Principal Software Engineer / Architect (Scale a Rails App from 7M to 35M+ users) (Denver)

Hiring: Principal Software Engineer / Architect (Scale a Rails App from 7M to 35M+ users)

A LITTLE ABOUT THE ROLE

I am helping one of my favorite clients hire a Principal Software Engineer / Architect as they scale a Rails App from 7M to 35M+ users. The person they hire will be a KEY contributor to lead the architecture of their very successful application. This is an EXTREMELY high‑impact position focused on modernizing a monolithic Ruby on Rails architecture to support 5x growth (scaling from 7M to 35M+ users). This is a technical visionary role for a force multiplier who will spend 30‑40% of their time writing code for critical‑path migrations and proofs‑of‑concept, while simultaneously setting the 2‑5 year architectural roadmap. The core mission is to decompose overgrown domain models and redesign data architectures to eliminate performance bottlenecks and technical debt without causing downtime for their 25,000 active clients with millions of end users.

REQUIREMENTS

• Must have worked closely with at least 2 iterations of a mega‑scale product transforming or merging (i.e., rearchitecting a large‑scale monolith to something with millions of users).
• Must be an expert in System Design (APIs, event‑driven patterns, service boundaries).
• Must be an expert in decomposing overgrown domain models with Postgres technical debt.
• Must be AI‑native, utilizing agentic workflows (Python, Go, Elixir experience valued) to accelerate output.
• Must be able to take on responsibility for architectural health & shape a roadmap at scale.
• Must possess the ability to lead and define the technical path forward where no pre‑determined plan exists.
• Need to be willing to get your hands dirty: This is a hands‑on position, with someone who has owned this type of initiative before as a Principal, Staff, or Lead level.

LOCATION

This role is based in Denver HQ, and the expectation of work is HYBRID, 3 days a week.

COMPENSATION

The salary range for this position is between $170K - $200K.

NOTE

NOTE: This client is unable to offer sponsorship or visa transfers at this time. If you are interested and qualified after reviewing all of the requirements carefully, please submit your resume via LinkedIn and do not send any further personal messages. Personal messages are now being disregarded.

NEXT STEPS

If you feel that your background and goals align with this role, please drop your resume here. If there is synergy, we will reach out ASAP.