Principal Software Engineer

Akamai Technologies GmbH; Cambridge (MA); On-site; USD 169,000 - 305,000; Full time

Job summary

Akamai is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to lead our cloud-native Kubernetes initiatives on the Compute Team. The role focuses on scale, performance, security, and integration of open-source technologies to deliver simple, managed services.

You will provide architectural oversight, mentor teams, and partner with leadership to standardize cloud-native practices across the platform. Strong Go/Python/Bash skills are expected.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of relevant experience in software engineering.
• Experience building and scaling managed services and Kubernetes-based platforms.
• Expert knowledge of container runtimes (e.g., docker) and orchestration tools.

Responsibilities

• Provide cross-team architectural oversight for cloud-native initiatives.
• Act as technical authority for cloud-native initiatives and ensure architectural alignment.
• Partner with leadership to integrate diverse cloud-native technologies across product teams.
• Facilitate a unified technical strategy enabling efficient deployment and operation of cloud-native services.
• Mentor engineering teams to foster innovation and technical standards.

Skills

Go

Python

Bash

Cloud-native

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Kubernetes

Job description

Are you interested in building the latest product offerings on Kubernetes?

Are you passionate about the latest cloud-native trends?

Join our Compute Team!

Our Cloud Technology's Compute division, formerly Linode, consists of collaborative, inclusive, and creative teams. We develop applications and services to empower our customers. Our mission is to accelerate innovation by making cloud computing simple, scalable, affordable, and accessible to all. We design, develop, test, and maintain products that run on our IaaS platform

Help us shape the future of our cloud-native and Kubernetes services

We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer with deep expertise in Kubernetes and cloud-native architectures to lead the evolution of our managed services. You will be responsible for helping to support the scale, performance, security, and capabilities of our managed Kubernetes product and integrating open-source technologies to supply simple-to-use managed services to the public

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will be responsible for:

• Providing cross-team architectural oversight and strategic guidance to ensure cloud-native efforts are cohesively implemented across all product development teams.
• Acting as a unifying technical authority for cloud-native initiatives, ensuring architectural alignment, standardization, and technical excellence organization-wide.
• Partnering with cross-functional leadership to integrate diverse cloud-native technologies, bridging gaps between individual product teams and core platform infrastructure.
• Facilitating a unified technical strategy that empowers teams to deploy and operate cloud-native services efficiently, rather than focusing on a single product silo.
• Mentoring engineering teams across the organization, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and shared technical standards.

Do what you love

To be successful in this role you will:

• Have 8+ years of relevant experience and a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related field.
• Demonstrate experience building and scaling managed services and Kubernetes-based platforms
• Possess expert knowledge of container runtimes (e.g., docker, containers) and orchestrators.
• Showcase mastery in Go, Python, or Bash.
• Be a champion for sustaining an exceptional work environment and advocating for diverse opinions in technical debates.

#Linode

About us

At Akamai, we make life better for billions of people, trillions of times a day.
Whether you're streaming live events, scrolling social media, watching your favorite series, or managing your savings, we're the engine behind the scenes. We provide the world's most distributed platform from Cloud to Edge to help the giants of the digital world work faster and stay more secure, making the internet a better experience for everyone.
Our focus is simple:
Cloud and Edge: Running apps closer to users for instant performance.
Security: Neutralizing threats before they ever reach your data.
Content Delivery: Scaling the world's biggest moments without a glitch.
AI: Enabling our customers to build, secure, and scale AI apps on the world's most distributed cloud platform.
At Akamai, we don't just support the internet; we power and protect it, because behind every great digital experience is a massive hidden challenge. And we're the ones who solve it. When millions of people hit play or pay, Akamai ensures it just works.

Benefits at Akamai:

We support your health, well-being, finances, and life beyond work. See our benefits.

FlexBase adapts to your job's needs

Akamai's FlexBase program is yet another way we show our commitment to providing employees with an exceptional workplace experience. It's not about telling employees where to work; it's about supporting employees to do their best work.
We trust our incredible employees to work in ways that suit them best: at home, in an office, or a combination of both.

Connect with us on social and see what life at Akamai is like!

Compensation

Akamai is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. For US based candidates only - the base salary for this position ranges from $169,300 - $304,700/year; a candidate’s salary is determined by various factors including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications and location. Compensation for candidates outside the US will vary. The compensation package may also include incentive compensation opportunities in the form of annual bonus or incentives, equity awards and an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP). Akamai provides industry-leading benefits including healthcare, 401K savings plan, company holidays, vacation (in the form of PTO), sick time, family friendly benefits including parental leave and an employee assistance program including a focus on mental and financial wellness; Eligibility requirements apply.