Principal Software Engineer II - Metadata

Snowflake4 months ago

Location

US-WA-Bellevue

Type

Full Time

Salary

USD 304,000 – 437,000

Level

Principal

Role

Principal Software Engineer

Posted

Nov 5, 2025

Full TimePrincipal

The role

Summary

Snowflake is seeking a Principal Software Engineer II to lead the development of next-generation metadata systems that power petabyte-scale data operations. The role focuses on designing fault-tolerant distributed systems for metadata management, transaction frameworks, and foundational capabilities like cross-region replication and data sharing. Requires 15+ years of experience in distributed systems, deep database internals knowledge, and expertise in Java or similar object-oriented languages.

What you'll do

System Architecture: Design, develop and support fault-tolerant scalable distributed systems for Metadata management

Product Strategy: Create and own architecture and design, influence product roadmap, and identify new projects for customer technology advancement

Problem Solving: Solve real business needs at large scale by applying software engineering and analytical problem solving skills

Performance Optimization: Analyze fault-tolerance and high availability issues, performance and scale challenges, and implement solutions

Team Leadership: Mentor and grow junior engineers while working effectively across engineering teams in multiple locations

System Trade-offs: Understand trade-offs between consistency, performance and costs to build solutions meeting demands of rapidly growing services

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

What we look for

Technical

Distributed Systems15+ years of industry experience designing, building and supporting large scale distributed services

Database InternalsDeep and broad expertise in database systems internals including metadata management, clustering, compaction, catalogs, storage and replication

Computer Science FundamentalsStrong fundamentals including data structures, algorithms, and distributed systems

Systems InfrastructureExcellent understanding of multi-threading, memory management, networking and storage, performance, reliability and scalability

Programming LanguagesFluency in Java or other similar procedural object-oriented language

Cloud Scale SolutionsTrack record of identifying and implementing creative solutions to complex problems at cloud scale

Education

Bachelor's DegreeBS in Computer Science required

Advanced DegreeAdvanced degree preferred for deeper technical expertise

Experience

Senior Engineering Experience15+ years of industry experience in distributed systems

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

Technical LeadershipExperience mentoring and growing junior engineers

Skills

Required skills

Java ProgrammingFluency in Java or similar object-oriented programming languages

Distributed Systems15+ years experience with large-scale distributed services design and implementation

Database SystemsDeep expertise in database internals, metadata management, clustering, compaction, catalogs

Systems ProgrammingMulti-threading, memory management, networking, storage, performance optimization

Computer Science FundamentalsStrong foundation in data structures, algorithms, and distributed systems

Nice to have

Apache IcebergExperience with open table format for huge analytic datasets

Cloud PlatformsExperience with cloud-native distributed system development and deployment

Advanced DegreeAdvanced degree in Computer Science or related field

Leadership ExperienceTrack record of technical leadership and mentoring junior engineers

Compensation & benefits

Salary

USD 304,000 – 437,000 (annual)

Benefits

Professional Growth

Opportunity to build industry-leading Cloud Data and AI Platform with world-class team

Technical Challenges

Work on challenging problems related to security, parallel and distributed systems, programming, resource management

Customer Interaction

Work closely with customers and partners to understand use cases and drive strategic innovation

Career Development

Join world-class team of industry veterans and rising stars for accelerated career growth

Interview process

1
Initial Screening — Phone or video screen to discuss background and interest in the role
2
Technical Assessment — Deep dive into distributed systems design and database internals knowledge
3
System Design Interview — Architecture discussion focusing on metadata systems and scalability challenges
4
Leadership Interview — Discussion of technical leadership experience and mentoring approach
5
Team Fit Interview — Cultural fit assessment and collaboration across multiple engineering teams
6
Final Interview — Senior leadership interview to discuss strategic impact and long-term vision