Principal Engineer- Consumer Platform

Capitolis; San Ramon (CA); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Candescent seeks a Principal Engineer to lead the mobile-focused Consumer Platform architecture and modernization. You will drive cloud-native, multi-tenant SaaS evolution, defining standards for mobile, web, and backend systems while mentoring senior engineers and shaping engineering governance.

You will guide React Native and native mobile initiatives, oversee performance, security, and reliability, and collaborate with product, security, and data teams to deliver scalable digital banking

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 14+ years of software engineering experience with progressively increasing technical leadership responsibilities.
• 4+ years leading architecture and platform strategy for large-scale software products.
• Deep expertise in mobile application architecture, platform development, and modernization.
• Significant experience designing and operating multi-tenant SaaS platforms.
• Strong background in cloud-native architectures and distributed systems.
• Proven success building scalable microservices-based applications.
• Hands-on experience with React Native and modern web technologies.
• Strong understanding of API design, integration patterns, and backend service architecture.
• Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills.

Responsibilities

• Own and define the technical vision and architectural roadmap for the Consumer Platform.
• Lead the modernization of our cloud-native, multi-tenant SaaS digital banking ecosystem.
• Design scalable, resilient, and extensible mobile-first architectures for growth.
• Guide mobile platform initiatives and release automation for App Store / Google Play.
• Define observability, monitoring, and performance measurement practices.
• Ensure seamless integration between mobile apps and backend services.

Skills

Mobile architecture

Engineering leadership

Cloud-native

Distributed systems

API design

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Tools

React Native

React

TypeScript

Swift

Kotlin

Spring Boot

PostgreSQL

Kafka

Redis

Kubernetes

Docker

GCP

Jenkins

Terraform

Prometheus

Grafana

OpenTelemetry

Job description

Principal Engineer - Candescent Consumer Platform (Mobile Focus)

Location: Atlanta, GA (Hybrid) or San Ramon, CA (Hybrid)
Reports To: VP of Engineering / Director of Engineering
Department: Engineering

We are seeking a Principal Engineer - Consumer Platform (Mobile Focus) to lead the architectural evolution of our flagship digital banking platform. This is a highly strategic technical leadership role responsible for defining the long-term technology vision, driving platform modernization, and ensuring the scalability, performance, and reliability of our mobile-first consumer experience.

As a Principal Engineer, you will influence engineering strategy across multiple teams, guide architectural decisions, mentor senior technical talent, and help shape the future of how millions of consumers interact with their financial institutions.

Position Summary

The Principal Engineer will serve as a technical authority for Candescent's Consumer Platform, with a primary focus on mobile architecture, platform scalability, and modernization initiatives. This role will drive the evolution of our multi-tenant SaaS platform while establishing engineering standards, architectural patterns, and best practices that enable rapid innovation and sustainable growth.

The ideal candidate combines deep expertise in mobile and distributed systems architecture with strong leadership skills and a proven track record of building modern, cloud-native platforms in regulated environments.

What You'll Do

Platform Architecture & Modernization

• Own and define the technical vision and architectural roadmap for the Consumer Platform.
• Lead the modernization of our cloud-native, multi-tenant SaaS digital banking ecosystem.
• Design scalable, resilient, and extensible mobile-first architectures capable of supporting significant customer and transaction growth.
• Define architectural standards, guardrails, and best practices across mobile, web, and backend systems.
• Drive adoption of plugin-centric architectures and API-driven feature enablement models.
• Guide implementation of modular UI composition and micro frontend strategies.
• Evaluate and introduce emerging technologies that improve scalability, reliability, developer productivity, and speed to market.
• Lead architecture reviews, technical design sessions, and platform governance initiatives.

Mobile Platform Leadership

• Serve as the technical leader for mobile application architecture across iOS and Android ecosystems.
• Establish standards for React Native, native mobile development, and cross-platform engineering practices.
• Guide mobile platform initiatives that improve application performance, security, maintainability, and user experience.
• Drive modernization of app delivery processes, release management, and App Store / Google Play deployment automation.
• Define mobile observability, monitoring, instrumentation, and performance measurement practices.
• Ensure seamless integration between mobile applications and backend services.

Cloud & Distributed Systems

• Champion microservices best practices including:
  • API lifecycle management and versioning
  • Service discovery
  • Event-driven architectures
  • Observability and telemetry
  • CI/CD automation
  • Platform resiliency patterns
• Design solutions that optimize performance, reliability, scalability, and operational efficiency.
• Partner with infrastructure teams to enhance Kubernetes-based deployment models and cloud-native operations.
• Drive improvements in platform availability, security posture, and cost optimization.

Data & Integration Strategy

• Define scalable data access, caching, and synchronization strategies across mobile and backend systems.
• Collaborate with Data Engineering teams to enable analytics, personalization, and customer intelligence capabilities.
• Support integration with platforms including Minerva, Databricks, PostgreSQL, and other enterprise data systems.
• Establish patterns for secure and efficient access to enterprise data and services.
• Lead architectural decisions involving event streaming, messaging systems, and real-time data delivery.

Engineering Leadership

• Mentor Staff Engineers, Senior Engineers, and emerging technical leaders.
• Foster a culture of engineering excellence, accountability, innovation, and continuous improvement.
• Conduct architectural assessments, code reviews, and technical health evaluations.
• Partner closely with Product Management, Engineering Leadership, Security, Support, and Business stakeholders.
• Drive technical decision-making across cross-functional teams and programs.
• Establish engineering standards, reusable frameworks, and operational best practices.

Security, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure platform architecture aligns with financial services security and compliance requirements.
• Establish best practices for secure software development, DevSecOps, and platform governance.
• Support compliance initiatives including SOC 2, FFIEC, GLBA, and related banking regulations.
• Integrate security and compliance controls into engineering processes and delivery pipelines.

Tech Stack You'll Influence

React Native, React, TypeScript, Swift, Kotlin, Spring Boot, PostgreSQL, Kafka, Redis, Kubernetes, Docker, GCP, Jenkins, Terraform, Prometheus, Grafana, and OpenTelemetry, with a focus on scalable mobile architecture, cloud-native platforms, and modern engineering practices.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; advanced degree preferred.
• 14+ years of software engineering experience with progressively increasing technical leadership responsibilities.
• 4+ years leading architecture and platform strategy for large-scale software products.
• Deep expertise in mobile application architecture, platform development, and modernization.
• Significant experience designing and operating multi-tenant SaaS platforms.
• Strong background in cloud-native architectures and distributed systems.
• Proven success building scalable microservices-based applications.
• Hands-on experience with React Native and modern web technologies.
• Strong understanding of API design, integration patterns, and backend service architecture.
• Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred

• Experience within fintech, digital banking, or highly regulated industries.
• Expertise in event-driven architecture and asynchronous messaging platforms.
• Experience with mobile platform frameworks and reusable engineering platforms.
• Knowledge of banking, privacy, and regulatory standards including SOC 2, FFIEC, and GLBA.
• Experience leading large-scale platform transformation initiatives.
• Familiarity with personalization, analytics, and customer engagement technologies.

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic technical vision
• Systems thinking and architectural excellence
• Influential leadership without direct authority
• Cross-functional collaboration
• Executive presence and communication
• Mentoring and talent development
• Innovation and continuous improvement
• Customer-centric decision making