Principal Software Development Engineer - ML Engineering - Personalisation

WeAreTechWomen; Welwyn Garden City; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading retail company is seeking a Principal Software Development Engineer to lead technical innovation in the machine learning engineering space. You will define architecture, drive delivery of scalable ML solutions, and guide teams through complex programmes. The ideal candidate will have significant experience in large-scale software development and ML environments, with a passion for innovation. This position offers a flexible working pattern, combining office and remote work, ensuring a supportive and inclusive workplace.

Qualifications

• Proven experience as a principal engineer or technical lead in large-scale software and ML environments.
• Deep expertise in system design and cloud-native architectures.
• Strong ability to influence technical and business stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Define architecture and technical strategy for ML platforms.
• Drive delivery of reliable ML solutions.
• Establish best practices for ML engineering.

Skills

Leadership

Collaboration

Communication

Python

Machine Learning tools (Spark, TensorFlow)

Job description

At Tesco Data & Analytics, we help our customers and the communities where we operate get the most value from data. We build and run Tesco's data platforms, architect and engineer data onto these platforms, provide capabilities and tools to the analytics community across Tesco, and develop data products at scale.

Our Data Science teams work on a broad range of projects spanning supply chain, logistics, store, and online. These include initiatives in Operations Optimisation, Decision Support (e.g., forecasting), Online (e.g., search and recommendation), and Intelligent Edge (e.g., computer vision). Our Data Science Engineers collaborate closely with data scientists, supporting everything from tool and platform development, code optimisation, through to deployment of solutions across edge, cloud, and big-data environments.

Principal Software Development Engineer (PSDE) – Data Science Engineering

We are looking for a Principal Software Development Engineer (PSDE) within the Data Science Engineering (DSE) team to lead technical innovation in the machine learning engineering space.

Responsibilities

• Define and influence architecture and technical strategy for ML‑driven platforms and products.
• Drive end‑to‑end delivery of scalable, reliable ML solutions and frameworks for rapid experimentation.
• Guide cross‑functional teams through complex programmes, ensuring alignment and technical excellence.
• Establish best practices for ML engineering, including MLOps and model lifecycle management.
• Evaluate technology choices, lead innovation through PoCs, and accelerate ML to production.
• Lead Operational Excellence by improving observability, performance and reliability of ML/AI systems.
• Communicate effectively with senior stakeholders and mentor teams to solve critical challenges.

Qualifications

• Proven experience as a principal engineer or technical lead in large‑scale software and ML environments.
• Deep expertise in system design, distributed systems, cloud‑native architectures, and secure, maintainable solutions.
• Experience acting as a technical authority across multiple domains and technologies, guiding architectural choices with a deep understanding of the Software (and Machine Learning) Development Lifecycle.
• Strong leadership, collaboration, and communication skills; ability to influence technical and business stakeholders.
• Proficiency in Python and multiple languages; familiarity with ML tools (e.g., Spark, TensorFlow).
• Passion for innovation, inner‑sourcing, and accelerating ML delivery through modern tooling and practices.

Our vision at Tesco is to become every customer's favourite way to shop, whether they are at home or out on the move. Our core purpose is ‘Serving our customers, communities and planet a little better every day’. Serving means more than a transactional relationship with our customers. It means acting as a responsible and sustainable business for all stakeholders, for the communities we are part of and for the planet.

We are proud to have an inclusive culture at Tesco where everyone truly feels able to be themselves. At Tesco, we not only celebrate diversity, but recognise the value and opportunity it brings. We're committed to creating a workplace where differences are valued, and make sure that all colleagues are given the same opportunities. We’re proud to have been accredited Disability Confident Leader and we’re committed to providing a fully inclusive and accessible recruitment process. For further information on the accessibility support we can offer, please click here.

We’re a big business and we can offer a range of diverse full‑time & part‑time working patterns across our many business areas, which means that we can find something that works for you. We work in a more blended pattern – combining office and remote working. Our offices will continue to be where we connect, collaborate and innovate. If you are applying internally, please speak to the Hiring Manager about how this can work for you – Everyone is welcome at Tesco.