Principal Software Engineer I - Metadata

Snowflake3 days ago

Location

US-CA-Menlo Park

Type

Full Time

Salary

USD 264,000 – 379,500

Level

Principal

Role

Principal Software Engineer

Posted

Mar 23, 2026

Full TimePrincipal

The role

Summary

Snowflake is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join their Metadata team, responsible for developing critical distributed systems that power Snowflake's data management capabilities. The ideal candidate will design scalable solutions for metadata systems, transaction frameworks, and global features like cross-region replication and data sharing.

What you'll do

Distributed Systems Design: Design, develop, and support fault-tolerant scalable distributed systems for Snowgrid and Data Sharing teams

Architecture and Innovation: Create technical architecture, influence product roadmap, and take ownership of new projects

System Optimization: Analyze and resolve fault-tolerance, high availability, performance, and scale challenges

Engineering Mentorship: Mentor and grow junior engineers, supporting team development and knowledge transfer

Strategic Solution Development: Balance trade-offs between consistency, performance, and costs to build scalable solutions

Operational Excellence: Ensure operational readiness of services and meet customer commitments for durability, availability, and performance

What we look for

Technical

Distributed SystemsExtensive experience designing, building, and supporting large-scale distributed services

Computer Science FundamentalsStrong understanding of data structures, algorithms, and distributed systems principles

Operating Systems ExpertiseDeep knowledge of multi-threading, memory management, networking, storage, performance, and scaling

Education

Computer Science DegreeBS in Computer Science required; Masters or PhD preferred

Experience

Industry ExperienceMinimum 15+ years of industry experience in software engineering

Skills

Required skills

JavaFluency in Java or similar procedural object-oriented programming language

Problem SolvingTrack record of identifying and implementing creative solutions to complex technical challenges

Cross-Team CollaborationAbility to work effectively across engineering teams in multiple locations

Nice to have

Advanced DegreeMasters or PhD in Computer Science or related field

Distributed ComputingAdvanced experience with cloud-native distributed computing architectures

Compensation & benefits

Salary

USD 264,000 – 379,500 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Innovative Work Environment

Opportunity to build an industry-leading Cloud Data and AI Platform

Technical Challenge

Work on complex problems in security, distributed systems, resource management, and large-scale system maintenance

Professional Growth

Join a world-class team of industry veterans and emerging talent

Interview process

1
Initial Screening — Resume and background review by hiring team
2
Technical Phone Interview — Detailed discussion of technical experience and distributed systems expertise
3
On-site Technical Interviews — Multiple rounds of in-depth technical interviews covering system design, problem-solving, and architectural skills
4
Leadership and Cultural Fit Interview — Assessment of mentorship capabilities, cross-team collaboration, and alignment with Snowflake's engineering values