Principal Architect, Distributed Systems (Hybrid/Remote)

engine; United States; Hybrid; USD 206,000 - 285,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Hybrid work model

Annual bonus potential

Job summary

engine is seeking a Principal Engineer to lead the evolution of a high-scale platform from monoliths to distributed services. This role combines architecture, hands-on problem solving, technical strategy, and cross-team influence to keep systems scalable, reliable, and aligned with long-term business needs.

You will guide teams in modular design, decomposition of monoliths, API boundaries, and platform evolution while mentoring engineers and shaping the technical roadmap.

Qualifications

• At least 12 years of experience designing and evolving large-scale distributed systems.
• Proven ability to lead major technical initiatives across multiple teams.
• Experience with architecture, APIs, and service boundaries; AWS preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define architectural principles and guide teams toward modular, loosely coupled services.
• Lead the decomposition of monolithic applications into distributed systems with clear ownership.
• Shape the technical roadmap, including decisions about data flow, service interactions, APIs, and platform evolution.
• Work directly with engineers on complex design and implementation challenges while maintaining high engineering standards.
• Mentor engineers and influence technical direction across teams without relying on direct authority.
• Balance architectural best practices with pragmatic delivery constraints and business priorities.

Skills

Distributed systems design

Leadership of technical initiatives

Modular system design

APIs and service boundaries

Cloud architecture (AWS)

Excellent communication

Job description

engine is seeking a Principal Engineer to lead the evolution of a high-scale platform from monoliths to distributed services. This role combines architecture, hands-on problem solving, technical strategy, and cross-team influence to keep systems scalable, reliable, and aligned with long-term business needs.

You will guide teams in modular design, decomposition of monoliths, API boundaries, and platform evolution while mentoring engineers and shaping the technical roadmap.