Principal Software Engineer

Cirium is transforming the way the world understands aviation data. 

Our Data Platform team builds and maintains the foundational systems that power Cirium’s products, enabling customers to make smarter decisions with trusted, scalable, and timely data.  

About Role:  

We are seeking a Principal Software Engineer to join our Southamptonbased team. This is a high impact, visible role where you will shape the technical direction of our modern data platform, collaborating across teams to deliver innovative solutions that drive value for our customers and the aviation industry.  

Responsibilities  
As a Principal Software Engineer, you will:  

• Lead and influence the design and delivery of scalable, resilient data platform services.  
• Be the acknowledged technical authority and primary contact for complex coding, architectural, and technical issues—internally and with external partners.  
• Mentor and coach engineers, fostering a culture of psychological safety, inclusion, and continuous learning.  
• Champion best practices in software engineering, including code reviews, test-driven development, and modern development methodologies.  
• Collaborate with Architects, Product Owners, and business stakeholders to align technical solutions with strategic objectives.  
• Stay ahead of technology trends (including GenAI), bringing innovative ideas into the business and encouraging curiosity and experimentation.  
• Model accountability, ownership, and a growth mindset - learning from both successes and setbacks.  

Requirements

• Extensive years of software engineering experience, with a BS in Engineering or Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience. We welcome applicants with diverse educational and career journeys.  
• Proven expertise in data platforms, distributed systems, and data pipelines in cloud-native environments.  
• Practical understanding of AWS, Terraform, and Python (or equivalent technologies).  
• Strong experience with SRE practices, observability, incident response, and automation.  
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to present complex ideas to technical and non-technical audiences, including executives and customers.  
• Experience mentoring and developing engineering talent, and a passion for building inclusive, high-performing teams.  
• Strategic thinker with a customer-centric mindset, able to balance technical excellence with business outcomes.  

Working for you:  
We know that your wellbeing and happiness are key to a long and successful career. These are some of the benefits we are delighted to offer:  

• Generous holiday allowance with the option to buy additional days  
• Health screening, eye care vouchers and private medical benefits  
• Wellbeing programs  
• Life assurance  
• Access to a competitive contributory pension scheme  
• Save As You Earn share option scheme  
• Travel Season ticket loan  
• Electric Vehicle Scheme  
• Optional Dental Insurance  
• Maternity, paternity and shared parental leave  
• Employee Assistance Programme  
• Access to emergency care for both the elderly and children
• RECARES days, giving you time to support the charities and causes that matter to you  
• Access to employee resource groups with dedicated time to volunteer  
• Access to extensive learning and development resources  
• Access to employee discounts scheme via Perks at Work