Senior Principal Software Engineer

This position is a remote role based in the United States, with preference given to candidates in the metro areas of Phoenix, AZ; Dallas, TX; and/or Charlotte, NC.

About the role

We are seeking a Senior Principal Software Engineer to lead the design and development of next-generation Agentic AI platforms and applications that power personalization, lifecycle engagement, and customer journeys across Shutterfly. This is a high-impact, hands-on technical leadership role responsible for shaping the architecture, design, and implementation of AI systems that directly drive conversion, customer satisfaction, and long-term growth.

Responsibilities

• Own and Build Agentic AI Platforms
  • Architect and build scalable agentic AI systems that power seamless experiences for customers to drive conversion and delight.
  • Develop multi-agent systems that reason, plan, and take actions across tools and services.
  • Build autonomous agents operating across end-to-end customer journeys.
  • Create reusable platforms, not one-off solutions.
  • Enable multiple teams to innovate independently.
• Drive End-to-End Technical Strategy
  • Define platform abstractions and reusable capabilities that enable teams to build and deploy AI-powered experiences independently.
  • Contribute to, define, and lead architecture for AI platforms integrated into Shutterfly.
  • Build foundational capabilities including:
    • Evaluation frameworks for AI quality, safety, and business impact.
    • Scalable inference and orchestration infrastructure.
  • Ensure systems are highly available, performant, and production-grade at scale.
• Be Deeply Hands-On
  • Maintain deep hands-on involvement in prototyping, architecture, and critical production systems, setting the standard for engineering excellence.
  • Leverage modern AI tooling (LLMs, agents, vector databases, orchestration frameworks).
  • Set the standard for AI-driven engineering productivity and development practices.
  • Lead by example in coding, design reviews, and system debugging.
• Deliver Measurable Business Impact
  • Define and track AI-specific success metrics, including model quality, latency, cost efficiency, and business KPIs.
  • Partner with Product, UX, and Data teams to translate AI capabilities into:
    • Increased conversion and revenue.
    • Improved customer experience and engagement.
    • Faster time-to-market for new capabilities.
  • Drive experimentation (A/B testing) and ensure AI systems deliver quantifiable outcomes.
• Lead Across the Organization
  • Influence architecture and execution across multiple teams and domains:
    • Ecommerce platform (shopping, cart, checkout).
    • Creation flows and personalization systems.
    • Marketing technology and lifecycle platforms.
  • Mentor senior engineers and leaders; raise the bar on AI and system design excellence.
  • Champion adoption of agentic AI and AI-first development practices across engineering.

What Success Looks Like

• Agentic AI systems measurably improve conversion, AOV, and engagement.
• AI capabilities are deeply embedded across customer journeys.
• Teams adopt AI-first development practices at scale.
• Platform enables rapid experimentation and innovation across the organization.

Requirements

• Basic Qualifications
  • Bachelor’s degree in an Engineering discipline or Computer Science.
  • 12+ years of software engineering experience with deep expertise in distributed systems.
  • Proven track record of architecting and delivering large-scale, high-impact systems.
  • Experience influencing and leading cross-organizational technical strategy.
  • Strong hands-on coding and system design skills.
  • Experience operating large-scale, highly available cloud systems.
  • Demonstrated ability to translate advanced technology into business impact.
• Preferred Qualifications
  • Master’s degree in an Engineering discipline or Computer Science.
  • Experience building 0→1 AI platforms or products in ambiguous, fast-moving environments.
  • Experience building AI/ML systems, especially with:
    • LLMs, agent frameworks, and retrieval systems.
    • Multi-agent architectures and orchestration.
  • Experience in consumer-facing products or ecommerce platforms.

Pay

The compensation package for this role is based on multiple factors, such as job level, responsibilities, location, and candidate experience. The base pay ranges included below are specific to the listed locations:

• California: $159,750–225,500
• Connecticut and New York: $159,750–206,250
• Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, and Washington: $159,750–191,000
• Nevada: $150,000–206,250
• Maryland and New Jersey: $172,500–206,250
• Hawaii: $150,000–179,500

Benefits

This position may be eligible for a bonus incentive, health benefits, a 401K program, and other employee perks. More details about our company benefits can be found at https://shutterflyinc.com/benefits/.