Principal Software Engineer - Ad Experiences

5014 Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC; Glendale (CA); On-site; USD 188,400 - 252,600; Full time

Job summary

5014 Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to help create scalable and maintainable systems. The ideal candidate will have 10+ years of experience and advanced knowledge of Java, plus a strong focus on teamwork and mentorship.

You will work on innovative ad technologies and products that advance Disney’s media and advertising capabilities. This role is based in the Glendale area, and you will be expected to be in the office four days a week.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of software engineering experience.
• Advanced proficiency with Java including heap, multi-threading, and garbage collection.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

• Write and review code and tests.
• Support engineers on an On-Call shift as needed.
• Mentor and inspire others in software development.

Skills

Java

SpringBoot

Non-relational databases

Apache Kafka

AWS

Observability tooling

Education

BS or MS in Computer Science/Engineering

Tools

Terraform

Docker

Kubernetes

Job description

Technology is at the heart of Disney’s past, present, and future. Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology is a global organization of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, data scientists, and more – all working to build and advance the technological backbone for Disney’s media business globally. The team marries technology with creativity to build world‑class products, enhance storytelling, and drive velocity, innovation, and scalability for our businesses. We are Storytellers and Innovators. Creators and Builders. Entertainers and Engineers. We work with every part of The Walt Disney Company’s media portfolio to advance the technological foundation and consumer media touch points serving millions of people around the world.

Here are a few reasons why we think you’d love working here:

• Building the future of Disney’s media: Our Technologists are designing and building the products and platforms that will power our media, advertising, and distribution businesses for years to come.
• Reach, Scale & Impact: More than ever, Disney’s technology and products serve as a signature doorway for fans’ connections with the company’s brands and stories. Disney+. Hulu. ESPN. ABC. ABC News…and many more. These products and brands – and the unmatched stories, storytellers, and events they carry – matter to millions of people globally.
• Innovation: We develop and implement groundbreaking products and techniques that shape industry norms, and solve complex and distinctive technical problems.
• Ad Platforms is responsible for Disney’s industry‑leading ad technology and products – driving advertising performance, innovation, and value in Disney’s sports, news, and entertainment content, across all media platforms.
• Ad Experiences Fleet aims to unleash the magic of Disney by leveraging cutting‑edge creative tools and fostering creative innovation to craft captivating, interactive ad experiences that deeply resonate with consumers and deliver superior value for our advertisers while enhancing the viewer experience to maximize revenue.

As part of our team, you’ll develop and own systems that enable rapid prototyping, testing, and validation of interactive ad formats with real viewers and advertisers—fueling innovation and revenue growth across our CTV platforms. These experiences are then integrated into creative platforms also owned by the Fleet leading to new ad experiences available to all ad tier users.

Principal Software Engineer – Core Expectations

As our team's Principal Software Engineer, you will apply your battle‑tested experience, deep technical knowledge of software and systems, and leadership skills to help teams create scalable, performant, maintainable, and testable systems.

Responsibilities and Expectations

• Write and review a lot of code and tests.
• Review code and test implementations for best practices and algorithmic complexity.
• Available to support engineers on an On‑Call shift, when needed.
• Read requirements documentation from Product, provide a perspective on feasibility and translate into implementation tasks, and partner with teams’ leads through execution as needed.
• Explore, research, implement proofs‑of‑concept, and propose solutions that will improve Ad Serving systems (reduce cost and overhead, improve maintainability, minimize the time features take to be in production, etc).
• Define, review, and document software and system designs in a high throughput, low latency microservices environment.
• Enhance systems’ observability with proper metrics, monitors, and alerts.
• Foster open communication during architectural discussions, confidently defend decisions while welcoming feedback.
• Bridge the gap between diverse team requirements and technical capabilities to deliver cohesive, scalable solutions.
• Mentor and inspire others in all aspects of professional software development.

Basic Qualifications

• BS or MS in Computer Science/Engineering or relevant work experience.
• 10+ years of software engineering experience.
• Advanced proficiency with Java, such as understanding heap, multi-threading, garbage collection, profiling.
• Demonstrable analytical/problem‑solving/design skills in a highly distributed and highly available services ecosystem.
• Excellent communication, collaboration skills, and a strong teamwork ethic with both technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Comprehensive experience with SpringBoot and related Spring projects.
• Non‑relational database technologies e.g. DynamoDB, Redis and/or MemCache.
• Apache Kafka and/or Kinesis.
• AWS or any other cloud platform.
• Observability tooling (logs, metrics, etc.).

Preferred Qualifications

• Comprehensive experience with Terraform, Docker, and Kubernetes.
• Ad Tech Industry knowledge.

Location & Compensation

Expected to be in the office four days a week. Office location: Santa Monica / Glendale / Seattle.

The hiring range for this position in New York, NY is between $197,400 – $264,700, Los Angeles, CA is between $188,400 – $252,600, Seattle, WA is between $197,400 – $264,700 and San Francisco, CA is between $206,400 – $276,700. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long‑term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

Job Posting Segment: Ad Platforms
Job Posting Primary Business: AP - Engineering
Job Posting Primary Category: Product Software Engineering
Employment Type: Full time
Primary City, State, Region, Postal Code: Glendale, CA, USA
Alternate City, State, Region, Postal Code: USA - CA - 2500 Broadway Street, USA - WA - 925 4th Ave
Date Posted: 2026-06-08