Principal Engineer

Swim Recruiting; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 150,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Benefits package

Job summary

Swim Recruiting in Vancouver is seeking a Permanent Principal Engineer to own architecture and technical design for a full-stack, AI-native rebuild. You will work hands-on in the codebase, write and review production code, and steer the team’s technical direction.

This hands-on leadership role requires deep AI-native development experience with Claude Code and modern AI-driven SDLC practices, and a pragmatic, builder mindset.

Qualifications

• Strong architecture and system design background with leadership in decision-making.
• Hands-on experience with AI-native development and AI-driven SDLC practices.
• Experience in a mid-sized company environment; pragmatic and adaptable.

Responsibilities

• Own architecture and technical design decisions across a full-stack AI-native rebuild.
• Write, review, and shape production code; lead technical direction for the team.

Skills

Architecture & design

Mid-sized company experience

AI-native development

Hands-on builder mindset

Tools

Claude Code

Job description

Permanent Principal Engineering role with a company investing majorly into AI driven development.

What & Why

Our client, a growing Vancouver-based company, is undergoing a full re platform of their core product, rebuilt from the ground up using AI-driven development workflows. In this role you will own architecture and technical design decisions across a full-stack, in-flight, AI-native rebuild and work hands-on in the codebase, writing, reviewing, and shaping production code. You’ll lead technical direction for developers on the team and actively use AI-driven development tools (including Claude Code) as a core part of the daily workflow and continue evolving the team's AI-assisted SDLC and pipeline. This is a hands-on technical leadership role, not a people-management position.

You

You will bring the following education, skills and experience to the role:

• Strong technical architecture and system design background, including experience leading technical decisions with developers reporting into that leadership (not necessarily people management)
• Experience in a mid-sized company environment; someone pragmatic, not accustomed only to large-scale enterprise or FAANG type structures
• Deep, current, hands-on experience with AI-native development, including tools like Claude Code and modern AI-driven SDLC practices; you should already be bought into this way of working, not learning it for the first time
• A builder mentality: hands-on, technically curious, genuinely excited about new technology, ideally with personal projects or side work that reflects this

Compensation

This role pays between $150,000 to $185,000 per annum as well as a solid benefits package.