Opportunity at
ElasticPrincipal Software Engineer I - CI/CD - Platform Engineering Productivity
Elastic's Platform Engineering Productivity group runs the company's continuous integration, delivery and release infrastructure so engineers can ship changes quickly and safely at scale. The team…
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About This Role
Elastic's Platform Engineering Productivity group runs the company's continuous integration, delivery and release infrastructure so engineers can ship changes quickly and safely at scale. The team also works to protect the software supply chain as AI transforms the landscape. This on-site post suits a systems thinker who delivers business-driven projects while spotting infrastructure hazards early. The principal engineer sets the CI/CD roadmap and technical vision, from defining problems through company-wide…
Job Description
Elastic's Platform Engineering Productivity group runs the company's continuous integration, delivery and release infrastructure so engineers can ship changes quickly and safely at scale. The team also works to protect the software supply chain as AI transforms the landscape. This on-site post suits a systems thinker who delivers business-driven projects while spotting infrastructure hazards early.
The principal engineer sets the CI/CD roadmap and technical vision, from defining problems through company-wide adoption. Responsibilities include finding bottlenecks, friction and security exposure, then leading the fix. The role designs and enforces release gates for supply chain integrity, artifact origin and release readiness without slowing delivery. It also steers engineers through multi-quarter projects by structuring architecture, dividing work and owning outcomes even when execution spans teams.
Acting as incident commander for serious supply chain or release events, the principal engineer uses each one to drive structural change. Additional work includes writing crisp documentation of systems, processes and architecture decisions, raising standards through code review, mentorship and design critique, and staying hands-on by reviewing code, prototyping approaches and debugging production problems.
Responsibilities
- Set the CI/CD roadmap and vision, from problem identification to organization-wide adoption
- Spot bottlenecks, friction and security risk in CI/CD and drive their remediation
- Create and apply release gates that check supply chain soundness, artifact origin and release preparedness
- Guide engineers through multi-quarter projects, including architecture, task allocation and results
- Act as incident commander for serious supply chain or release incidents
- Write clear documentation of systems, processes and architectural choices
- Raise the engineering bar via code review, mentoring and design review
Requirements
- Deep CI/CD expertise, including hardening release pipelines against supply chain threats
- Strong debugging across the full pipeline, from test runner through artifact storage to cluster deployment
- Practical experience with CI tools such as Buildkite or GitHub Actions, GitOps with ArgoCD and Kubernetes
- Uses AI to accelerate personal and team work and understands what it changes for supply-chain safety and growth
- Track record of multi-quarter leadership across organizations, including influencing teams outside one's reporting chain
- Willingness to challenge a flawed plan and build agreement around a better one
- Experience guiding engineers to results by breaking complex problems into executable tasks
Core Skills
Benefits
- 401(k) with dollar-for-dollar employer match up to 6 percent of eligible pay
- Access to the stock program
- Health coverage in many locations for employees and families
- Options for flexible hours and location across many jobs
- Generous vacation allowance
- Donation and service matching up to $2,000 (or local equivalent)
- Up to 40 volunteer hours a year
- At least 16 weeks of parental leave
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers are based only on the employer’s listing; where it doesn’t say, neither do we.
Is the role on-site?
Yes, the listing says on-site in the United States.
What is the salary?
Typical US starting base is $159,800 to $252,800 USD, or $191,900 to $303,500 USD in listed select metro areas.
Which tools are named?
Buildkite or GitHub Actions for CI, GitOps with ArgoCD, and Kubernetes.
Is a degree requirement listed?
No degree requirement is listed.
Sample Interview Questions
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