Principal Software Engineer

Fivetran; Oakland (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

100% employer-paid medical insurance

Generous paid time-off policy

RSU stock grants

Professional development opportunities

Company virtual happy hours

Monthly cell phone stipend

Access to mental health support platform

Job summary

Fivetran is looking for a Principal Software Engineer based in Oakland, California. You will define the technical vision for core systems that support data movement among thousands of companies. This full-time role emphasizes building scalable cloud platforms using technologies like Java, Docker, and AWS. The ideal candidate has 12+ years of experience in distributed systems and strong programming skills. A hybrid work model is offered, ensuring both remote flexibility and in-person collaboration.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of software engineering experience, preferably in distributed systems.
• Proven ability to design scalable and reliable architectures.
• Experience leading cross-team technical initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Define long-term architectural vision for core platform systems.
• Drive the design of large-scale distributed systems.
• Lead high-impact projects and align stakeholders.

Skills

Extensive Experience in Software Engineering

System Design Mastery

Technical Leadership

Strong Programming Skills in Java

Performance & Reliability Optimization

Communication & Influence

Ownership & Ambiguity Handling

Tools

Java

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

GCP

Observability tools (Datadog, Grafana)

Job description

Oakland, California, United States, AMER

Position Title: Principal Software Engineer

From Fivetran founding until now, our mission has remained the same: to make access to data as simple and reliable as electricity. With Fivetran, customer data arrives in their warehouses, canonical and ready to query, with no engineering or maintenance required. We’re proud that more organizations continue to leverage our technology every day to become truly data‑driven.

About the Role

Fivetran is building data pipelines to power the modern data stack for thousands of companies. We are looking for a Principal Software Engineer to join our Platform Engineering Group, focused on building and evolving the core systems that power our data movement platform.

In this role, you will define and drive the long‑term technical vision for critical platform components that enable Fivetran to scale from thousands to tens of thousands of customers. You will operate at the intersection of architecture, execution, and organizational influence, solving deeply complex distributed systems challenges while shaping engineering direction across multiple teams.

This is a full‑time position based out of our Oakland office. Our hybrid work model offers a blend of remote flexibility and in‑person collaboration, including two days in the office each week to connect and build as a team.

Technologies You’ll Use

• Java (JVM, JIT, GC tuning, thread management), JUnit
• Claude Code
• Docker and Kubernetes
• AWS, GCP
• Bazel, BuildKite
• Observability tools (Datadog, Grafana)

What You’ll Do

• Define Technical Strategy: Set the long‑term architectural vision for core platform systems, ensuring scalability, reliability, and efficiency.
• Lead Complex System Design: Drive the design and evolution of large‑scale distributed systems that power Fivetran’s data movement platform.
• Drive Cross‑Team Initiatives: Lead high‑impact projects spanning multiple teams, align stakeholders, and ensure successful execution.
• Raise the Engineering Bar: Establish best practices for system design, code quality, and operational excellence across the organization.
• Mentor and Influence: Guide and mentor senior and staff engineers, shaping technical decision‑making beyond your immediate team.
• Improve Platform Performance: Identify and lead efforts to optimize system performance, reliability, and cost at scale.
• Champion Innovation: Evaluate and introduce new technologies and approaches to improve developer experience and platform capabilities.

Skills We’re Looking For

• Extensive Experience: 12+ years of software engineering experience, with deep expertise in building and operating large‑scale distributed systems.
• System Design Mastery: Proven ability to design and evolve complex, scalable, and reliable platform architectures.
• Technical Leadership: Demonstrated experience leading cross‑team technical initiatives and influencing engineering direction.
• Strong Programming Skills: Expertise in backend development (Java preferred) with a solid foundation in data structures and system fundamentals.
• Performance & Reliability: Experience optimizing system performance, scalability, and cost in high‑throughput systems.
• Communication & Influence: Strong ability to communicate complex technical ideas and influence senior stakeholders.
• Ownership & Ambiguity: Track record of driving ambiguous, high‑impact problems from definition to execution.

Bonus Skills

• Experience in data processing (ETL, ELT) and/or cloud‑based platforms
• Experience working in startup environments

Perks and Benefits

• 100% employer‑paid medical insurance*
• Generous paid time‑off policy (PTO), plus paid sick time, inclusive parental leave policy, holidays, and volunteer days off
• RSU stock grants*
• Professional development and training opportunities
• Company virtual happy hours, free food, and fun team‑building activities
• Monthly cell phone stipend
• Access to an innovative mental health support platform that offers personalized care and resources in areas such as therapy, coaching, and self‑guided mindfulness exercises for all covered employees and their covered dependents

Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/protected veterans

Equal employment opportunity, including veterans and individuals with disabilities.

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