Principal Software Engineer - AI-Driven Cloud & Java

Northern Trust Corp; Chicago, Northern (IL, KY); Hybrid; USD 137,000 - 234,000; Full time

Job summary

Northern Trust seeks a Principal Software Engineer to provide technical leadership and hands-on execution across complex cloud-native initiatives. You will drive Java-based development, influence architecture, and mentor teams across North America, EMEA, and India.

The role emphasizes engineering excellence, AI-assisted tooling, and scalable, secure software delivered through robust DevOps, TDD, and modern CI/CD pipelines.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience with hands-on track record.
• Deep expertise in Java and modern application frameworks.
• Strong experience with Azure cloud services and cloud-native development.
• Solid understanding of TDD, spec-driven/contract-first development, CI/CD and DevOps practices.
• Working knowledge of cloud databases, data modeling, and performance tuning.

Responsibilities

• Act as hands-on technical leader, design, develop, and review production-ready software.
• Lead development using Java with clean code, TDD, and contract-driven development.
• Drive adoption of AI-assisted development tools to improve productivity and code quality.
• Design and review scalable, secure architectures; enforce engineering standards.
• Mentor engineers, promote high engineering standards, and collaborate across teams.

Skills

Java

TDD

Spec-driven development

CI/CD

Azure cloud

Tools

Azure DevOps

Job description

Northern Trust seeks a Principal Software Engineer to provide technical leadership and hands-on execution across complex cloud-native initiatives. You will drive Java-based development, influence architecture, and mentor teams across North America, EMEA, and India.

The role emphasizes engineering excellence, AI-assisted tooling, and scalable, secure software delivered through robust DevOps, TDD, and modern CI/CD pipelines.