Senior Principal Software Engineer

Shutterfly; Durham (NC); Remote; USD 150,000 - 230,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus incentive

Health benefits

401K program

Job summary

Spoonflower (part of the Shutterfly family) is evolving its ecommerce platform toward a modern, service‑oriented architecture for a global, made‑to‑order retail environment. We are hiring a Senior Principal Software Engineer to drive the design and evolution of core backend systems powering our commerce experience.

You will own backend services, lead GraphQL federation work, and coordinate Shopify integrations within a cross‑functional team to scale our platform and improve reliability across

Qualifications

• 8+ years in backend or platform engineering.
• Experience building distributed systems and APIs at scale.
• Deep proficiency in GraphQL design and federation.
• Experience with Shopify or similar ecommerce platforms.
• Strong Node.js/TypeScript experience.

Responsibilities

• Own backend services and APIs powering commerce workflows.
• Lead architecture and implementation of GraphQL services on Apollo Federation.
• Build and improve Shopify integrations (Storefront Admin APIs, webhooks, orders).
• Reconcile Shopify inventory/SKU with made-to-order fulfillment.
• Define data models, service boundaries, and integration points.
• Collaborate with frontend, product, and platform teams for simpler integration.
• Diagnose distributed-system and runtime failures, including federation transport.
• Own production systems: operability, observability, incident response.
• Provide design reviews, mentoring, and engineering standards.
• Influence roadmap with clear tradeoffs and business impact.

Skills

Backend engineering

Distributed systems

GraphQL design

Shopify / ecommerce

Node.js / TypeScript

Production fault diagnosis

Observability / incident response

Independent ownership

Communication on tradeoffs

Tools

Apollo Federation

Shopify integrations

Kubernetes

Terraform

OpenSearch

Next.js

React

Job description

At Spoonflower (part of the Shutterfly family of brands) our mission is to empower your vision by helping you discover the perfect design for you and your print on wallpaper, fabric, or home decor. Spoonflower connects independent artists worldwide who create designs with consumers, makers, and interior designers looking for unique designs and products that are right for their projects.

Spoonflower is evolving its eCommerce platform into a modern, service-oriented architecture supporting a global, made-to-order retail environment. We are hiring a Senior Principal Software Engineer to drive the design and evolution of core backend systems powering our commerce experience. This role reports directly to the Director of Engineering and is for a deeply technical engineer who takes hands‑on ownership of major platform areas while partnering closely with other engineers and teams. You will be a key contributor to scaling our platform through Shopify integrations, GraphQL federation, and service-based systems.

What You’ll Do Here

• Own the design and evolution of core backend services and APIs supporting commerce workflows
• Lead architecture and implementation of GraphQL services on our Apollo Federation supergraph
• Build and improve Shopify integrations (Storefront API, Admin API, webhooks, order lifecycle) as part of a cross‑team effort
• Reconcile Shopify's inventory‑and‑SKU commerce model with our made‑to‑order, print‑on‑demand fulfillment flow, where the order lifecycle is the hard problem
• Define and improve service boundaries, data models, and integration points across systems
• Partner with frontend, product, and platform teams to simplify how teams build and integrate
• Diagnose and resolve deep distributed‑systems and runtime‑level failures, including federation transport behavior, connection‑pool issues, and event‑loop performance under load
• Own production systems, including operability, observability, and incident response
• Act as a technical reference point through design reviews, mentoring, and setting engineering standards
• Influence roadmap decisions by providing clear tradeoffs grounded in business and system impact

The Skills You’ll Bring

• 8+ years of experience in backend or platform engineering
• Strong experience building and operating distributed systems and APIs at scale
• Deep proficiency in GraphQL design and implementation, including federated/supergraph architectures
• Experience with Shopify or similar eCommerce platforms
• Strong experience with Node.js / TypeScript
• Track record of diagnosing hard production failures down to the runtime or transport level, not just restarting services
• Demonstrated ownership of systems in production (performance, uptime, reliability)
• Ability to operate independently and drive ambiguous, high‑impact work to completion
• Strong communication skills around tradeoffs and system design decisions

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands‑on experience with Apollo Federation supergraph architectures
• Experience with headless commerce architectures
• Familiarity with AWS event‑driven messaging (SNS/SQS)
• Experience with OpenSearch or similar search/retrieval systems
• Experience operating services on Kubernetes with Terraform‑managed infrastructure
• Experience integrating third‑party commerce platforms at scale
• Exposure to frontend systems (Next.js / React) for API collaboration

Supporting a diverse and inclusive workforce is important to Shutterfly not only because it directly reflects our value of Embracing our Differences, but also because it’s the right thing to do for our business and for our people. We welcome all applicants and evaluate them based on their qualifications. Learn more about our commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion on our Career Site.

This position will accept applications on an ongoing basis until filled.

The compensation package for this role is based on multiple factors, such as job level, responsibilities, location, and candidate experience. The base pay ranges included below are specific to the locations listed, and may not be applicable to other locations.

California : [$159,750-225,500]

Connecticut and New York: [$159,750-206,250]

Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and Washington: [$159,750-191,000]

Nevada: [$150,000-206,250]

Maryland and New Jersey: [$172,500-206,250]

Hawaii : [$150,000-179,500]

This position may be eligible for a bonus incentive, health benefits, a 401K program, and other employee perks. More details about our company benefits can be found at https://shutterflyinc.com/benefits/.

This opportunity can be remote, but candidates must reside in a state in which Shutterfly is registered to do business. This includes all US states except District of Columbia, North Dakota, Mississippi, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Wyoming.

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