Principal Software Engineer

Principal Software Engineer

We're looking for a Principal Software Engineer to join our team in Auckland. As a hands-on Principal Software Engineer, you'll shape the design and architecture of Lightspeed Retail's core systems, powering thousands of merchants worldwide. You'll lead by example, building innovative solutions that solve real customer problems while elevating engineering excellence across the organisation through mentorship, best practices, and sustainable architecture.

The ideal candidate for this role is passionate about software development and driven by a customer-first mindset. You thrive in a team environment, supporting and mentoring others while taking ownership of complex features and exploring new technologies.

What You'll Be Doing:

• Ensure systems built to support new initiatives are thoughtfully designed, scalable, and maintainable
• Analyse existing systems and infrastructure to identify opportunities for architectural improvements, reduce duplication, and enhance system performance and robustness
• Recognise recurring patterns that lead to incidents or non-project overhead and develop actionable plans to address and prevent them
• Drive continuous improvements in system reliability, scalability, and overall performance
• Elevate development practices across the team, from design reviews and testing to deployment and incident management
• Conduct architectural deep-dives and provide mentorship to key engineers across all service teams
• As a senior member of the engineering team, contribute to building and sustaining a high-performance, growth-oriented culture within the Retail organisation

And a little bit of…

• Contributing as part of the wider team to achieve organisational-wide objectives even if this means doing things that aren't strictly within the scope of your role

What You Need To Bring:

We're looking for a candidate who has experience with the following:

• Extensive professional experience in software development
• Proven experience providing technical leadership across multiple teams
• Previous experience managing architecture for large-scale systems spanning engineering teams
• Proven track record in developing and scaling business-critical systems in the cloud
• Hands-on experience with multiple technology stacks, such as Go, PHP, Java, Ruby on Rails, and Python
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to clearly convey complex ideas
• Strong facilitation and decision-making skills, with the ability to guide technical discussions, balance diverse viewpoints, and make sound, timely calls

We know that people are more than what's on their CV. If you're unsure that you have the right profile for the role... hit the 'Apply' button and give it a try!

What's In It For You?

Come live the Lightspeed experience...

• Ability to do your job in a truly flexible environment;
• Genuine career opportunities in a company that's creating new jobs everyday;
• Work in a team big enough for growth but lean enough to make a real impact.

... and enjoy a range of benefits that'll keep you happy, healthy and (not) hungry:

• Lightspeed share scheme (we are all owners)
• Unlimited paid time off policy
• Work remotely from anywhere in the world for up to 60 days per year
• Flexible working policy
• Health and wellness benefit of $500 per year
• Mental health online platform and counselling & coaching services
• Paid leave and assistance for new parents
• Paid Volunteer day
• Premium cover if you sign up for health insurance with Southern Cross
• Exciting events hosted regularly by our Auckland Culture Club
• Subsidised public transportation to cover up to 75% of your commuting costs
• Secure, full-time parking facilities
• Dog-friendly office environment
• Enjoy complimentary breakfast and lunch options, along with fresh fruits, snacks, and beverages stocked in the office
• Newly renovated office space situated in Newmarket (Auckland)

Please note that we ask applicants to disclose any criminal convictions, and we conduct criminal record checks as part of our hiring process for this role.

To all recruitment agencies: Lightspeed does not accept unsolicited agency resumes. If we have not directly engaged your company in writing to supply candidates for a specific vacancy, Lightspeed will not be responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

Lightspeed is a proud equal opportunity employer and we are committed to creating an inclusive and barrier-free workplace. Lightspeed welcomes and encourages applications from people with disabilities. Accommodations are available on request for candidates taking part in all aspects of the selection process.

Where To From Here?

Obviously, this has to be mutually beneficial: we want you to step into a role you love, and we want to offer you a place you're proud to come to every day. For a glimpse into our world check out our career page here.

Lightspeed is building communities through commerce, and we need people from all backgrounds and lived experiences to do that. We were founded in 2005, in Montreal's gay village and our original members were all part of the LGBTQ+ community. The ethos of our business has been about inclusion from the very beginning, and we strive to provide a workplace where everyone belongs.

Who We Are:

Powering the businesses that are the backbone of the global economy, Lightspeed's one-stop commerce platform helps merchants innovate to simplify, scale, and provide exceptional customer experiences. Our cloud commerce solution transforms and unifies online and physical operations, multichannel sales, expansion to new locations, global payments, financial solutions, and connection to supplier networks.

Founded in Montréal, Canada in 2005, Lightspeed is dual-listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: LSPD) and Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: LSPD). With teams across North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, the company serves retail, hospitality, and golf businesses in over 100 countries.

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