Principal Software Engineer - FTC

BBC Group; City Of London; On-site; GBP 78,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

London Weighting Allowance (£5,441)

Job summary

The BBC Group is seeking a Principal Software Engineer for a 12-month FTC to lead development of work order fulfilment in a major media supply chain program. You will drive cloud-native, serverless AWS solutions, mentoring teams and collaborating with architects, product managers and external partners.

Your expertise in AWS serverless, TypeScript and Python, plus DevOps and Agile practices, will help shape scalable, observable systems with strong delivery focus.

Qualifications

• Hands-on technical leader with AWS serverless and cloud-native architectures.
• Proven experience leading technical teams in a DevOps/Agile environment.
• Experience coordinating with third-party technical teams and integrations.
• AWS Serverless: Lambda, Step Functions, SNS/SQS/EventBridge; TypeScript & Python.
• Observability, monitoring and distributed tracing for serverless/microservices.
• Databases: DynamoDB, Aurora PostgreSQL, MongoDB/DocumentDB or similar NoSQL.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end delivery of working software aligned to business value.
• Facilitate agile ceremonies and prioritise team capacity and delivery.
• Balance support, maintenance, security, and debt with new features.
• Coordinate with third-party technical teams and track integration changes.
• Collaborate with architects to ensure scalable, maintainable designs.
• Champion process improvements and leverage AI tools where appropriate.
• Ensure observability and governance across solutions; mentor developers.

Skills

AWS serverless

TypeScript

Python

DevOps practices

Agile methodologies

Observability

Tools

AWS Lambda

Step Functions

SNS/SQS/EventBridge

Django

Job description

JOB BAND: D
CONTRACT TYPE: 12 month FTC
DEPARTMENT: Media Supply Chain Technology, which is part of Global Technology
PROPOSED SALARY RANGE: £78,000 - £85,000 on relevant skills, knowledge and experience. Plus London Weighting Allowance of £5,441. The expected salary range for this role reflects internal benchmarking and external market insights.

We're happy to discuss flexible working. If you'd like to, please indicate your preference in the application – though there's no obligation to do so now. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

WE ARE BBC STUDIOS

A globally renowned media company borne of the BBC. We make and distribute the world’s most sought-after TV, audio and digital content.

Our ambition is to be the home of the most powerful, entertaining, and inspiring stories for people all around the world.

PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

This is a 12 month FTC, the role is for a Principal Software Engineer to lead development for work order fulfilment order within a major media supply chain transformation programme. The position is critical for delivering modern, cloud-native, serverless workflows that underpin BBC Studios’ global content operations. This is a highly technical role, working closely with architects, developers, and product teams to drive end-to-end delivery and future-proof our technology stack.

We're looking for a Principal Software Engineer with strong expertise in AWS serverless technologies, TypeScript, Python, and DevOps practices. You'll work closely with architects, product teams, and developers to build scalable, reliable, and observable solutions while driving engineering best practice and innovation.

You’ll remain actively involved in coding, technical decision-making, code reviews, deployment planning, and team collaboration. Experience with media processing workflows is highly desirable, as it will help accelerate delivery in this specialist domain.

WHY JOIN THE TEAM

The team integrates Polaris by Fabric Insights and Rally by SDVI, alongside internally developed products including the Fulfilment Service. Applications use TypeScript across the backend and frontend, and Python/Django, with infrastructure hosted in AWS. Close collaboration with other BBCS MSCE teams and third-party technical teams is central to the role.

YOUR KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPACT

• Lead development activities ensuring end-to-end delivery of working software to business value.
• Facilitate agile ceremonies (stand-ups, backlog refinements).
• Plan and prioritise team capacity, balancing support, maintenance, security and technical debt with programme commitments and new business features. Make trade-offs and delivery risks clear to stakeholders.
• Build effective relationships with third-party technical teams, coordinating integration changes, investigating faults and following issues through to resolution.
• Collaborate with architects to ensure designs are: well understood by development teams & deliverable iteratively & fit for long‑term operational support.
• Champion continuous improvement in processes, tools, and engineering practices.
• Future‑proof development processes by introducing modern approaches and leveraging AI tools.
• Ensure observability, scalability, and maintainability across solutions.
• Act as a trusted technical leader, mentoring developers and fostering knowledge sharing.

YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:

• A hands‑on technical leader with a strong background in AWS serverless and cloud‑native architectures, passionate about building modern systems that deliver business value quickly.
• Proven experience leading technical teams in a DevOps environment using an Agile methodology.
• Experience managing technical integrations and working directly with third‑party technical teams to resolve issues and coordinate changes.
• AWS Serverless expertise: Lambda, Step Functions, SNS/SQS/EventBridge.
• Highly skilled in TypeScript & Python
• Observability, monitoring, logging, and distributed tracing for serverless/microservices.
• Databases experience with at least two of the following:
  DynamoDB
  Aurora PostgreSQL
  MongoDB/DocumentDB (or similar NoSQL solutions
  Cloud Architecture: AWS Associate level certification or equivalent experience building serverless solutions.

DESIRED BUT NOT REQUIRED:

• Knowledge of media processing workflows (transcoding, metadata pipelines).
• Django experience or strong desire to learn.
• Familiarity with Polaris by Fabric Insights (formerly known as TMT) or Rally by SDVI, or comparable media workflow platforms.

NEXT STEPS

We appreciate your interest in this position and understand how important this opportunity is to you. Due to the high volume of interest we may need to close the application period earlier than anticipated. This step is necessary to ensure we can provide a high level of attention and service to all applicants. Thank you for your understanding.

Disclaimer

This job description is a written statement of the essential characteristics of the job, with its principal accountabilities, incorporating a note of the skills, knowledge and experience required for a satisfactory level of performance. This is not intended to be a complete, detailed account of all aspects of the duties involved.

Please note: If you were to be offered this role, the BBC will conduct Employment screening checks which include Reference checks; Eligibility to work checks; and if applicable to the role, Safeguarding and Adverse media/Social media checks. Any offer made is conditional on these checks being satisfactory.

Before your start date, you may need to disclose any unspent convictions or police charges, in line with our Recruitment policy. This allows us to discuss any support you may need and assess any risks. Failure to disclose may result in the withdrawal of your offer.

Redeployment

The BBC is committed to redeploying employees seeking suitable alternative employment within the BBC and they will be given priority consideration ahead of other applicants. Priority consideration means for those employees seeking redeployment their application will be considered alongside anyone else at risk of redundancy, prior to any individuals being considered who are not at risk.

Information at a Glance

This is your BBC

At the BBC you can create and innovate in an inclusive environment while contributing to some of the world’s best loved content, and the BBC’s mission to inform, educate and entertain.

Find out more about BBC Studios

Life at BBC Studios

• A flexible 35-hour working week with 26 days annualleave (plus bank holidays) and the option to buy anextra five days.
• Defined pension (up to 10% employer contributions).
• Caring and parenting support, 24/7 remote GP access,life assurance and accident benefit.
• BBC Studios is a world leader in operating sustainably both on and off screen. Find out more about BBC Group’s science-based Net Zero targets here.
• Career development in a values‑led purpose‑driven culture.

Benefits may vary if you are joining on an FTC basis.

Learn more about life at the BBC and our values in our candidate pack.

Candidate pack

You belong

We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual's unique contribution, so all our employees feel that they can belong, thrive and achieve their full potential.

We want to attract the broadest range of talented people to join us. The more diverse our workforce, the better able we are to respond to and reflect our audiences in all their diversity.

We welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio‑economic background, religion and/or belief.

Find out more about diversity, inclusion and belonging in our strategy below.

Diversity, inclusion & belonging strategy

Disability confident

We are a disability confident employer. If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the interview process, or to carry out this role, please contact us via email and we’d be happy to discuss: [e-mail]

Use of AI: Guidance for Candidates

At the BBC, we know that tools like AI can help you prepare, organise your thoughts and feel more confident when applying for a role. But what we're really interested in is you.

We want to hear about your experiences, your skills and what motivates you. The strongest applications are the ones that reflect your own thinking, achievements and perspective. So whilst you're welcome to use AI for support, we encourage you to make sure your application reflects your own voice and tells your story.

You will find more guidance about using AI in the recruitment process on our careers site below.

Using AI in the recruitment process

BBC Group and Public Services, Broadcasting House, Portland Place, London, United Kingdom, W1A 1AA. BBC Studios Distribution Limited, company no: 01420028, registered address: 1 Television Centre, 101 Wood Lane, London, United Kingdom W12 7FA.