Principal Software Engineer — Real-Time Inventory Platform

Nordstrom Inc; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 191,000 - 297,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical/Vision

Retirement

Paid Time Off

Merchandise Discount

Job summary

Nordstrom, a leading fashion retailer, seeks a Principal Software Engineer to join Inventory Technology. You will set technical direction for a 150+ engineering org, architect complex systems, and design event‑driven microservices powering real‑time inventory across stores and warehouses.

You will mentor engineers, drive secure development practices, and apply agentic AI capabilities to optimize inventory workflows, with hands‑on POCs and cross‑team collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s in computer science, computer engineering, or related field.
• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience.
• Proficiency in Java and Python.
• Hands‑on experience with AWS and/or GCP.
• Hands‑on experience with agentic AI systems; AWS Bedrock exposure a plus.
• Experience with Agile methodologies and continuous improvement mindset.
• DevOps experience; track record of improving MTTR and reducing failures.
• Strong CI/CD experience (GitLab) and containerization (Docker/Kubernetes).
• Ability to architect scalable services with enterprise‑grade security.
• Mentoring and coaching of engineers; strong problem solving at scale.

Responsibilities

• Set technical direction for a 150+ engineering org on how designs are built and shipped.
• Architect and develop complex, scalable systems meeting SLA and KPI standards.
• Design and evolve event‑driven, microservices architectures with streaming platforms.
• Collaborate with senior leaders to recommend solutions and articulate trade‑offs.
• Provide domain technical authority across Inventory Technology and adjacent teams.
• Lead engineers across multiple teams, guiding software design and development.
• Diagnose and remedy performance or security issues.
• Mentor senior engineers and help attract top talent; stay hands‑on with POCs.

Skills

Java

Python

Agentic AI

Agile

Security best practices

Technical leadership

System architecture

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s in CS/CE

Tools

AWS

GCP

GitLab

Docker

Kubernetes

Kafka

Bedrock

Job description

Nordstrom, a leading fashion retailer, seeks a Principal Software Engineer to join Inventory Technology. You will set technical direction for a 150+ engineering org, architect complex systems, and design event‑driven microservices powering real‑time inventory across stores and warehouses.

You will mentor engineers, drive secure development practices, and apply agentic AI capabilities to optimize inventory workflows, with hands‑on POCs and cross‑team collaboration.