Role: Principal Engineer – Database Platform
Location :Sheffield ( 3 Days from office)
Job Description :
We are seeking an experienced Principal Engineer with strong expertise in database technologies, complemented by solid engineering capabilities. This is a senior leadership role responsible for driving technical strategy, architectural decisions, and engineering excellence across database platforms.
The role involves working closely with cross-functional teams to design, build, and scale robust, secure, and highly available database solutions aligned with business and technology objectives.
Key Responsibilities
* Define and maintain long-term strategy for database infrastructure aligned with overall IT and business goals
* Act as a subject matter expert on database technologies, advising senior stakeholders and engineering teams
* Collaborate with product owners, architects, and stakeholders to define technical requirements and specifications
* Co-lead the design, architecture, and implementation of shared database solutions (DBaaS / PaaS)
* Evaluate industry trends, emerging technologies, and engineering practices to recommend improvements
* Support platform leadership in identifying and addressing engineering gaps and challenges
* Drive development of cross-functional capabilities to solve common engineering problems
* Serve as a key decision-maker for technical and risk-related engineering matters
* Improve engineering processes by reducing handoffs and increasing automation
Required Skills & Experience
* Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related discipline
* 10+ years of engineering experience, including at least 5 years in senior or principal roles
* Strong expertise in database technologies (relational, NoSQL, distributed SQL), deployed on IaaS or as part of DBaaS
* Deep understanding of database infrastructure capabilities and consumer use cases
* Experience with infrastructure components, performance tuning, and capacity planning
* Hands-on experience with microservices, software development, infrastructure automation, API development, and basic system design
* Strong knowledge of Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) and DevOps practices (CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, code scanning)
* Experience with Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
* Solid understanding of testing practices and associated tools
* Proven track record of delivering large-scale enterprise projects
Leadership & Stakeholder Management
* Strong technical leadership with the ability to mentor and influence engineering teams
* Experience working in global, matrixed environments
* Ability to collaborate with engineers, architects, and business stakeholders to shape platform direction
* Comfortable interacting with senior stakeholders and providing technical guidance
* Strong communication skills to translate complex technical concepts for diverse audiences
* Experience evaluating multiple technology options to determine best-fit solutions
Additional Expectations
* Deep understanding of engineering principles and architecture
* Ability to lead complex initiatives and drive alignment across teams
* Strong collaboration with stakeholders to align technical decisions with organizational goals
* Ability to clearly communicate technical strategy to both technical and non-technical audiences