Level

Wells Fargo

Principal Engineer

AI in this role

Drive cloud-native infrastructure architecture, platform engineering, and modern distributed systems as a Principal Engineer.

kubernetesopenshiftkafkaflinkf5akamai
prompt-engineeringcloud-architectureplatform-engineeringsystem-designnetwork-securitydistributed-systems

About this role

Wells Fargo is seeking a Principal Engineer within the Digital Infrastructure Services organization to lead the design, engineering, and architecture of modern, cloud-native infrastructure across hybrid, public cloud, and on-prem environments.

This role focuses on platform engineering, Kubernetes/OpenShift, cloud connectivity, security, automation, and traffic management. You will drive highly scalable, resilient, and secure solutions that support application and infrastructure modernization and data center transformation.

In this role, you will:

  • Provide vision, direction, and expertise to leadership in implementing innovative and impactful business solutions
  • Strategically engage with professionals and leaders across the enterprise, serving as a trusted technical advisor
  • Develop and maintain architecture artifacts, including reference architectures, white papers, product strategies, and roadmaps
  • Lead the architecture and engineering of cloud networking and connectivity, including VPC design, segmentation, routing, and hybrid connectivity
  • Design and implement enterprise-grade traffic management solutions, including AVI, F5, Global Traffic Manager, and Akamai security integrations
  • Partner with engineering and product teams to support cloud migration and modernization programs, ensuring secure and compliant connectivity patterns
  • Lead troubleshooting and resolution of complex, cross-domain infrastructure issues, influencing enterprise-wide solutions
  • Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineers, establishing best practices, standards, and architectural patterns

Required Qualifications:

  • 7+ years of engineering experience, or equivalent demonstrated through a combination of work experience, training, military experience, or education
  • 5+ years of hands-on experience with cloud-native platforms and architectures, including containerization, distributed systems, and scalable deployment models
  • 5+ years of experience in database design and data architecture, including relational and/or NoSQL systems, data modeling, and high-throughput data access patterns
  • 5+ years of experience in system design and architecture for high-scale applications, including performance optimization, fault tolerance, and resiliency
  • 3+ years of experience with distributed streaming and event-driven architectures, using technologies such as Kafka, Flink, or similar real-time data processing frameworks
  • 3+ years of experience working with security, data privacy, and governance considerations, especially in regulated enterprise environments
  • 2+ years of experience designing and implementing enterprise-grade automation solutions using tools such as Ansible, Harness CD, GitHub Actions, and Playwright

Desired Qualifications:

  • Experience supporting high-volume, mission-critical applications serving millions of users daily
  • Knowledge of API security, OAuth, authentication and authorization platforms, and reverse proxy or gateway patterns
  • Experience with conversational platforms, chatbots, or virtual assistants at enterprise scale
  • Experience with API gateway and edge platforms such as ApigeeX, Akamai, or similar solutions
  • Strong understanding of network, compute, and storage domains
  • Cloud certifications in AWS, GCP, Azure, or Generative AI
  • Familiarity with AI/ML infrastructure or platform engineering concepts, including prompt engineering, vector databases, and orchestration tools
  • Ability to operate effectively in highly matrixed organizations and influence without direct authority

    What sets you apart:

    • Ability to operate as a strategic technical advisor and influence architecture across multiple teams and domains
    • Strong collaboration across platform, application, security, and infrastructure teams
    • Experience driving enterprise-scale transformation initiatives and establishing long-term architecture direction

    Pay Range
     


    Reflected is the base pay range offered for this position. Pay may vary depending on factors including but not limited to demonstrated examples of prior performance, skills, experience, or work location. Employees may also be eligible for incentive opportunities.
$191,000.00 - $305,000.00

    Benefits

    Wells Fargo provides eligible employees with a comprehensive set of benefits, many of which are listed below. Visit Benefits - Wells Fargo Jobs for an overview of the following benefit plans and programs offered to employees.

    • Health benefits
    • 401(k) Plan
    • Paid time off
    • Disability benefits
    • Life insurance, critical illness insurance, and accident insurance
    • Parental leave
    • Critical caregiving leave
    • Discounts and savings
    • Commuter benefits
    • Tuition reimbursement
    • Scholarships for dependent children
    • Adoption reimbursement

    Posting End Date:

    1 Oct 2026

    *Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

    We Value Equal Opportunity

    Wells Fargo is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected characteristic.

    Employees support our focus on building strong customer relationships balanced with a strong risk mitigating and compliance-driven culture which firmly establishes those disciplines as critical to the success of our customers and company. They are accountable for execution of all applicable risk programs (Credit, Market, Financial Crimes, Operational, Regulatory Compliance), which includes effectively following and adhering to applicable Wells Fargo policies and procedures, appropriately fulfilling risk and compliance obligations, timely and effective escalation and remediation of issues, and making sound risk decisions. There is emphasis on proactive monitoring, governance, risk identification and escalation, as well as making sound risk decisions commensurate with the business unit’s risk appetite and all risk and compliance program requirements.

    Applicants with Disabilities

    To request a medical accommodation during the application or interview process, visit Disability Inclusion at Wells Fargo.

    Drug and Alcohol Policy

     

    Wells Fargo maintains a drug free workplace.  Please see our Drug and Alcohol Policy to learn more.

    Wells Fargo Recruitment and Hiring Requirements:

    a. Third-Party recordings are prohibited unless authorized by Wells Fargo.

    b. Wells Fargo requires you to directly represent your own experiences during the recruiting and hiring process.

    How we rate this

    Principal Engineer at Wells Fargo rates 10 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Little AI (AI Level 1 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

    Classification

    Little AI. AI is not part of the work.

    1. ●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
    2. ●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
    3. ●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
    4. ●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

    Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Open the description and count.

    Prepare for this job

    A free preview built only from this posting: what it asks for, what you could be asked in an interview, and how to adjust your resume.

    Skills and AI tools this role asks for

    Prompt EngineeringCloud ArchitecturePlatform EngineeringSystem DesignNetwork SecurityDistributed SystemsKubernetesOpenshift

    Questions you could be asked

    1. How do you structure and test a prompt to get consistent output from a language model?
    2. Tell me about a project where cloud architecture was part of your work. What did you do?
    3. Tell me about a project where platform engineering was part of your work. What did you do?
    4. Tell me about a project where system design was part of your work. What did you do?
    5. Tell me about a project where network security was part of your work. What did you do?

    Adapt your resume

    • List these exact terms on your resume: Prompt Engineering, Cloud Architecture, Platform Engineering, System Design, and Network Security. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
    • Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them — a tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.

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