Aspire Software is looking for a Senior Software Developer to join our team in Lebanon.
Here is a little window into our company: Aspire Software operates and manages wholly owned software companies, providing mission-critical solutions across multiple verticals. By implementing industry best practices, Aspire delivers a time sensitive integration process, and the operation of a decentralized model has allowed it to become a hub for creating rapid growth by reinvesting in its portfolio.
About the Role :
In short, we are looking for somebody with extraordinary software development skills to help our legacy team, but without you having the burden of learning the legacy language.
Key Responsibilities
1- Primary responsibility: Refactor the PowerBuilder codebase to modernize the database
technology and schema (AI-first workflows)
- Lead and execute the refactoring of a large PowerBuilder codebase so it can use a more modern database technology and schema (including changes to queries, data access patterns, and business logic assumptions).
- Use AI development tools extensively (e.g., Codex / AI code assistants) to:
- navigate unfamiliar legacy modules efficiently;
- generate safe refactoring candidates and step-by-step modernization plans;
- accelerate test creation, documentation, and repetitive modernization tasks.
- Apply today’s engineering best practices to a legacy environment:
- systematic refactoring and standardization (patterns, error handling, resilience);
- automated testing strategy adapted to legacy constraints;
- code review standards and maintainability improvements;
- performance and data correctness validation.
- Identify and implement the tools, processes, and guardrails that enable non-legacy developers (generalist developers) to contribute effectively to PowerBuilder modernization via AI assisted workflows:
- AI interaction” playbooks (prompting patterns, validation loops, safe iteration);
- definition-of-done checklists (tests, diff validation, DB/data checks);
- triage patterns for risky changes and rollback strategies.
- Collaborate closely with the existing PowerBuilder team to align on:
- modernization architecture and target database/schema decisions;
- phased execution strategy (milestones, sequencing, risk management);
- best practices and knowledge transfer, ensuring the work is maintainable long-term.
- Collaborate across the stack (SQL Anywhere / PowerBuilder / services / cloud) to ensure refactoring does not break synchronization, integrations, or customer workflows
2) Secondary responsibility: Plan an eventual on-prem technology migration
- Review the current on-prem legacy architecture, identify modernization/migration risks, and propose a systematic plan to improve and ultimately migrate it.
- Participate (with the legacy PowerBuilder team and the broader engineering group) in the architecture, planning, and execution of an eventual migration where legacy on-prem functionalities are moved out of the PowerBuilder codebase into a more modern target solution.
- Produce a pragmatic roadmap (phases, dependencies, client impact, backward compatibility strategy)
Requirements
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or a combination of relevant expertise.
- Senior developer experience delivering and maintaining production software, with strong debugging and problem-solving skills.
- Mastery of python and/or node.js.
- Extensive experience (or demonstrated mastery) with AI-assisted development tools and workflows (e.g., Copilot, Codex, ChatGPT), including how to validate AI output safely.
- Strong knowledge of relational databases and SQL (ideally SQL Anywhere and/or PostgreSQL).
- Strong knowledge of Git and Git workflows.
- Experience with Agile development methodologies (e.g., Scrum, Kanban).
- As a senior with assigned responsibilities: demonstrate initiative and autonomy.
- Collaborative team spirit.
- Ability to work in English.
Nice To Have
- Experience developing a desktop application on the Windows OS.
- Proven ability to modernize and refactor legacy codebases (large, business-critical, imperfectly documented).
- PowerBuilder experience (or strong curiosity and ability to ramp up quickly).
- Experience with database migrations (schema evolution, query rewrites, performance tuning,
- data validation).
- Experience with distributed on-prem environments and “client site” constraints.
- Experience with planning migrations (phased rollout, coexistence, backward compatibility).
- Ability to work in French.
