Principal Software Engineer

Overview

Our client is hiring a Principal Software Engineer to join a small, high-impact engineering team. This is a hands-on individual contributor role reporting to the CTO, with broad organizational influence—not a management position.

You will help shape technical direction, elevate engineering standards, and solve complex, high-leverage problems across backend systems, data platforms, and user-facing applications. This role is ideal for someone who thrives on ownership, operates with strong technical judgment, and consistently delivers meaningful business impact.

What You’ll Do

Technical Leadership

• Influence architectural direction and drive clarity on complex technical decisions
• Guide engineers through ambiguous tradeoffs (build vs. buy, system design, scaling strategies)
• Review system design and code to raise engineering quality across teams
• Ensure systems are production-ready with strong observability, reliability, and performance
• Partner with product and leadership to align technical decisions with business outcomes

Hands-On Engineering

• Design, build, and ship production software across backend, data, and frontend systems
• Lead complex, cross-functional initiatives from concept through delivery
• Develop scalable systems, patterns, and tooling to improve productivity and quality
• Simplify architecture by reducing unnecessary complexity and improving clarity

Raising the Bar

• Mentor engineers through code reviews, pairing, and technical guidance
• Identify and close gaps in engineering practices, systems, and team capabilities
• Drive adoption of modern development practices, including AI-assisted workflows
• Create long-term leverage through reusable patterns and improved ways of working

What We’re Looking For

Required Experience

• 10+ years of progressive software engineering experience
• Experience operating at a Staff or Principal level
• Strong backend engineering expertise with exposure to full-stack systems
• Proficiency across multiple languages (e.g., Scala, Python, TypeScript, or similar)
• Strong SQL and data modeling experience
• Experience building and operating scalable, production-grade systems
• Familiarity with distributed systems and data pipeline concepts
• Ability to evaluate technical decisions across performance, reliability, cost, and business impact
• Strong written communication skills (design docs, technical proposals)
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders
• Proven track record influencing technical direction and improving engineering organizations
• Experience operating effectively in ambiguous, fast-paced environments
• Strong problem-solving skills with sound judgment in prioritization and tradeoffs

Nice to Have

• Master’s degree or advanced technical education
• Experience with consumer-facing products or large-scale systems
• Exposure to AI-assisted development tools and modern engineering workflows

How This Team Operates

• High ownership, low bureaucracy environment
• Strong emphasis on clarity over cleverness
• Focus on real business impact and outcomes
• Active adoption of AI-assisted and agentic development practices
• Culture built around technical rigor, accountability, and continuous improvement