Principal Software Engineer - Distributed Systems

About the Role

Our client is seeking an exceptional and highly experienced Principal Software Engineer to lead the design and development of complex distributed systems in their Glasgow office. You will tackle challenging technical problems, drive architectural decisions, and mentor senior engineers, playing a key role in shaping the future of their scalable and resilient platform. This position is ideal for a seasoned engineer who thrives on innovation and has a passion for building high-impact, mission-critical software solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect, design, and implement highly scalable, fault-tolerant, and performant distributed systems.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to senior software engineering teams.
• Define and enforce coding standards, best practices, and architectural patterns across the engineering organization.
• Collaborate with product management to understand requirements and translate them into robust technical strategies.
• Identify and address performance bottlenecks and system inefficiencies.
• Champion innovation and evaluate emerging technologies for adoption.

Requirements

• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience, with a significant focus on distributed systems.
• Deep expertise in designing and building large-scale, concurrent, and highly available systems.
• Proficiency in one or more programming languages commonly used in distributed systems (e.g., Java, Go, C++).
• Strong understanding of concurrency, consensus algorithms, and messaging patterns.
• Experience with cloud-native technologies and architectures.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills.

Benefits

• Very competitive salary and executive bonus package.
• Comprehensive private medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Generous stock options and long-term incentive plans.
• Significant budget for professional development, including conferences and advanced training.
• Opportunity to make a significant technical impact in Glasgow 's thriving tech scene.