API Expert

Project overview

Context of the service

In a context of transformation and industrialization of the API portfolio, the API squad wishes to strengthen its capacity for scoping, design, and governance by establishing an API Design Authority. This body aims to ensure the consistency of architectural choices, the application of standards, security, reusability, and the quality of APIs throughout their lifecycle. The service is part of an international, multi-country, and multi-team environment, with business, architecture, security, development, production stakeholders, and external partners.

The expert will support the API squad and contribute to the sustainable structuring of governance, practices, and associated tools.

Scope of the service

Mission objectives

Expected deliverables

Required technical skills

Behavioral skills

Governance and collaboration modalities

Experience sought

Languages

Location of service

Profile sought

Work environment

• Define and enforce API design principles: API First, contract first, decoupling, reusability, versioning, and backward compatibility
• Lead design reviews and formalize decisions, reservations, waivers, and remediation plans
• Evaluate API contracts, data models, non-functional requirements, and integration choices
• Cover the entire lifecycle: ideation, scoping, design, development, publication, operation, evolution, and decommissioning
• Ensure alignment with enterprise architecture, cybersecurity, compliance, resilience, and observability requirements
• Support API producers and consumers in resolving discrepancies and adopting standards
• Support business and technical teams
• Awareness of API First and best practices
• Training of local teams (especially development located in Madrid)
• Participation in business/partner workshops to scope and translate needs
• Contribution to the development of design, quality control, and monitoring tools
• Ensure API quality, security, and governance
• Quality control, security, and consistency of the API portfolio
• Implementation and maintenance of technical documentation and standards
• Contribution to the federation and visibility of the cross-functional API portfolio
• Contribute to the construction of the central API Guild
• Define API standards and contribute to the group's API strategy
• Harmonize and rationalize API practices in 7 countries (FR, IT, DE, PT, ES, UK, Benelux)
• Implement central processes for API standardization and quality control
• Repository of API standards and patterns, including naming rules, versioning, error handling, pagination, and idempotence
• Checklists and validation criteria for design, security, and production release reviews
• Design Authority review files and decision minutes, with action tracking and waivers
• Mapping of the API portfolio and recommendations for rationalization, reuse, or decommissioning
• Quality and compliance dashboard: documentation coverage, adherence to standards, security, SLA/SLO, and API debt
• Training materials, practical guides, and skills transfer sessions to the squad and local teams
• Roadmap for continuous improvement of API governance and tooling
• Proven expertise in API design, architecture, and implementation in complex systems
• Mastery of REST principles, testing (manual & automated), API First, CI/CD
• Very good knowledge of REST, SOAP, GraphQL technologies
• Mastery of tools: Swagger/OpenAPI, API Gateway, Git, linters, automated API testing
• Knowledge of sandboxing tools (e.g., Microcks)
• Solid skills in API security, SLA, quality
• Mastery of security and access control mechanisms: OAuth 2.0, OpenID Connect, mTLS, secret management, quotas, and abuse protection
• Knowledge of operational requirements: observability, logging, tracing, metrics, alerting, resilience, performance, and incident management
• Ability to integrate compliance controls into CI/CD pipelines: linting, contract testing, security testing, and quality gates
• Good level in modeling (UML, BPMN)
• Excellent communication with business and technical stakeholders
• Ability to train and support teams in an international context
• High autonomy, analytical and decision-making skills
• Influential leadership, ability to constructively challenge and converge stakeholders with different priorities
• Very good command of English
• Regular facilitation of design review committees and preparation of decision files
• Close collaboration with the API squad, architects, cybersecurity, development and operations teams, as well as country representatives
• Establishment of a clear validation, escalation, and waiver management process
• Periodic reporting on Design Authority activity, risks, deviations, and action plans
• Continuous skills transfer to strengthen the autonomy of internal teams
• At least 5 years of experience in API design, architecture, and governance, with significant experience in design reviews or Design Authority
• Experience in a large banking or insurance group highly appreciated
• Solid experience in highly complex organizational environments
• French: mandatory
• English: mandatory
• Levallois

Project details

• Start: ASAP
• Duration: 6 mois renouvelable
• Remote: hybrid
• Location: Levallois-Perret, Île-de-France, FR
• Languages: French, English