Principal Java Engineer

Tekniforce; United States; Hybrid; USD 130,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent technology firm is seeking a Principal Java/Scala Software Engineer to shape next-generation products and strategies. This full-time, hybrid role requires over 10 years of enterprise development experience with Java or Scala, deep knowledge of search engines, and proficiency in cloud-based services such as AWS. You will design scalable solutions and mentor junior engineers as part of a collaborative team in Raleigh, North Carolina. Local candidates preferred.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of hands-on experience with enterprise development languages such as Java or Scala.
• Knowledge of message queues and event-driven architecture.
• Experience with modern search engines like Solr or Elasticsearch.
• Ability to build cloud-based infrastructure on AWS and practice DevOps/SRE.

Responsibilities

• Serve as SME on coding and technical issues.
• Design and implement scalable solutions including schema design and query optimization.
• Develop and maintain Java-based APIs to interface with Solr and other backend systems.
• Lead improvements to relevance, tuning, and analyzer customization.
• Monitor, optimize performance, and ensure high availability of search infrastructure.
• Mentor engineers, conduct code reviews, and contribute to architecture decisions.
• Collaborate with product managers and UX to translate business needs into technical solutions.

Skills

Java

Scala

Kafka

SQS

Solr

Elasticsearch

AWS

DevOps

Site Reliability Engineering

Test-driven development

Tools

AWS services (EC2, Lambda, S3, RDS, DynamoDB, API Gateway)

Elasticsearch

Kafka

SQS

EC2

Lambda

Job description

We are looking for a Principal Java/ Scala Software Engineer. This is a full-time permanent hire, hybrid position in Raleigh, North Carolina with our client. In this role as a Principal Java/ Scala Software Engineer, you will be creating next-generation products and strategies for the company, bring your own perspective on how to solve a variety of internal and external opportunities. Two positions open (one is senior and the other is principal) and H1 candidates are welcome to apply. Local candidates preferred.

Responsibilities as a Principal Java/ Scala Software Engineer

• Serve as SME person on coding and technical issues
• Design and implement scalable solutions, including schema design, indexing strategies, and query optimization
• Develop and maintain Java-based APIs to interface with Solr and other backend systems
• Lead efforts to improve relevance, including tuning scoring algorithms, implementing synonyms, and customizing analyzers
• Monitor and optimize performance
• Ensure high availability and fault tolerance of search infrastructure
• Conduct code reviews, mentor junior engineers, and contribute to architectural decisions
• Work closely with product managers and UX designers to translate business requirements into technical solutions
• Stay current with emerging technologies and best practices in search engineering and Java development

Required skills and qualifications as a Principal Java/ Scala Software Engineer

• 10+ years of hands-on experience with enterprise development languages such as Java or Scala
• Knowledge of message queues (e.g., Kafka, SQS) and event-driven architecture
• Experience developing / maintaining web applications based on modern search engines such as Solr / Elasticsearch, including indexing, query parsing, relevance tuning, etc.
• Experience scaling search server clusters to accommodate increasing traffic to meet specific performance requirements
• Build and manage cloud-based infrastructure and services on AWS (e.g., EC2, Lambda, S3, RDS, DynamoDB, API Gateway)
• Exposure to DevOps or Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices
• Understanding of security best practices in API and cloud environments
• Expertise in test-driven development and maintenance including techniques for applying best practices for overall project benefit
• A proven expert in partnering and leading internal and external technology resources in solving complex business needs