Staff Software Engineer, Identity & Access Management
Staff Software Engineer · Staff · Full Time
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Role
What you'll do.
Snowflake is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to join their Identity & Access Management team, focusing on building critical AI security capabilities and authentication/authorization systems for the Data Cloud platform. This role requires 10+ years of distributed systems experience and deep IAM knowledge to design scalable security solutions for millions of users and objects.
Responsibilities
- AI Security Architecture: Design and implement critical AI security capabilities for controlled, audited, restricted agent workflows, both inbound and outbound
- IAM Feature Development: Design and implement features that provide critical identity and access management capabilities, including integration with next generation identity providers and authentication protocols
- Authorization Framework Design: Build authorization frameworks to provide fine grained access control, scaling to seamlessly manage millions of objects and users
- Data Sharing Solutions: Design and develop solutions for seamless and secure data sharing, access to applications running in Snowflake, and access via external applications
- Cross-Team Project Leadership: Lead and deliver multi-engineer cross-team projects, including managing low-level project planning and execution
- Technical Mentorship: Actively guide the team and partners via high-quality code and design reviews
- Strategic Product Direction: Play a critical role in shaping the strategic direction for your product focus area
- Partner Team Collaboration: Collaborate, influence and guide partner teams on IAM-related features and architecture
- Quality Standards Leadership: Showcase and hold a high bar for quality, speed, and sound technical decisions
Qualifications
What we look for.
Technical
Distributed Systems Experience
10+ years of industry experience designing, building, and supporting large-scale distributed systems in production
Cloud Services Expertise
Recent experience in building large scale cloud services and infrastructure
IAM Domain Knowledge
Deep knowledge and experience with one or more areas of identity and access management such as authentication, authorization
Security Protocols
Knowledge of industry standard security concepts and protocols like SAML, SCIM, OAuth, OIDC, Federation and RBAC
Database Systems
Experience with database systems and database internals, such as query engines and optimizers
Computer Science Fundamentals
Extremely strong fundamental computer science skills
Education
Advanced Degree
Advanced degree in Computer Science or related field required
Experience
Senior Engineering Experience
10+ years of industry experience in software engineering roles
Production Systems
Proven track record of building and supporting large-scale systems in production environments
Programming Language Proficiency
Strong development skills in Java, C# or C++ preferred
Skills
Required
Java/C#/C++
Strong development skills in one or more of these programming languages
Distributed Systems
10+ years experience with large-scale distributed systems design and implementation
Identity & Access Management
Deep knowledge of authentication, authorization, and security protocols
Cloud Architecture
Experience building large-scale cloud services and infrastructure
Database Systems
Understanding of database internals, query engines, and optimizers
Computer Science Fundamentals
Strong algorithmic thinking and system design capabilities
Preferred
Security Protocols
Nice to haveKnowledge of SAML, SCIM, OAuth, OIDC, Federation and RBAC standards
AI Security
Nice to haveExperience with AI agent security, MCP servers, and controlled AI workflows
Multi-Factor Authentication
Nice to haveImplementation experience with MFA systems and identity providers
Database Optimization
Nice to haveAdvanced knowledge of query optimization and database performance tuning
Cross-Team Leadership
Nice to haveExperience leading multi-engineer projects across different teams
Tech stack
Languages
Frameworks
Databases
Tools
Other
Compensation
Pay and benefits.
Base·USD 236,000 – 339,200
Equity·Stock options
Benefits
Equity Compensation
Stock options and equity participation in Snowflake's growth
Comprehensive Health Benefits
Full health insurance coverage including medical, dental, and vision
Professional Development
Ample opportunities for growth and mentorship from Principal engineers
Collaborative Culture
Work in a highly collaborative team environment focused on impact and innovation
Career Advancement
Opportunities to shape strategic direction and lead cross-functional initiatives
Process
Interview steps.
- 01
Initial Screening
Phone or video call with recruiting team to discuss background and role fit
- 02
Technical Phone Screen
45-60 minute technical discussion covering distributed systems design and IAM concepts
- 03
System Design Interview
Design a large-scale identity and access management system with focus on scalability and security
- 04
Coding Interview
Live coding session in Java/C#/C++ focusing on algorithms and data structures
- 05
IAM Deep Dive
Technical discussion on authentication protocols, authorization frameworks, and security best practices
- 06
Leadership Interview
Behavioral interview focusing on cross-team collaboration, project leadership, and mentorship experience
- 07
Final Interview
Meet with senior engineering leadership to discuss strategic thinking and cultural fit
Full posting
Original listing.
Snowflake is about empowering enterprises to achieve their full potential — and people too. With a culture that’s all in on impact, innovation, and collaboration, Snowflake is the sweet spot for building big, moving fast, and taking technology — and careers — to the next level.
There is only one Data Cloud. Snowflake’s founders started from scratch and designed a data platform built for the cloud that is effective, affordable, and accessible to all data users. But it didn’t stop there. They engineered Snowflake to power the Data Cloud, where thousands of organizations unlock the value of their data with near-unlimited scale, concurrency, and performance. Easily analyze your unstructured data, build data agents and create ML workflows using a comprehensive suite of AI services, all within the same secure and governed environment as your data. This is our vision: a world with endless insights to tackle the challenges and opportunities of today and reveal the possibilities of tomorrow.
The identity & access management (IAM) team’s charter is to enable our customers to confidently bring their most sensitive data and workloads to Snowflake. We provide the authentication and authorization capabilities for customers to secure their Snowflake accounts. We are heavily focused on critical AI adoption and security capabilities like Snowflake Intelligence access control, MCP server and clients, Agent identity, Admin guardrails for agents etc. Our feature set includes capabilities like user management, secret-less authentication for both human and service users, SSO integration with numerous IdPs, MFA, OAuth and OIDC support for 3P applications, and RBAC for granular access control. Our systems are critical to customer trust and maintaining Snowflake’s security, reliability and performance. The team culture is very collaborative with ample opportunities for growth and mentorship from Principal engineers.
AS A STAFF SOFTWARE ENGINEER - IDENTITY & ACCESS MANAGEMENT, YOU WILL:
Design and implement critical AI security capabilities for controlled, audited, restricted agent workflows, both inbound and outbound.
Design and implement features that provide critical identity and access management capabilities, including integration with the next generation identity providers and authentication protocols.
Build authorization frameworks to provide fine grained access control, which can scale to seamlessly managing millions of objects and users.
Design and develop solutions for seamless and secure data sharing, access to applications running in snowflake, and access via external applications
Lead and deliver multi-engineer x-team projects, including managing low-level project planning and execution
Actively guide the team and partners via high-quality code and design reviews
Play a critical role in shaping the strategic direction for your product focus area
Collaborate, influence and guide partner teams on IAM-related features and architecture
Showcase and hold a high bar for quality, speed, and sound technical decisions
AS A STAFF SOFTWARE ENGINEER - IDENTITY & ACCESS MANAGEMENT, YOU HAVE:
10+ years of industry experience designing, building, and supporting large-scale distributed systems in production, with recent experience in building large scale cloud services.
Deep knowledge and experience with one or more areas of identity and access management such as authentication, authorization, etc. Knowledge of industry standard security concepts and protocols like SAML, SCIM, OAuth, OIDC, Federation and RBAC is a plus.
Experience with database systems and database internals, such as query engines and optimizers are a big plus.
Extremely strong fundamental computer science skills.
Strong development skills in Java, C# or C++ preferred.
Advanced degree in Computer Science or related field.
Snowflake is growing fast, and we’re scaling our team to help enable and accelerate our growth. We are looking for people who share our values, challenge ordinary thinking, and push the pace of innovation while building a future for themselves and Snowflake.
How do you want to make your impact?
For jobs located in the United States, please visit the job posting on the Snowflake Careers Site for salary and benefits information: careers.snowflake.com
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