looking for a proactive and motivated Senior Backend Engineer to join our innovation-focused team at Albert Heijn. You will work on the next generation of digital experiences, including Steijn, our AI-powered chatbot used by millions of customers. We're looking for engineers who have practical experience with LLMs, agent systems, or AI-driven applications, not just an interest in AI, but real hands-on work. You will work on real production systems, shaping how conversational experiences and backend platforms come together at scale. This is how you will reinvent food retail * Design, build, and maintain Kotlin-based backend services, APIs, and integrations * Work on systems behind real-time conversational experiences, including our AI-powered chatbot * Integrate LLM capabilities into production systems * Take ownership from design to deployment and ongoing operation * Build reliable integrations with existing AH systems and ensure consistent data flows * Collaborate with Product Owners, engineers, and stakeholders to turn ideas into working solutions * Contribute to new initiatives, both AI-driven and traditional backend services * Ensure systems are scalable, reliable, and maintainable in a complex retail environment Your new team and office You will join a team focused on building the backend foundations behind Albert Heijn's newest digital products. We turn ideas into production-ready systems that operate at scale. This includes designing APIs, integrating with existing AH systems, and ensuring reliable data flows across a complex retail landscape. Our work varies. Some initiatives involve AI-driven experiences such as our chatbot Steijn, while others focus on backend integrations or platform capabilities. The common denominator is strong backend engineering and ownership. Together with your team of (Product Owners/Backend Developers/Mobile Developers) you will work on inspiring projects to accelerate our transition into a hybrid Food & Tech company. We want to leverage data and technology to future-proof food shopping and give our customers the accessibility to healthy food more easily available for everyone. At Albert Heijn, you team up with inspiring peers in the data, digital and tech domains. A community of diverse individuals who share a common goal; to create digital solutions that make (online) shopping simpler and more inspiring. Are you ready to reinvent the way millions of people buy and enjoy their food? We invest heavily in data, digital and tech. And that includes investing in your career! Our teams work in a hybrid way: both from home as well as in the office. We are located right next to the train station of Zaandam. We think it's important to be part of an a high-belonging team; a team where you can be yourself and feel safe, accepted and appreciated. For this job we are preferably looking for someone who brings diversity in to our team, in the widest possible sense. Someone who is a great addition to our team by bringing other ideas to the table. Don't check all the boxes? Don't worry, we probably don't either . Don't hesitate to apply if you think you are up for the challenge, we're happy to have a look at your resume! The world around us has changed, and significantly at that. These changes have impact on the lives of our customers, colleagues and partners. And therefore, also on Albert Heijn. We are moving towards a new world with new opportunities and challenges. Albert Heijn wants more people to eat fresher, healthier and more sustainable food. Eating brings us together, keeps us healthier and contributes positively to the world. Our mission is: Together we make eating better the easy choice. For everyone. Albert Heijn the Netherlands is B Corp certified. This underscores our purpose, through which we aim to contribute to a healthier, more social, and sustainable society. B Corp certification is a designation that a business is meeting high standards of verified performance, accountability and transparency.