[Hiring] Principal Software Engineer I / II - Query Engine, Database Internals - Elasticsearch @Elastic

Role Description

We're looking for a Principal Software Engineer to join the Elasticsearch - Analytical Engine team. This expert team of engineers is responsible for building new analytics capabilities in Elasticsearch’s completely new compute engine, accessed via our new piped query language called ES|QL. This is a principal software engineering role that entails using your vast knowledge in this space to define, direct, and build the next generation of ES|QL capabilities. This role includes providing technical vision and direction for the customer/user interfaces and for the underlying language syntax and compute infrastructure. This role requires related past technical experience in addition to the ability to work cross-organization.

Our company is distributed by intention. We hire the best engineers we can find wherever they are, whoever they are. We collaborate across continents every day over email, GitHub, Zoom, and Slack. At our best, we write fast, scalable, and intuitive software. We believe that the best way to do that is to empower individual engineers, code review every change, decide big things by consensus, and strive for incremental improvements.

What You Will Be Doing

• Define, lead, and contribute to the development of data-intensive enhancements.
• Research the latest features, data structures, and algorithms in the industry to ensure we’re building the right capabilities for our users.
• Work directly with our partners and product teams to understand their needs and build out a strategic vision for the longer term.
• Bring your past experience in analytics systems to help build and drive an innovative roadmap for ES|QL and the compute engine.
• Serve as an authority in several areas of Elasticsearch, providing guidance to others.
• Collaborate closely with other user experience teams and teams closer to the customer.
• Write idiomatic modern Java — Elasticsearch is 99.8% Java!

Qualifications

• Experience leading technical projects in the data and enterprise architecture areas.
• Proven knowledge in building and running sophisticated technical infrastructures and engineering sound software systems.
• Experience mentoring expert engineers, providing technical and professional guidance.
• Experience defining a long-term technical vision for an area of a data-intensive application.
• Hands-on experience with search and analytics APIs (e.g., Splunk SPL, Elasticsearch, Datadog, Dynatrace, New Relic).
• Strong skills in core Java and familiarity with data structures and concurrency constructs.
• Ability to work with a high level of autonomy, guiding projects from beginning to end.
• Experience with data storage technologies like Elasticsearch, Solr, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, or Cassandra.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Bonus Points

• Experience building things with Elasticsearch and understanding the constructs and theory behind search and information retrieval.
• Experience working with open source projects and familiarity with different styles of source control workflow and continuous integration.

Compensation

Compensation for this role is in the form of base salary. This role does not have a variable compensation component. The typical starting salary range for new hires in this role is:

• $199,700 — $315,900 USD
• In select locations (including Seattle WA, Los Angeles CA, the San Francisco Bay Area CA, and the New York City Metro Area), an alternate range may apply:
• $239,800 — $379,300 USD

Benefits

• Competitive pay based on the work you do here and not your previous salary.
• Health coverage for you and your family in many locations.
• Ability to craft your calendar with flexible locations and schedules for many roles.
• Generous number of vacation days each year.
• We match up to $2000 (or local currency equivalent) for financial donations and service.
• Up to 40 hours each year to use toward volunteer projects you love.
• Minimum of 16 weeks of parental leave.

Company Description

Elastic is committed to creating an inclusive culture that celebrates different perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds. We welcome individuals with disabilities and strive to create an accessible and inclusive experience for all individuals.