Principal Software Engineer - Backend

Dragos; United States; Remote; USD 203,000 - 248,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive Equity Package

Comprehensive Benefits Plan

Job summary

Dragos is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join our team in building the leading xOT Security Platform. You will be a backend engineer contributing to scalable, high‑performing systems and collaborating with cross‑functional teams across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and APAC.

The role emphasizes mentorship, architectural leadership, and staying ahead in Rust, security, and distributed systems.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of backend systems experience at scale in high-performance teams.
• 5+ years with PostgreSQL databases.
• 5+ years with Elasticsearch.
• 5+ years in a microservices architecture.
• Rust proficiency or demonstrated ability to become proficient quickly.
• Experience integrating with third party devices and data providers.
• Experience incorporating AI tools, models, or services into development workflows.
• Proven track record of mentoring and developing senior engineers.
• Demonstrated ability to lead architectural decisions and influence technical strategy across multiple teams.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement robust, testable, high-performance systems and tools in Rust.
• Optimize existing software architectures to enhance speed and efficiency.
• Actively participate in all phases of the development lifecycle, including debugging and optimization, ensuring and elevating software quality.
• Stay informed about the latest advancements in Rust programming, security, and software design principles, helping to foster an environment of continuous learning and improvement.
• Give and receive peer feedback on a normal cadence as part of our review cycle.

Skills

Backend systems

Postgres

Elasticsearch

Microservices

Rust

Third‑party data integration

AI tool adoption

Mentoring

Technical leadership

Tools

Kubernetes

Docker

Prometheus

Grafana

Terraform

Job description

At Dragos, the mission is personal. The systems we protect deliver the water you drink, power your home, and keep the hospitals your community depends on running. Those critical infrastructure systems that power our civilization around the world are under attack every day by adversaries. When those systems fail, people areimmediatelyat risk.We are the global leader inxOTcybersecurity, combining technology, threat intelligence, and expert services. The people here chose this work because they understandwhat isat stake. Here, you will find a remote-first mission-driven team across North America, Europe, the Middle East, and APAC built on authenticity, transparency, and trust. If safeguarding the systems that protect your family, friends, and community is the kind of work that matters to you, you are in the right place.

About The Role:

Dragos is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join our team in building the leading xOT Security Platform. We work in a matrix style engineering organization which means in this role, you will be part of our Backend Community. To be successful at Dragos you will need to:

• Be passionate about your craft, minding the details while working quickly.
• Have a strong product sense and care deeply about the customers and problems we are solving.
• Be self-directed with a strong work ethic and ability to operate autonomously.
• Have excellent communication skills for remote collaboration, working well across engineering disciplines.

At Dragos, wedon’thire engineers whose only mission in life is to write code. We are looking forbackend engineerswho yearn to contribute to more than just a code base and who are willing to stretch themselves toaccomplishthe mission.

Responsibilities:

Our backend community is the heartbeat of the Dragos Platform, playing a pivotal role in the success of our customers’ ability to secure their OT environments.

As a backend engineer you will:

• Design and implement robust, testable, high-performance systems and tools in Rust.
• Optimize existing software architectures to enhance speed and efficiency.
• Actively participate in all phases of the development lifecycle, including debugging and optimization, ensuring and elevating software quality.
• Stay informed about the latest advancements in Rust programming, security, and software design principles, helping to foster an environment of continuous learning and improvement.
• Give and receive peer feedback on a normal cadence as part of our review cycle

Minimum Qualifications:

• 10+ years of experience developing backend systems at scale in high-performance team environments
• 5+ years of experience in relational databases such as Postgres
• 5+ years of experience with NoSQL databases such as Elasticsearch
• 5+ years of experience working in a microservices architecture
• Rust proficiency – or the willingness and demonstrated ability to become proficient quickly
• Experience integrating with third party devices and data providers
• Experience incorporating AI tools, models, or services into development workflows
• Proven track record of mentoring and developing senior engineers
• Demonstrated ability to lead architectural decisions and influence technical strategy across multiple teams

Additional Qualifications that Will Help You Succeed:

• Experience working in cybersecurity, OT, or IC
• Experience building and operating distributed systems at scale with a focus on reliability
• Familiarity with Kubernetes and cloud‑native architectures
• Experience with containerization (Docker)
• Strong understanding of observability tooling (Prometheus, Grafana)
• Experience building CI/CD pipelines and working with IaC tools (Terraform)
• Experience building information security–focused products or applying secure coding practices
• Experience with Kotlin, Go, or Python in production environments
• Experience mentoring team members or leading technical initiatives

Compensation :

• Salary: $225,000
• Competitive Equity Package
• Comprehensive Benefits Plan

#LI-LF1 #LI-REMOTE

Dragos is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, orientation, national origin, age, disability, genetics, or any other basis forbidden under federal, state, or local laws. All new hires must pass a background check as a condition of employment.