Principal Product Manager - Core Database Engine

Couchbase; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 188,000 - 221,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a forward-thinking company as a Principal Product Manager for the Core Database Engine. In this high-impact role, you'll drive the strategy and execution of features for a next-generation distributed database engine. Collaborate with engineering teams to enhance query performance and scalability, while leading initiatives in innovative technologies. This position offers a unique opportunity to influence product strategy and shape the future of AI-powered applications. If you are passionate about database technologies and eager to make a significant impact, this role is perfect for you.

Benefits

Generous Time Off Program

Wellness Benefits

Financial Planning

Fun Perks

Employee Assistance Programs

Qualifications

• 10+ years in product management focused on database internals and query optimization.
• Strong leadership and communication skills to drive cross-functional teams.

Responsibilities

• Define product vision and strategy for Couchbase’s core database engine.
• Drive innovation in query optimization and transaction management.

Skills

Product Management

Database Internals

Query Optimization

Distributed Systems

Leadership

Communication

SQL

Python

Education

Degree in Computer Science

PhD in Databases or Distributed Systems

Tools

Couchbase

AWS

GCP

Azure

Job description

Principal Product Manager - Core Database Engine

As industries race to embrace AI, traditional database solutions fall short of rising demands for versatility, performance, and affordability. Couchbase is leading the way with Capella, the developer data platform for critical applications in our AI world. By uniting transactional, analytical, mobile, and AI workloads into a seamless, fully managed solution, Couchbase empowers developers and enterprises to build and scale applications with unmatched flexibility, performance, and cost-efficiency—from cloud to edge. Trusted by over 30% of the Fortune 100, Couchbase is unlocking innovation, accelerating AI transformation, and redefining customer experiences. Come join our mission.

As industries race to embrace AI, traditional database solutions fall short of rising demands for versatility, performance, and affordability. Couchbase is leading the way with Capella, the developer data platform for critical applications in our AI world. By uniting transactional, analytical, mobile, and AI workloads into a seamless, fully managed solution, Couchbase empowers developers and enterprises to build and scale applications with unmatched flexibility, performance, and cost-efficiency—from cloud to edge. Trusted by over 30% of the Fortune 100, Couchbase is unlocking innovation, accelerating AI transformation, and redefining customer experiences. Come join our mission.

Join Couchbase, a leader in NoSQL databases, and shape the future of AI-powered applications. Couchbase empowers developers to build modern AI powered applications that excel in flexibility, performance, and scalability

As a Principal Product Manager for the Core Database Engine at Couchbase, you will drive the strategy, roadmap, and execution of features for our next-generation distributed database engine. This role is focused on innovation in query optimization, execution systems, and storage architecture to meet the evolving demands of enterprise workloads and cloud-native applications.

You will work closely with engineering teams to build and enhance the brains of a distributed document database by leading initiatives in SQL++, query execution, indexing, storage efficiency, transaction coordination, and resource management. You will leverage your deep understanding of database systems and distributed architectures to guide the design and implementation of world-class database features and performance optimizations.

This is a high-impact, highly technical leadership role, where you will influence long-term product strategy and lead cross-functional teams to deliver mission-critical features that define the future of Couchbase’s database capabilities.

Your Responsibilities:

• Define the Cloud and GenAI product vision and strategy for Couchbase’s core database engine focused on Query and Indexing, setting multi-year initiatives and delivering on incremental milestones.
• Drive innovation in query optimization, execution systems, cost-based optimization, planner efficiency, and transaction management by researching state-of-the-art techniques and building flexible schema databases.
• Work with engineering to design and implement features that enhance query performance, resource management, security, and scalability in distributed systems.
• Collaborate with engineering, data science, and cloud infrastructure teams to guide product development from concept to launch, ensuring performance, scalability, and differentiation in the market.
• Coordinate with marketing and sales teams to develop go-to-market strategies and produce key deliverables—including PRDs, white papers, blogs, and GTM plans—to empower data scientists, developers, and ML engineers to leverage Couchbase for advanced analytics, real-time search, and Gen AI applications.
• Engage with customers to understand their challenges, demonstrating customer obsession and a bias for action by incorporating feedback to ensure Couchbase’s features meet real-world business needs.

Your Qualifications:

• A degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, Physics or a related field ( PhD in databases or distributed systems is a plus.)
• 10+ years of proven experience in product management with a focus on database internals, query optimization, and distributed storage engines . Familiarity with distributed systems, data replication, and consistency models.
• Expertise in query engine performance and database technologies, with a focus on optimizing complex queries for databases, and a solid understanding of SQL, and Python or any other programming languages.
• Leadership and communication skills to drive cross-functional teams, collaborate with external partners, and influence internal stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to think from first principles, with strong written and oral communication skills. Proven ability to learn rapidly, adapt to new information, and collaborate effectively with experts.
• A self-starter attitude with a proven track record of independently driving initiatives in fast-paced and evolving environments.

Bonus Points for:

• Knowledge of Couchbase/NoSQL systems.
• Strong knowledge of database technologies such as OLTP ( SQL, PostgreSQL, or MySQL) and OLAP internals.
• You have built and shipped features related to Query Optimizer and/ or Execution Engine in the past as a Product Manager or an Engineer.
• Experience working with cloud providers like AWS, GCP, and Azure.

The anticipated starting base pay range for this role is listed below. Base salary is not the only component of our competitive total rewards package - you may also be eligible for bonus, commissions, equity, and other benefits as described below. Actual compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location.

Base Pay Range

$188,000 - $221,000 USD

Why Couchbase?

Modern customer experiences need a flexible cloud database platform that can power applications spanning from cloud to edge and everything in between. Couchbase’s mission is to simplify how developers and architects develop, deploy and consume modern applications wherever they are. We have reimagined the database with our fast, flexible and affordable cloud database platform Capella, allowing organizations to quickly build applications that deliver premium experiences to their customers– all with best-in-class price performance. More than 30% of the Fortune 100 trust Couchbase to power their modern applications and build innovative new ones. See our recent awards to learn why Couchbase is a great place to work.We are honored to be a part of the Best Places to Work Award forthe Bay Area andthe UK . Couchbase offers a total rewards approach to benefits that recognizes the value you create here, so that you in turn may best serve yourself and your family. Some benefits include:

• Generous Time Off Program - Flexibility to care for you and your family
• Wellness Benefits - A variety of world class medical plans to choose from, along with dental, vision, life insurance, and employee assistance programs*
• Financial Planning - RSU equity program*, ESPP program*, Retirement program* and Business Travel Insurance
• Fun Perks - An ergonomic and comfortable in-office / WFH setup. Food & Snacks for in-office employees.
• And much more!

*Note: some programs are not applicable to all countries. Please discuss with a Couchbase recruiter to learn more.

Couchbase is committed to being an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and protected veterans’ status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Join an impact initiative group and experience the amazing feeling of Couchbase can-do culture.

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