
Lead Engineer - Front End (React) at Xero (Melbourne, Australia)
Xero· Melbourne, Australia·
Role details
Xero at a glance
Cloud accounting and financial-management software for small businesses and their advisors.
Xero is cloud-based accounting software for small businesses and the accountants and bookkeepers who serve them. It automates invoicing, bank reconciliation, bill and expense capture, reporting and cash-flow forecasting, and connects to more than 1,000 third-party apps. Its newer AI agent, JAX, automates routine tasks and answers plain-language questions about a business's finances.
Job description
The role and its impact
Xero’s customers discover, learn about and get support through our customer-facing web experiences, and you’ll help shape them. As our Lead Engineer, you’ll design and build modern React + next.js and TypeScript experiences that connect Xero’s core ecosystem with our public web presence, from the first visit to getting help. You’ll set the architecture for a multi-site platform that brings together React and Salesforce Experience Cloud surfaces, and lead one of our two engineering pods as the platform grows. This is a chance to build something modern rather than maintain a monolith. You’ll make performance and accessibility the default, explore AI and agentic solutions in customer experiences, and partner with Product, Marketing and Support to bring new ideas to life. You will Go Bold by challenging the status quo, and Go Further by making the experience better for customers around the world.
The team and how they connect Our Customer Platforms team build the experiences customers use to learn, get support and find what they need. You’ll work across two closely connected pods, we work in an agile way, with regular planning, retros and demos, and we value open dialogue and psychological safety.
The team is currently working on
- Tech stack: TypeScript, React and Next.js, with API-driven content layers, a headless CMS, a composable architecture and AWS backend infrastructure.
- Reimagining parts of Xero Central to deliver greater value through a modern, frictionless customer expereince.
- Running a hybrid React and Salesforce Experience Cloud estate while bringing in new AI-powered features.
- Shaping the target architecture for Xero’s customer experiences, including agentic AI proofs of concept.
Where and how you can work This role will be based in Melbourne. Our hybrid approach asks for around one day per week in the office as a minimum, so you can connect with your pod and stakeholders in person.
Here are some of the things we’re looking for, for this role:
- You bring deep experience with TypeScript, React and Next.js at architecture level, including designing high-performance, content-rich multi-site platforms.
- Migrating live, high-traffic sites without disruption is familiar territory, and you can plan a careful, low-risk path to get there.
- Performance and accessibility are second nature to you, with a working knowledge of Core Web Vitals and WCAG.
- Coaching engineers is part of how you lead, and you’ll Go Together with teams as they build new skills in React and AI.
- You’re comfortable leading through influence, and you Go Bold by pushing back constructively when something isn’t right for customers.
- Experience across e-commerce, media, agency or other high-traffic web environments gives you fresh views on performance and customer experience.
Apply even if your experience isn’t a perfect match! At Xero, we hire based on your skills, passion, and the unique perspective you can bring to enhance our culture and team.
Why work at Xero
- Culture: Values-driven, human-centric organisation with a focus on making a tangible impact on small businesses globally.
- Flexibility: Emphasises a flexible environment and time for what matters most (remote/hybrid policy not explicitly stated but implied).
- Perks & benefits:
- One paid day off per year for volunteering (Community Connect programme).
- Free access to Sumday carbon accounting app for employees.
- Financial literacy resources and mentorship programmes.
- Engineering & innovation: Dedicated Engineering and Data & AI teams (open roles visible on careers page). Global collaboration across 7+ countries.
- Diversity & inclusion: Indigenous inclusion initiatives (te ao Māori in NZ, Reconciliation Action Plan in Australia), support for Indigenous communities.
- Sustainability focus: Employees can contribute to environmental goals through company-wide initiatives.