Principal Software Engineer

Ambition; Kuala Lumpur; Hybrid; MYR 260,000 - 420,000; Full time

Job summary

Ambition is seeking a Principal Engineer in Kuala Lumpur for a permanent, hybrid role. You will be the senior individual contributor across a multi-pod product stream, championing engineering excellence and solving complex problems.

You will mentor Tech Leads, lead architecture reviews, and shape the future direction of the product team while aligning with enterprise and security guidelines.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of software engineering experience with web stack focus.
• Proven technical leadership across critical systems and multiple teams.
• Strong knowledge of microservices and event-driven architecture.
• Solid data modelling with RDBMS and NoSQL.
• Strong API design including REST and API gateways.
• Observability with OpenTelemetry; familiarity with Dynatrace/Grafana.
• Understanding of authN/authZ, least-privilege IAM, and secrets management.
• Azure experience is an advantage.
• Clear communicator across technical and non-technical audiences.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership across full delivery lifecycle from requirements through to production.
• Lead architecture and design reviews within enterprise, cloud, and security guidelines.
• Identify and resolve systemic risks in distributed, near-real-time systems.
• Define engineering standards and best practices for the product stream.
• Lead multi-pod initiatives through ambiguity and shifting requirements.
• Mentor Tech Leads and Staff Engineers, raising the bar across the team.
• Represent the stream in cross-functional technical discussions and hiring support.

Skills

TypeScript

Technical leadership

Microservices

Event-driven architecture

REST APIs

Observability (OpenTelemetry)

AuthN/AuthZ

Azure experience

Clear communicator

Distributed systems

Tools

Dynatrace

Grafana

OpenTelemetry

API gateway patterns

Job description

Principal Engineer | Permanent | Kuala Lumpur | Hybrid

Do you raise the technical bar for others as much as you enjoy solving complex problems? Our client - a fast-growing, technology-driven marketplace - is seeking a Principal Engineer to serve as the senior-most individual contributor across a multi-pod product stream in Kuala Lumpur.

Why Apply?

This is a high-impact, autonomous role at the intersection of architecture, delivery, and engineering culture. You'll own the hardest technical challenges across the full delivery lifecycle, mentor those around you, and shape the future direction of a growing product team.

The Role

Champion engineering excellence across a distributed, fast-paced product environment:

• Provide technical leadership across the full delivery lifecycle, from early requirements through to production
• Lead architecture and design reviews within enterprise, cloud, and security guidelines
• Identify and resolve systemic risks in distributed, near-real-time systems
• Define engineering standards and best practices for the product stream
• Lead multi-pod initiatives through ambiguity and shifting requirements
• Mentor Tech Leads and Staff Engineers, raising the bar across the team
• Represent the stream in cross-functional technical discussions and support hiring

What We're Looking For

A technically credible, collaborative leader with:

• 10+ years of software engineering experience, with strong TypeScript or web stack proficiency
• Proven technical leadership across critical, business-facing systems and multiple teams
• Deep knowledge of microservices and event-driven architecture - async messaging, idempotency, and dead-letter handling
• Solid RDBMS and NoSQL data modelling, covering schema design and query performance
• Strong API design skills, including REST and API gateway patterns
• Observability experience using OpenTelemetry, with familiarity with Dynatrace, Grafana, or equivalent
• Understanding of AuthN/AuthZ, least-privilege IAM, and secrets management
• Azure experience is an advantage
• Clear communicator across technical and non-technical audiences

JTK Number: JTKSM 995 | Company Registration Number: 201301019088 (1048918-T)