Principal Software Engineer

We are seeking a visionary and hands-on Principal Software Engineer to join Citi’s Global Technology organization in Warsaw, Poland. In this pivotal role, you will lead the technical design, architectural vision, and engineering delivery of Citi's next-generation Risk Management Platform.
As part of a globally distributed, high-performing engineering organization, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams, architects, product managers, and quantitative analysts across the globe. You will be instrumental in defining technical standards, leading high-impact architectural initiatives, and mentoring engineering talent across our diverse global teams.
Key Responsibilities:
Architectural Leadership & System Design
Strategic System Architecture: Analyze complex business workflows, enterprise systems, and industry standards to architect scalable, resilient, and high-throughput solutions for next-generation risk systems.
Standards & Best Practices: Define, evolve, and implement engineering methodologies, coding standards, testing automation, and CI/CD best practices across the full software development lifecycle.
Deep Technical Integration: Lead the technical integration of complex enterprise functions and platforms to accelerate product deployments and enhance operational capabilities.
Domain Flow Mastery: Leverage deep technical expertise across end-to-end data pipelines, microservices, and system flows to drive technological transformation.
Technical Delivery & Execution
High-Impact Project Planning: Direct and execute technical milestones for multi-million-dollar, cross-functional programs and multi-stream initiatives.
End-to-End Collaboration: Consult closely with business stakeholders, quantitative risk managers, and operations users to translate functional specifications into robust technical architectures.
Code Excellence: Maintain high standards of code quality, performance profiling, fault tolerance, and security across distributed application services.
Leadership, Mentorship & Collaboration
Team Leadership & Coaching: Allocate engineering workloads, establish delivery milestones, and actively coach senior developers, engineers, and analysts.
Stakeholder Management: Influence and align architectural roadmaps with senior technology and business leadership, as well as external technology partners.
Global Synergy: Foster a collaborative, inclusive engineering culture across globally dispersed teams in the Americas, EMEA, and APAC.
Governance, Risk & Controls
Sound Risk Management: Proactively assess and mitigate technical, operational, and regulatory risks in engineering decisions.
Compliance & Transparency: Ensure all platforms strictly adhere to enterprise governance, data privacy policies, regulatory requirements, and security controls, escalating and resolving control issues promptly.
Qualifications & Competencies:
Experience & Technical Mastery
Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Technology, or a related quantitative field (or equivalent practical experience).
Industry Experience: Extensive experience in software engineering and system architecture, with a demonstrated history of delivering mission-critical enterprise systems (Financial Services / Risk Technology experience is strongly preferred).
Core Engineering: Advanced expertise in modern backend languages and frameworks (e.g., Java, Python, Go, or C++), distributed computing, concurrent systems, and event-driven architectures (e.g., Apache Kafka).
Cloud & Modern Infrastructure: Proven experience with cloud platforms, containerization (Docker, Kubernetes/OpenShift), API gateways, and distributed caching technologies.
Data Architecture: Strong proficiency with relational and distributed database technologies, high-volume data processing pipelines, and analytical engines.
Leadership & Soft Skills
Influential Communication: Exceptional communication, stakeholder management, and negotiation skills with both technical teams and senior business leaders.
Mentorship: Proven track record of developing engineering talent and leading cross-functional delivery streams.
Analytical Problem Solving: Superior capability to deconstruct ambiguous, complex business challenges into structured, elegant technical designs.
What we can offer you:
By joining Citi Solutions Center Poland, you will not only be part of a business casual workplace with a hybrid working model (currently up to 2 days working at home per week), but also (potentially, subject to final offer) receive a competitive base salary and enjoy a whole host of additional benefits which can include:
Employer paid Defined Contribution Pension Plan contribution of 6% of employee’s pensionable earnings (PPE Program)
Employer paid Private Medical Care Package for employees and Private Medical Care Packages for certain family members available at preferential rates
Employer paid Life Insurance Program for employees and Life Insurance for certain family members available at preferential rates
Employee Assistance Program financed by Employer
Paid Parental Leave Program (maternity and paternity leave; statutory and 2 weeks additional paid paternity leave)
Sport Card for employees subsidized via Social Benefits Fund and Sport Cards for certain family members available at preferential rates
Additional benefits from Company’s Social Benefit Fund, in particular: Holidays Allowance, support for sport and cultural activities, team building events.
Additional day off for volunteering
Cafeteria/ flex benefit – a company benefits system which enables employees to select and purchase benefits offered by a provider and available for employees on the platform.
Opportunity to receive an annual discretionary incentive award
Special offers and discounts for employees
Copy and paste the URL below into a new tab on your web browser to view the Remuneration Regulations extract: https://tbcdn.talentbrew.com/company/287/cms/v3/docs/policies/RemunerationRegulations-KeyProvisions-CitibankEurope_plc_05012025_A.pdf
Alongside these benefits Citi is committed to ensuring our workplace is where everyone feels comfortable coming to work as their whole self every day. We want the best talent around the world to be energized to join us, motivated to stay, and empowered to thrive.
Sounds like Citi has everything you need? Then apply to discover the true extent of your capabilities.
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This job description provides a high-level review of the types of work performed. Other job-related duties may be assigned as required.
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Job Family Group: Technology
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Job Family:Applications Development
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Time Type:Full time
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