Principal Software Developer (Query Engine, Database Internals, Elasticsearch)

Elastic; Ottawa; Hybrid; CAD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage

Flexible location

Vacation days

Parental leave

Volunteer time

Job summary

Elastic is seeking a Principal Software Developer for the Elasticsearch - Analytical Engine team. You will define, direct, and build the next generation of ES|QL capabilities, contributing to data-intensive analytics and a new compute engine, written in Java and integrated with modern APIs.

You will lead cross-functional initiatives, mentor engineers, and collaborate with product teams to shape a strategic long-term roadmap.

Qualifications

• Proven track record of using AI to accelerate development and optimize code.
• Strong skills in core Java and knowledge of data structures and concurrency.
• Experience defining a long-term technical vision for a data-intensive application.
• Ability to collaborate across functions and lead projects.

Responsibilities

• Define, lead, and contribute to ES|QL and compute engine roadmap.
• Work with partners and product teams to align on needs and strategy.
• Mentor expert engineers and guide technical decisions.
• Collaborate across teams to build scalable software.

Skills

Java

Distributed systems

AI in development

Technical leadership

Communication

Tools

Elasticsearch

Splunk SPL

Datadog

Dynatrace

New Relic

Job description

• We’re looking for a Principal Software Developer to join the Elasticsearch - Analytical Engine team. This expert team of engineers is responsible for building new analytics capabilities in Elasticsearch’s completely new compute engine, and accessed via our new piped query language called ES|QL
• This is a principal software engineering role that entails using your vast knowledge in this space in order to define, direct, and build the next generation of ES|QL capabilities
• This role includes providing technical vision and direction for the customer/user interfaces and for the underlying language syntax and compute infrastructure. This role requires related past technical experience in addition to the ability to work cross-organization
• Our company is distributed by intention. We hire the best engineers we can find wherever they are, whoever they are. We collaborate across continents every day over email, GitHub, Zoom, and Slack. At our best, we write fast, scalable, and intuitive software
• As a full-time Elasticsearch contributor, you will define, lead, and contribute to the development of data-intensive enhancements. You’ll research the latest features, data structures, and algorithms in the industry to ensure we’re building the right capabilities for our users
• . You’ll work directly with our partners and product teams to understand their needs and build out a strategic vision for the longer term
• You’ll bring your past experience in analytics systems to help build and drive an innovative roadmap for ES|QL and the compute engine
• As an authority in several areas of Elasticsearch, everyone will turn to you when they have a question about that area. You’ll improve those areas based on your questions and your instincts
• Our globally distributed team of expert engineers is focused on the search and query (ES|QL) analytics capabilities of Elasticsearch
• This inclusive team collaborates closely with other user experience teams, crafting a friendly user interface, and with teams closer to the customer, building solutions on top of these APIs (Search, Security, Observability)
• Finally, we write idiomatic modern Java — Elasticsearch is 99.8% Java!

Benefits

• Toast to your health: Fully paid health coverage for you and your family, in many locations.
• Craft your calendar: Flexible location and schedule for most roles.
• Create space for you: Distributed by design workforce, plus generous number of vacation days each year.
• Embrace parenthood: Minimum of 16 weeks of parental leave, plus generous family formation benefits.
• Give back your time: 40 hours each year to use toward volunteering with organizations and causes you’re passionate about.
• Amplify your impact: Double your charitable giving — we match donations up to $1500 USD (or local currency equivalent).

You have a proven track record of using AI to accelerate development, debug complex systems, and optimize code, while still owning the final outcomesYou work autonomously and can drive decisions and results in a distributed team by leveraging asynchronous, direct, and transparent communicationStrong skills in core Java and are conversant in the standard library of data structures and concurrency constructs, as well as newer features like lambdas. You have a strong desire to optimize and make use of the most efficient data structures and algorithmsExperience defining a long-term technical vision for an area of a data-intensive application, working across teams and organizations to collaboratively build the technical roadmapYou possess the ability to collaborate across functions and teams and seamlessly transition between different projects, codebases, or teams based on business prioritiesExperience leading technical projects in the data and enterprise architecture areas. You bring proven knowledge in building and running sophisticated technical infrastructures and engineering sound software systemsExperience mentoring expert engineers, providing technical and professional guidanceWorking with a high level of autonomy, able to tackle projects and guide them from beginning to end. This covers both technical design and working with other engineers to develop needed componentsHands-on experience with search and analytics APIs, some examples may include Splunk SPL, Elasticsearch, Datadog, Dynatrace, and New RelicExcellent verbal and written communication skills. Collaborating on the internet is hard. We try to be supportive, empathetic, and trusting in all of our interactions. And we expect that from everyone tooExperience with data storage technologies like Elasticsearch, Solr, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, or Cassandra, and an understanding of how they work and why they work that wayYou’ve built things with Elasticsearch before, and you have experience in the search and information retrieval space and understand the constructs and theory behind itExperience working with open source projects and familiar with different styles of source control workflow and continuous integration