Principal, Software Engineering

Location: Chicago, IL

About Northern Trust

As a global leader in innovative wealth management, asset servicing, asset management and banking services, Northern Trust (Nasdaq: NTRS) is proud to guide the world’s most successful individuals, families, corporations and institutions.

Since 1889, we have aligned our efforts with our three guiding Principles That Endure: Service, Expertise, and Integrity. Together, they reflect the three cornerstones of business conduct which we strive to instill in our employees, whom we call partners, and to provide to our clients and the communities we serve worldwide.

With more than 135 years of financial experience and over 24,000 partners, we serve the world’s most sophisticated clients using leading technology and exceptional service.

We are seeking a highly experienced Principal Software Engineer to provide technical leadership and hands‑on execution across complex, cloud‑native software initiatives. This role combines deep engineering expertise with mentorship, architecture influence, and strong collaboration across global teams. The ideal candidate is passionate about engineering excellence, AI‑assisted development, and building high‑quality, scalable products using modern development practices.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Hands‑On Development

• Act as a hands‑on technical leader, designing, developing, and reviewing high‑quality, production‑ready software.
• Lead development using Java as the primary language, following clean code, TDD, and spec‑driven development principles.
• Drive adoption of AI‑assisted development capabilities (e.g., Copilot‑style tools, intelligent automation) to improve developer productivity and code quality.
• Influence and review application and solution architecture for scalability, security, performance, and maintainability.
• Partner with architects and senior engineers to define and enforce engineering standards and best practices.

Cloud & Platform Engineering

• Design, build, and deploy applications on Microsoft Azure, leveraging cloud‑native services.
• Contribute to cloud architecture decisions with a strong understanding of:
• Azure compute, networking, storage, and security
• Cloud‑based databases (SQL & NoSQL) and performance considerations
• Support and continuously improve DevOps pipelines, CI/CD practices, and infrastructure automation.
• Enable resilient, observable, and cost‑efficient systems in the cloud.

Quality, DevOps & Automation

Champion Test‑Driven Development (TDD) and automated testing at all levels (unit, integration, system).

Enable and evolve test automation frameworks and practices across teams.

Closely collaborate with DevOps and SRE partners to

• Improve release reliability and deployment frequency
• Reduce operational risk and technical debt
• Strengthen monitoring, alerting, and production readiness

Engineering Excellence & Team Enablement

• Mentor and groom engineers to elevate technical skills, design thinking, and ownership mindset.
• Provide guidance through code reviews, design discussions, and technical deep dives.
• Foster a culture of high engineering standards, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Act as a trusted technical advisor to product, QA, and platform teams.

Collaboration & Communication

• Work closely with cross‑functional stakeholders including Product, Architecture, QA, and Operations.
• Communicate complex technical concepts clearly to both technical and non‑technical audiences.
• Collaborate effectively with globally distributed teams across North America, EMEA, and India, accommodating time‑zone overlaps when required.
• Proactively identify risks and propose pragmatic solutions.

Required Qualifications

Technical Skills

• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience, with a strong hands‑on track record.
• Deep expertise in Java and modern application frameworks.
• Strong experience with Azure cloud services and cloud‑native application development.

Solid understanding and practical application of

Test‑Driven Development (TDD)

• Spec‑driven / contract‑first development
• CI/CD and DevOps practices
• Working knowledge of cloud databases, data modeling, and performance tuning.

Professional Skills

• Proven ability to lead by influence rather than authority.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong problem‑solving, design, and decision‑making abilities.
• Comfortable operating in fast‑paced, evolving environments.

Preferred / Added Weightage

• Microsoft Azure Architect Certification (strongly preferred).
• Experience integrating or enabling AI‑assisted engineering tools within development workflows.
• Exposure to large‑scale modernization, cloud migration, or distributed systems.
• Experience working in regulated or enterprise‑grade environments.
• What Success Looks Like in This Role
• Engineering teams consistently deliver high‑quality, secure, and scalable products.
• Robust DevOps and automation practices reduce friction and improve time‑to‑market.
• Engineers grow in capability, confidence, and ownership.
• Architecture decisions balance innovation, stability, and long‑term maintainability.
• Global collaboration is effective, respectful, and outcome‑driven.

Salary Range

$137,400 - 233,600 USD

Salary range is a good faith estimate of base pay. Northern Trust provides a comprehensive benefits package including retirement benefits (401k and pension), health and welfare benefits (medical, dental, vision, spending accounts and disability), paid time off, parental and caregiver leave, life & accident insurance, and other voluntary and well-being benefits. Northern Trust also provides a discretionary bonus program that may include an equity component.

Work Authorization

Applicants must be authorized to work in the U.S. without the need for employment-based visa sponsorship now or in the future. Northern Trust will not sponsor applicants for U.S. work visa status for this opportunity (no sponsorship is available for H-1B, L-1, TN, O-1, E-3, H-1B1, F-1, J-1, OPT, CPT or any other employment-based visa).

Working with Us

As a Northern Trust partner, you will be part of a flexible and collaborative work culture, which has a strong history of financial strength and stability. Movement within the organization is encouraged, senior leaders are accessible, and you can take pride in working for a company committed to an inclusive workplace and assisting the communities we serve.

Philanthropy is deeply rooted in Northern Trust’s history and is an essential element of our culture. Employees around the world give their time and talent to work for the greater good of their communities.

Reasonable Accommodation

Northern Trust is committed to working with and providing adjustments to individuals with health conditions and disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process, please email our HR Service Center at [email protected], or alternatively you can discuss your individual requirements with the recruiter you are working with.