Staff Software Engineer, Google Cloud Compute, Performance

About the role

Google's software engineers develop the next-generation technologies that change how billions of users connect, explore, and interact with information and one another. Our products need to handle information at massive scale, and extend well beyond web search. We're looking for engineers who bring fresh ideas from all areas, including information retrieval, distributed computing, large-scale system design, networking and data storage, security, artificial intelligence, natural language processing, UI design and mobile; the list goes on and is growing every day.

Responsibilities

• Partner with Product Management and cross-functional engineering teams to define the roadmap for GCE’s next-generation VM offerings, translating high-level business goals into concrete technical execution plans.
• Design, architect, and develop scalable technical solutions that optimize VM performance, push the boundaries of hardware efficiency, and maximize infrastructure utilization.
• Lead complex, multi-functional initiatives across hardware, kernel, virtualization, and product teams to drive critical GCE performance initiatives from conception to production.
• Analyze, benchmark, and optimize massive-scale workloads for GCE’s most critical, high-profile customers to ensure performance exceeds expectations and unlocks business value.
• Shape the technical culture of the broader organization by mentoring junior and senior engineers, conducting design reviews, and establishing engineering best practices for performance analysis.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 8 years of experience programming in C++.
• 5 years of experience building and developing large-scale infrastructure, distributed systems or networks, or experience with compute technologies, storage, or hardware architecture.
• Experience with CPU/memory architectures (e.g., x86, ARM) and modern server hardware performance characteristics.
• Experience as an architect or technical lead for multi-year infrastructure initiatives from conception to global deployment.
• Experience in one or more of the following domains: OS kernels, hypervisors/virtualization stacks (e.g., KVM, Xen), high-performance networking drivers, storage stacks.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree or PhD in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field.
• 8 years of experience with data structures and algorithms.
• 3 years of experience in a technical leadership role leading project teams and setting technical direction.
• Experience collaborating directly with principal engineers at strategic enterprise client organizations to root-cause and resolve complex, large-scale system performance bottlenecks.
• Understanding of hardware/software boundaries, including performance profiling tools, microarchitectural optimization, and hardware acceleration techniques.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and drive technical alignment across distinct organizational boundaries, including Product Management, Hardware Engineering, and foundational Software teams.

Skills

• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
• Experience with cloud computing and virtual machine management.
• Knowledge of virtualization technologies and hardware architectures.
• Experience with performance tuning and optimization.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.

Benefits

Retirement Benefits: 401(k) with company match
Paid Time Off: 20 days of vacation per year, accruing at a rate of 6.15 hours per pay period for the first five years of employment
Sick Time: 40 hours/year (increased to 69 hours/year for Seattle) including 5 discretionary sick days per instance
Maternity Leave (Short-Term Disability + Baby Bonding): 28-30 weeks
Baby Bonding Leave: 18 weeks
Holidays: 13 paid days per year

Pay

US: $207000 - $300000 (USD) + 20% bonus target + equity + benefits

Schedule

Full-time