Principal ML Platform Engineer

Socket.dev; McLean (VA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

High-Impact Autonomy

New Hire Orientation

Continuous Enablement

Sponsored Certifications

Job summary

Appian in McLean, VA seeks a Principal ML Platform Engineer to lead the engineering of AI automation that powers enterprise-scale processes. The role requires in-office presence five days a week to sustain collaboration and culture.

You will drive cloud-native architecture, guide complex multi-tier designs, and mentor engineers while maintaining high code quality and performance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related technical discipline; equivalent experience not accepted.
• 10+ years of software development experience; BS (or 8+ years with MS).
• Expert in Java, Python, or Go with distributed systems and cloud infrastructure knowledge.
• Proven ability to influence engineering practices beyond a single team.
• Experience using AI coding assistants and applying AI-generated code in production.
• Production-grade, high-volume service experience with reliability focus.
• Strong written and verbal communication for diverse engineering audiences.

Responsibilities

• Architect, build, and optimize high-performance software systems for AI automation.
• Lead platform modernization efforts and drive code refactoring for modernity.
• Engineer with AI tooling to accelerate development without compromising quality.
• Break down technical work, define acceptance criteria, and shape architecture.
• Ensure performance, latency, and scalability meet enterprise needs.
• Promote engineering best practices and build automation to prevent recurrence.
• Coach and grow engineers across multiple levels and improve team skills.
• Contribute to technical documentation and share domain knowledge broadly.

Skills

Java

Python

Go

Distributed systems

Cloud infrastructure

AI coding assistants

Code reviews

Mentoring engineers

Technical communication

Education

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science

Master of Science in Computer Science

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD pipelines

Job description

Here at Appian, our values of Intensity and Excellence define who we are. We set high standards and live up to them, ensuring that everything we do is done with care and quality. We approach every challenge with ambition and commitment, holding ourselves and each other accountable to achieve the best results. When you join Appian, you'll be part of a passionate team dedicated to accomplishing hard things, together.

Principal ML Platform Engineer

Lead the engineering of software that matters - driving AI automation for the world's largest enterprises.

This role is based at our headquarters in McLean, Virginia. Appian was built on a culture of in-person collaboration, which we believe is a key driver of our mission to be the best. Employees hired for this position are expected to be in the office 5 days a week to foster that culture and ensure we continue to thrive through shared ideas and teamwork. We believe being in the office provides more opportunities to come together and celebrate working with the exceptional people across Appian.

About the Team

Appian Engineering spans the full depth of our platform: from the foundational layers that power enterprise scale, to the AI capabilities redefining what automation can do. We operate in a highly collaborative, fast-paced environment focused on technical precision, continuous learning, and high code quality. By joining our team, you will solve real-world problems that directly shape how Appian delivers our AI-Powered Process Automation platform to enterprises around the world.

The Opportunity

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will serve as a technical linchpin for the team, bringing deep expertise in cloud-native architecture and a track record of influencing engineering direction beyond your immediate scope. Equipped with cutting-edge AI tooling, you will drive the design and delivery of high-complexity engineering solutions, set the technical bar for the team, and lead other engineers towards solutions of real complexity to ensure flawless Enterprise-Grade Orchestration.

What You’ll Do

• Develop Clean Software: Architect, build, and optimize high-performance software systems while maintaining a strong personal technical presence on the team.
• Lead Platform Modernization: Spearhead strategic technological changes and champion code refactoring efforts to keep the core Appian codebase cutting-edge, modern, and performant.
• Engineer with AI: Use AI coding tools fluently as a force multiplier: generating, reviewing, and critically evaluating AI-assisted code to ship faster without compromising quality or correctness.
• Lead Architecture & Delivery: Drive technical story breakdowns, acceptance criteria, and architectural design across complex, multi-tier application layers - from feature scoping through implementation.
• Optimize Performance & Scale: Manage product availability, latency, scalability, and efficiency by engineering deep reliability into our core software systems and performing advanced system tuning.
• Drive Engineering Excellence: Radiate development best practices across the department, perform meticulous code reviews on design and implementation, and build automation frameworks to prevent problem recurrence.
• Lead & Grow Engineers: Actively coach and mentor engineers at multiple levels, identify and close skill gaps on the team, and take ownership of accelerating the technical growth of those around you.
• Influence Technical Documentation: Share your expert domain knowledge regularly across the department, building a reputation as a vital resource and publishing high-quality content to Engineering’s permanent documentation site.

Required Qualifications

• Education: Minimum of a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science or a related technical/analytical discipline ( Equivalent experience is not accepted in lieu of a degree).
• Experience: 10+ years of relevant software development experience with a BS (or 8+ years of experience paired with a Master of Science in Computer Science or related field).
• Technical Mastery: Expert coding, scripting, and debugging proficiency in one or more core enterprise programming languages, specifically Java, Python, or Go.
• Domain Expertise: Deep working knowledge of distributed systems, cloud infrastructure, and the ability to contribute meaningfully at a senior individual contributor level within that space.
• Cross-Team Influence: Demonstrated ability to drive technical decisions and shape engineering practices beyond a single team or project scope.
• AI-Augmented Development: Demonstrated experience using AI coding assistants and a strong ability to evaluate, coach others on, and selectively apply AI-generated code in a production engineering context.
• Production Mastery: Proven experience developing, optimizing, and maintaining a high-volume, mission-critical production service environment.
• Communication & Alignment: Exceptional ability to communicate highly technical architectures verbally, visually, and in writing to diverse engineering audiences.

Preferred Qualifications

• Cloud Architecture: Strong experience designing microservices, working with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and implementing modern CI/CD pipelines.
• Cloud Platforms: Deep experience developing and operating infrastructure across public cloud ecosystems, specifically AWS, Azure, and/or GCP.
• We value experience with enterprise platforms such as Salesforce or ServiceNow, as these skills translate well into our Enterprise-Grade Orchestration environment.

What We Equip You With

• High-Impact Autonomy: A leadership environment where you will have real ownership over your team’s direction, the latitude to make meaningful decisions, and participation in broader Engineering discussions.
• New Hire Orientation: A robust onboarding experience designed to integrate you smoothly into our technology, culture, and leadership model so you can show up for your team from day one.
• Continuous Enablement: Access to premier learning resources and dedicated learning time focused on both your continued technical growth and your evolution as an engineering leader.
• Sponsored Certifications: Full corporate sponsorship for professional technical certifications to advance your engineering credentials.