Database software Jobs in Chicago, IL

Position Summary

The Principal Software Engineer is a senior technical leader responsible for setting the technical vision, standards, and strategy for an entire division or for providing deep expertise in a specialized discipline. This role operates above the scope of individual teams or business units, ensuring architectural alignment, advancing innovation, and addressing complex, cross-cutting technical challenges. Principal Engineers act as trusted advisors to business and technical leadership, driving solutions that scale across the division while mentoring the next generation of technical leaders.

Key Responsibilities

Division-Level Technical Leadership

• Define and champion architectural standards, frameworks, and technical strategies for the division, ensuring coherence across multiple business units.

• Provide thought leadership on complex, large-scale systems and solve problems that span multiple domains or disciplines.

• Partner with Staff Engineers to guide business-unit initiatives and ensure alignment with division-wide goals.

• Anticipate future challenges and guide the organization toward long-term, sustainable solutions.

Strategic Collaboration

• Serve as a technical advisor to executive leadership, influencing business priorities and ensuring technical strategy aligns with organizational objectives.

• Facilitate collaboration across business units to address shared challenges, promote innovation, and maximize reuse of patterns and solutions.

• Drive technical consensus across diverse stakeholders, balancing trade-offs to deliver outcomes that benefit the division and the broader organization.

Mentorship & Thought Leadership

• Mentor Staff Engineers, Lead Engineers, and other senior technical talent to grow organizational technical capability.

• Set the tone for technical culture across the division, emphasizing excellence, innovation, and accountability.

• Foster a culture of learning and continuous improvement through knowledge sharing, modeling best practices, and elevating engineering standards.

Execution & Impact

• Lead the technical design of transformative, division-wide initiatives that require integration across multiple systems, platforms, or business units.

• Provide oversight for critical systems, ensuring they meet standards of reliability, scalability, security, and maintainability.

• Guide root cause analysis of high-impact issues and ensure systemic improvements that prevent recurrence.

• Measure success through long-term division-wide impact, including scalability, cost efficiency, and innovation.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

• 12+ years of experience in software engineering, with a minimum of 6+ years in a technical leadership role.

• Extensive experience designing and scaling complex, mission-critical software systems across multiple domains.

• Proven track record of influencing and setting technical direction at the organizational or divisional level.

• Strong ability to balance short-term delivery needs with long-term strategic goals.

• Exceptional communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to influence senior leadership and align diverse stakeholders.

• Demonstrated expertise in mentoring senior engineers and shaping organizational technical culture.

• Deep knowledge of software engineering principles, system architecture, and operational excellence, independent of specific technologies.

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an associate to successfully perform the major job responsibilities (essential functions) of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the major job responsibilities. This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications associated with the job.

• Use Hands to Handle Objects - Regularly
• Reach with Hands or Arms - Regularly
• Talk or Hear and Read Instructions - Regularly
• Stand, Kneel, or Stoop and Lift 20 Pounds - Occasionally
• View Items at a Close Range - Regularly

Rarely: Job requires this activity up to 25% of the time
Occasionally: Job requires this activity between 25% - 50% of the time
Frequently: Job requires this activity between 50% - 75% of the time
Constantly: Job requires this activity more than 75% of the time

Individual Competencies

• Authenticity: Departmental oversight including goal setting, budget management, and results.
• Innovative: Arrives at decision using analytical thought.
• Urgency: Expertise in their discipline and understands these concepts in other disciplines.
• Accountability: Entire organization.
• Communication: Contributes to strategy for their team.
• Problem Solving: Completes routine and repetitive tasks where tasks are straightforward.
• Collaboration: Creates internal alliances outside the immediate team or department.
• Teamwork: Advanced communication skills used to lead a team.

As an Inmar Associate, you:

• Put clients first and consistently display a positive attitude and behaviors that demonstrate an awareness and willingness to listen and respond to clients in order to meet their short-term and long-term needs, requirements and exceed their expectations.
• Treat clients and teammates with courtesy, consideration and tact; you also have the ability to perceive the needs of internal and external clients and communicate effectively with the objective of delighting and retaining the client.
• Build collaborative relationships and work cooperatively with others, inside and outside the organization, to accomplish objectives, develop and maintain mutually beneficial partnerships, leverage information and achieve results.
• Set and attain achievable, yet aggressive, goals with a sense of urgency and accountability.
• Understand that results are important and focus on turning mission into action to achieve results following the principles of Flawless Execution while consistently complying with quality, service and productivity standards to meet deadlines and exceed expectations by giving our clients the best possible outcome.
• Support a safe work environment by following safety rules and regulations and reporting all safety hazards.

At Inmar, we put people first and that means empowering our associates to thrive at every stage of life and career. Our comprehensive and competitive benefits package is thoughtfully designed to support a wide range of lifestyles and life stages.

Eligible associates have access to:

• Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance

• Basic and Supplemental Life Insurance options

• 401(k) retirement plans with company match

• Health Spending Accounts (HSA/FSA)

We also offer:

• Flexible time off and 11 paid holidays

• Family-building benefits, including Maternity, Adoption, and Parental Leave

• Tuition Reimbursement and certification support, reflecting our commitment to lifelong learning

• Wellness and Mental Health counseling services

• Concierge and work/life support resources

• Adoption Assistance Reimbursement

• Perks and discount programs

Please note that eligibility for some benefits may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be governed by specific plan or program terms.

At Inmar, compensation reflects our belief in integrity, transparency, and the value of individual contributions. The hiring range for this position is:

164,254.50 - 273,757.50 USD Annual

The final offer may vary based on factors such as geographic location, job-related skills, education, certifications, work experience, and other relevant considerations.

Depending on the job level and role, it may include:

• Annual discretionary bonuses through our Core Company Performance Bonus Plan

• Equity grants, sign-on bonuses, and other tailored incentive opportunities

• Additional discretionary compensation, such as:

  • Growing Revenue Incentives

  • Corporate or VIP Bonuses

  • Deferred compensation opportunities

The actual annualized salary offered at the time of hire will be communicated in the candidate’s offer letter. We remain committed to fairness and transparency across all locations. Where required, including for remote-eligible roles, local pay ranges are disclosed in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/vets.

This position is not eligible for student visa sponsorship, including F-1 OPT or CPT. Candidates must have authorization to work in the U.S. without the need for employer sponsorship now or in the future.