(Senior) Back-end Engineer – Conversational AI
Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
About Cognizant Digital Engineering
Cognizant is a global technology and professional services company that helps organizations modernize technology, reimagine processes, and transform customer experiences at scale. Within our Digital Engineering practice, we combine deep engineering expertise with cutting-edge technologies such as cloud, data, and AI to build innovative, scalable digital solutions.
Our teams operate in a fast-paced, collaborative environment where innovation and continuous learning are at the core. You will have the opportunity to work on advanced AI-driven solutions for leading financial services clients, shaping the next generation of intelligent, secure, and customer-centric digital platforms.
About the Role
You will work in multidisciplinary teams alongside proposition managers, journey experts, UX/UI designers, data analysts, developers, architects, business analysts, and product owners. We value pace, ownership, and impact. Together, we are building the future of our organization with strong propositions, smart products, and digital experiences that truly make a difference for young people.
Your Role
As a (Senior) Back-end Engineer – Conversational AI, you will build the backbone of our Conversational AI interface. You design and develop scalable backend services and orchestration logic that enable AI agents to interpret user intent, manage context and memory, and securely coordinate actions across systems.
Banking is rapidly evolving toward conversational AI as the primary interface between customers and our organization. Within the Growth Accelerator 0–30, we develop conversational AI capabilities and financial-specific agents (such as budgeting, onboarding, and financial insights) that integrate into a central AI agent.
In this role, you operate at the intersection of backend engineering, AI capabilities, and conversational design. You go beyond building APIs—you actively shape how conversations are powered and how intelligent agents collaborate to deliver meaningful outcomes.
Key Responsibilities
- Design and build scalable backend services supporting conversational AI experiences for Gen Z customers
- Integrate LLMs and AI agents with internal systems using robust APIs and integration patterns
- Enable reliable context management, conversation state handling, and secure data flows
- Implement and integrate agent orchestration patterns (A2A-style, MCP-inspired workflows)
- Build and integrate observability and monitoring solutions for AI-driven systems
- Collaborate closely with front-end, integration, and platform engineers
- Work alongside business analysts, designers, and data scientists to deliver end-to-end solutions
- Ensure systems meet high standards for performance, reliability, security, and compliance
Your Profile
You are a senior backend engineer with a strong technical foundation and a passion for building innovative, AI-driven solutions. You take ownership, think in outcomes, and are motivated to create impactful digital experiences for customers.
Required Skills & Experience
- Senior-level experience in backend software engineering
- Strong programming skills in Python and Java
- Proven experience designing and building REST APIs and integration solutions
- Hands-on experience integrating AI/LLM-based components into backend systems
- Experience with distributed systems and event-driven architectures
- Familiarity with orchestration patterns (A2A, workflows)
- Experience with AI-agent architectures, including tool invocation, context persistence, conversation state, and guardrails
- Knowledge of security, privacy, and compliance considerations in AI-driven environments
- Experience with observability and reliability engineering
- Strong ownership mindset with a customer- and outcome-focused approach
What We Offer (Netherlands)
- Competitive salary
- Access to Udemy and Cognizant Academy
- NS business card
- 25 paid holidays
- Laptop and smartphone
- Pension scheme
- Technology-driven organization
- Open team spirit
- International environment
Contact the Recruiter
Bill Hilhorst
Email: [email protected]
Over Cognizant
Cognizant (NASDAQ: CTSH) is een bouwer van AI-oplossingen en een leverancier van technologiediensten. Wij slaan de brug tussen AI-investeringen en ondernemingswaarde door het bouwen van full-stack AI-oplossingen voor onze klanten. Onze diepgaande kennis van sectoren, processen en engineering stelt ons in staat om de unieke context van een organisatie te verankeren in technologische systemen. Deze systemen versterken het menselijk potentieel, realiseren tastbare resultaten en geven wereldwijde ondernemingen een voorsprong in een snel veranderende wereld. Ontdek hoe op cognizant.ai of @cognizant.
Aanvullende arbeidsinformatie
De informatie over de beloning is correct op de datum van deze vacature. Cognizant behoudt zich het recht voor om deze informatie op elk moment te wijzigen, met inachtneming van de toepasselijke wetgeving.
Van sollicitanten kan worden verwacht dat zij gesprekken bijwonen, persoonlijk of via een videogesprek. Daarnaast kan van kandidaten worden gevraagd om tijdens elk gesprek een geldig, door de overheid uitgegeven identiteitsbewijs (zoals een identiteitskaart of paspoort) te tonen.
Cognizant is een werkgever die gelijke kansen biedt. Je sollicitatie en kandidatuur worden niet beoordeeld op basis van ras, huidskleur, geslacht, religie, levensovertuiging, seksuele geaardheid, genderidentiteit, nationale afkomst, handicap, genetische informatie, zwangerschap, veteranenstatus of enige andere eigenschap die wordt beschermd door federale, regionale of lokale wetgeving.
