Senior Principal Engineer, Platform Engineering

PTC; San Mateo (CA); Hybrid; USD 164,000 - 226,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

ESPP program

Equity participation

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k) with employer match

Commuter subsidy

Job summary

PTC in San Mateo, CA is seeking a Senior Principal Engineer for the Arena PLM platform. The role combines hands-on technical leadership with shaping architecture and guiding multi-team initiatives in a cloud-native environment.

You will mentor engineers, partner with product and engineering leadership, and drive modernization to improve scalability, reliability, and developer productivity. This position offers a hybrid schedule and strong career growth opportunities.

Qualifications

• Ability to commute to San Mateo office 3 days a week.
• Experience building and operating large-scale enterprise SaaS platforms.
• Expert-level software engineering skills in Java and modern backend architectures.
• Strong background in distributed systems, system design, APIs, scalability, security, and reliability.
• Proven track record leading architecture and technical strategy across multiple teams.

Responsibilities

• Define and influence architecture across Arena SaaS platform.
• Lead large-scale, complex initiatives spanning multiple engineering teams.
• Solve challenges in distributed systems, scale, security, and platform evolution.
• Drive modernization and improve engineering productivity through platform capabilities.
• Mentor senior engineers and technical leaders.
• Partner with Engineering and Product leadership to turn business goals into scalable technical solutions.
• Evaluate emerging technologies, including AI-enabled capabilities.

Skills

Java

Distributed systems

System design

Leadership

Mentoring

Communication

Tools

Kubernetes

Spring Boot

Spring Security

GitHub Actions

AI tools

Job description

Our world is transforming, and PTC is leading the way.Our software brings the physical and digital worlds together, enabling companies to improve operations, create better products, and empower people in all aspects of their business. Our people make all the difference in our success. Today, we are a global team of nearly 7,000 and our main objective is to create opportunities for our team members to explore, learn, and grow – all while seeing their ideas come to life and celebrating the differences that make us who we are and the work we do possible.

Senior Principal Engineer - Platform Arena PLM | A PTC Business, San Mateo, CA – Hybrid (3 days a week). Build the platform powering the world's most innovative products.

Arena is the leading cloud-native Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and Quality Management System (QMS) platform used by high-tech manufacturers and medical device companies to bring complex products to market faster while meeting demanding quality and regulatory requirements. Arena helps customers manage the product information, processes, and collaboration required to design, launch, and sustain products that impact millions of people worldwide.

Why This Role Matters

As a Senior Principal Engineer, you will help define the future architecture of the Arena platform. You'll lead the most complex technical initiatives across the organization, influence platform strategy, drive modernization efforts, and guide the adoption of technologies that improve scalability, reliability, security, developer productivity, and customer outcomes. This is a highly influential hands‑on technical leadership role where you will shape both long‑term vision and critical implementation decisions.

What You’ll Do

• Define and influence architecture across key areas of the Arena SaaS platform.
• Lead large‑scale, complex initiatives spanning multiple engineering teams.
• Solve challenging problems involving distributed systems, scale, reliability, security, and platform evolution.
• Drive modernization efforts and improve engineering productivity through better platform capabilities and development practices.
• Mentor senior engineers and technical leaders.
• Partner closely with Engineering and Product leadership to turn business goals into scalable technical solutions.
• Evaluate emerging technologies, including AI‑enabled engineering and product capabilities, where they create meaningful value.

Required Qualifications

• Ability to commute to the San Mateo office 3 days a week.
• Deep experience building and operating large-scale enterprise SaaS platforms.
• Expert‑level software engineering skills, particularly in Java and modern backend architectures.
• Strong background in distributed systems, system design, APIs, scalability, security, and reliability.
• Proven track record leading architecture and technical strategy across multiple teams.
• Ability to influence organizational direction through technical leadership rather than formal authority.
• Excellent communication, mentoring, and decision‑making skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Spring Boot and Spring Security
• Kubernetes and cloud‑native architectures
• Public cloud environments
• GitHub, GitHub Actions, and AI‑assisted development tools
• Scala and/or Python
• Experience with PLM, QMS, manufacturing software, or regulated industries
• Experience with AI‑enabled applications, LLMs, RAG, or intelligent workflow systems

Why Join Arena?

Influence the technical future of a market‑leading cloud platform. Solve challenging engineering problems that directly impact global manufacturers and medical device companies. Work alongside highly talented engineers in a collaborative, innovation‑focused culture. Help shape the next generation of cloud, platform, and AI‑enabled capabilities for one of the industry's leading PLM and QMS solutions.

This position is not eligible for employment‑based immigration sponsorship.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without requiring current or future sponsorship from PTC.

Compensation

The anticipated annual salary range for this position is between $164,000 - 226,000.

Additionally, candidates may be eligible for a performance‑based bonus.

Benefits

• Employees also have the opportunity to become a PTC shareholder through our employee share purchase program (ESPP), which allows for the purchase of discounted PTC stock.
• Certain roles may also be eligible for participation in our equity programs.
• Employees may be eligible for medical, dental and vision insurance, paid time off and sick leave, tuition reimbursement, 401(k) contributions and employer match, flexible spending accounts, life insurance, disability coverage and, if you are an office‑assigned employee, a generous commuter subsidy.
• All total rewards and benefits programs are subject to applicable plan eligibility and other terms and conditions.
• For more information about PTC’s comprehensive benefits, please visit our Careers Page.
• For more information about PTC’s comprehensive benefits and our AI usage, please visit our Careers Page (https://www.ptc.com/en/careers/united-states-careers).

Equal Opportunity and Diversity

At PTC, we believe in the power of diverse ideas and perspectives. As a global company that values and respects all identities, cultures, and perspectives, we strive to create an inclusive PTC for ALL through an environment where everyone feels like they belong and are empowered to bring their true, authentic selves to work.

Proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, we welcome applicants from all backgrounds and hire without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, ethnicity, ancestry, marital status, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.

Other Information

If you share our passion for problem‑solving through innovation, you’ll likely become just as passionate about the PTC experience as we are.

If you would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process, please contact PTC's Talent Acquisition team at [e-mail]. This contact information is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications.

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Life at PTC is about more than working with today’s most cutting‑edge technologies to transform the physical world. It’s about showing up as you are and working alongside some of today’s most talented industry leaders to transform the world around you. If you share our passion for problem‑solving through innovation, you’ll likely become just as passionate about the PTC experience as we are.

PTC is a global software company powering how products are designed, built, serviced, and operated across industries like Aerospace & Defense, Industrial, Automotive, MedTech, Electronics, and High Tech. We are bold thinkers who collaborate as one team to deliver meaningful customer outcomes. Grounded in our values‑Customers Matter, PTC for All, Team PTC, Purposeful Innovation, and Be Bold, we're shaping a smarter, more sustainable, connected future.