[Hiring] Principal Technical Writer I - Core Docs - Documentation @Elastic

Role Description

We are seeking a Principal Technical Writer to join a team dedicated to documenting our most sophisticated platform features. You will act as a lead contributor and collaborator, bridging the gap between core engineering teams and our global community of users and developers building powerful, data-driven applications. You will help lead the strategic narrative for how the world adopts and implements our technology, and you will actively shape the workflows, patterns, and culture that make the entire team more effective.

We value diverse paths into technical writing. Whether you have come from engineering, customer support, professional services, or the field, what matters most is that you can make complex technology understandable for the people who need to use it. If you have been writing runbooks, knowledge base articles, implementation guides, or onboarding content as part of a support or consulting role, we want to hear from you.

Does this sound like the job for you? Check out our docs, tinker with our products, and think about where you fit in. Show us your writing chops and tell us what you can bring to the role. Upload writing samples, or provide links to your portfolio or GitHub contributions.

What You Will Be Doing

• Lead through influence across the documentation organization.
• Own content for complex technical areas, establishing content patterns and quality standards that other writers adopt.
• Champion AI-augmented documentation practices.
• Drive the architecture of complex, multi-layered technical content.
• Set the quality benchmark for the team through deep engagement with the product.
• Shape multi-functional alignment by working closely with Engineering, Product Marketing, and Support.

What You Bring

• 7+ years in a SaaS or developer-focused environment.
• Practical AI tool fluency with strong editorial judgement.
• Advanced technical acuity to quickly grasp and document complex topics.
• Technical fluency in reading Java, JSON, and similar code.
• A Docs-as-Code approach with proficiency in Git, Markdown, and modern documentation tooling.
• Strong information architecture skills with a principled approach to organizing content.
• Collaborative leadership in a distributed environment.
• Deep customer empathy and a practitioner's instinct to documentation.
• Thrives in ambiguity at a strategic level.
• Embrace new and emerging tooling to improve accuracy and efficiency.

Bonus Points

• Experience with Elasticsearch or similar data and search technologies.
• Experience contributing to open source projects.
• Comfortable working on the command line and writing basic scripts to automate tasks.

Compensation

The typical starting salary range for this role is:

• $128,200 — $202,900 USD
• $153,800 — $243,300 USD in select locations.

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.