Principal Software Engineer - Platform Runtime

Employment Type: Full-time Location Type: Remote Salary: $217,500 - $380,700 (plus equity, variable/incentive compensation, and benefits)

Company Description

ServiceNow, founded in San Diego, California in 2004 by Fred Luddy, is a global market leader transforming how work is done. We provide innovative AI-enhanced technology to over 8,100 customers, including 85% of the Fortune 500®. Our intelligent cloud-based platform connects people, systems, and processes, enabling organizations to work smarter, faster, and better. We are committed to our purpose: to make the world work better for everyone.

Position Overview

As a Principal Software Engineer on our Platform Runtime team, you will be instrumental in driving the evolution of our high-performance JVM runtime. This role offers the opportunity to push boundaries with profile-guided optimizations and ensure a rock-solid, reliable platform. You will own critical initiatives, collaborate with Platform Architects and Product Management to define the future of our scalable platform, and make a global impact on one of the company's most important projects. You will shape innovation in a fast-paced environment and partner with cross-functional teams to deliver cutting-edge platform features.

Responsibilities

• Participate in all technical aspects of team deliverables, including quality, performance, maintainability, and scalability.
• Communicate technical decisions (architecture and design) to business and engineering stakeholders.

Qualifications

To be successful in this role, you should have:

• AI Integration Experience: Experience leveraging or critically thinking about how to integrate AI into work processes, decision-making, or problem-solving. This may include using AI-powered tools (e.g., Windsurf, Cursor), automating workflows, analyzing AI-driven insights, or exploring AI's potential impact on the function or industry.
• Passion for Software Development: A strong passion for software development, problem-solving, coaching, and mentoring other software engineers.
• Java Expertise: Expert-level understanding of Java, object-oriented design, and best practices for modular software.
• Web Technologies: Deep experience with web technologies, scalable backend application development, and protocols.
• Project Management: Proven track record of successfully completing complex projects on time.
• Troubleshooting: Skilled in troubleshooting difficult production issues across the stack (concurrency, memory leaks, network problems).
• OpenJDK Contributions: Significant contributions to OpenJDK are highly valued.
• Learning Aptitude: High energy and an aptitude for learning new technologies.
• Experience: 10+ years of experience in designing & implementing user experience and server-side application frameworks.
• JavaScript Skills: Exceptional Java and JavaScript skills.
• Framework Knowledge: Deep knowledge and experience with declarative meta-data driven frameworks for enterprise applications.
• Web Standards: Deep knowledge of AJAX, JSON, HTML, XML, CSS, REST, and associated technologies.
• UI Testing: Knowledge of web user interface unit testing, profiling, and code tuning.
• Problem-Solving: Exceptional problem-solving skills.
• Initiative: Self-starter with a quick learning curve.
• Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Compensation and Benefits

For positions in this location, we offer a base pay of $217,500 - $380,700, plus equity (when applicable), variable/incentive compensation, and benefits. Sales positions generally offer a competitive On Target Earnings (OTE) incentive compensation structure.

Please note that the base pay shown is a guideline, and individual total compensation will vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, competencies, and work location.

We also offer:

• Health plans, including flexible spending accounts
• A 401(k) Plan with company match
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
• Matching donations
• A flexible time away plan
• Family leave programs

Compensation is based on the geographic location in which the role is located and is subject to change based on work location.

Additional Information

Work Personas: We approach our distributed world of work with flexibility and trust. Work personas (flexible, remote) are part of our approach.