Principal Software Engineer

Salary: £32,000 - 72,000 per year

Requirements:

• We require 10+ years of professional software engineering experience with a strong hands-on track record.
• We require deep expertise in Java and modern application frameworks.
• We require strong experience with Azure cloud services and cloud-native application development.
• We require solid understanding and practical application of Test-Driven Development (TDD), spec-driven/contract-first development, and CI/CD and DevOps practices.
• We require working knowledge of cloud databases, data modeling, and performance tuning.
• We require proven ability to lead by influence rather than authority.
• We require excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• We require strong problem-solving, design, and decision-making abilities.
• We require comfort operating in fast-paced, evolving environments.
• We strongly prefer Microsoft Azure Architect Certification.
• We value experience integrating or enabling AI-assisted engineering tools within development workflows.
• We value exposure to large-scale modernization, cloud migration, or distributed systems.
• We value experience working in regulated or enterprise-grade environments.
• We value experience in Capital Markets or Asset Servicing.

Responsibilities:

• We act as a hands-on technical leader, designing, developing, and reviewing high-quality, production-ready software.
• We lead development using Java as the primary language, following clean code, TDD, and spec-driven development principles.
• We drive adoption of AI-assisted development capabilities to improve developer productivity and code quality.
• We influence and review application and solution architecture for scalability, security, performance, and maintainability.
• We partner with architects and senior engineers to define and enforce engineering standards and best practices.
• We design, build, and deploy applications on Microsoft Azure using cloud-native services.
• We lead cloud architecture decisions across Azure compute, networking, storage, security, and cloud-based databases.
• We support and continuously improve DevOps pipelines, CI/CD practices, and infrastructure automation.
• We enable resilient, observable, and cost-efficient systems in the cloud.
• We champion TDD and automated testing across unit, integration, and system levels.
• We enable and evolve test automation frameworks and practices across teams.
• We collaborate with DevOps and SRE partners to improve release reliability, deployment frequency, monitoring, alerting, and production readiness.
• We mentor and develop engineers to elevate technical skills, design thinking, and ownership.
• We provide guidance through code reviews, design discussions, and technical deep dives.
• We foster a culture of high engineering standards, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• We act as a trusted technical advisor to product, QA, and platform teams.
• We work closely with cross-functional stakeholders including Product, Architecture, QA, and Operations.
• We communicate complex technical concepts clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
• We collaborate effectively with globally distributed teams across North America, EMEA, and India.
• We proactively identify risks and propose pragmatic solutions.

Technologies:

• AI
• Architect
• Azure
• CI/CD
• Cloud
• DevOps
• Support
• Java
• Security
• TDD
• Copilot
• NoSQL
• SQL

More:

We are Northern Trust, a global leader in wealth management, asset servicing, asset management, and banking services, serving sophisticated clients worldwide since 1889. We offer a flexible and collaborative work culture, strong financial strength and stability, and an inclusive environment where movement within the organization is encouraged and senior leaders are accessible. We also provide a comprehensive benefits package including retirement benefits, health and welfare benefits, paid time off, parental and caregiver leave, life and accident insurance, voluntary and well-being benefits, and a discretionary bonus program that may include equity. This full-time role is based in Chicago, IL or London, United Kingdom, and requires U.S. work authorization without current or future employment-based visa sponsorship.

last updated 34 week of 2026