Principal Backend Architect (Remote) - Scale Microservices

Parallels; United States; Remote; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Parallels is seeking a Principal Backend Engineer to shape the backend across scalable services. You’ll drive architectural direction, decompose a mature Django app into asynchronous microservices, and own critical server-side systems at scale.

You’ll define tech strategy, mentor a team of 7–8 engineers, lead cross-team architectural transitions, and ensure secure, high-performance APIs and cloud-native patterns across the stack. Experience with Agile/Scrum and polyglot workloads is valued.

Qualifications

• Expert knowledge of modern backend infrastructure and asynchronous messaging/storage (RabbitMQ, Celery, Kafka, PostgreSQL, Redis).
• Strong Python foundation (or deep Go/C++/Rust with Python knowledge) and the maturity to master Python backend ecosystem.
• Extensive Backend Experience with principal-level design of distributed systems.
• Pragmatic architectural mastery with Domain-Driven Design, Clean Architecture, Hexagonal patterns.
• Strong API design experience spanning full API schemas and contracts.
• Deep understanding of cloud architecture, containers, and CI/CD pipelines.
• Ability to influence engineering practices, drive technical consensus, and lead architectural transitions.
• Coaching/mentoring capabilities within a team and cross-team collaboration.
• Experience working in Agile/Scrum environments.

Responsibilities

• Drive architectural roadmaps for backend systems.
• Architect and lead the decomposition of a Django application into asynchronous microservices.
• Define technical strategy, tech stack, and repository organization; evaluate build-vs-buy decisions.
• Write code for the most complex, critical system mechanisms and assist teammates.
• Architect secure and scalable integration patterns across the system.
• Redefine system architecture by auditing microservices and enforcing bounded contexts.
• Design robust, scalable APIs and own cloud architecture strategy with focus on resilience and performance.
• Serve as a technical cornerstone, partnering with leadership to enforce standards and guide 7–8 engineers.

Skills

Python

Go

C++

Rust

RabbitMQ

Kafka

PostgreSQL

Redis

Django

APIs

Cloud architecture

CI/CD

DDD

Microservices

Agile/Scrum

Mentoring

Tools

Kubernetes

GraphQL

Job description

Parallels is seeking a Principal Backend Engineer to shape the backend across scalable services. You’ll drive architectural direction, decompose a mature Django app into asynchronous microservices, and own critical server-side systems at scale.

You’ll define tech strategy, mentor a team of 7–8 engineers, lead cross-team architectural transitions, and ensure secure, high-performance APIs and cloud-native patterns across the stack. Experience with Agile/Scrum and polyglot workloads is valued.