(1113439) Principal Software Architect - AI & Cloud

Principal Software Architect – AI & Cloud
Diversified Services Network, Inc. (DSN) is seeking a full-time Principal Software Architect – AI & Cloud to join our team in their choice of our Chicago, IL or Peoria, IL office locations. We offer full a hybrid work model, requiring 2 days of onsite work per week, benefits, PTO, 401k, and more! If you're looking to grow your career within an extremely reputable, stable Fortune 100 company - let's talk!
Position Overview
This role designs and orchestrates multi-agent workflows and stateful AI systems, integrates foundation models into secure production environments, and architects AI-native data models that pair relational and vector databases for retrieval-augmented generation. Beyond hands-on architecture, the role provides technical leadership across engineering teams — mentoring engineers, establishing governance and standards for secure, cloud-native development, and driving the responsible adoption of AI-assisted engineering tools.
Key Responsibilities
Technical Architecture & AI Integration
Design and orchestrate multi-agent workflows and stateful AI systems using modern frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, AutoGen, or CrewAI.
Integrate foundation models (e.g., Anthropic Claude, OpenAI GPT, Google Gemini) via secure API gateways, managing token limits, costs, and rate-limiting.
Architect data models optimized for AI-native structures, integrating relational databases with vector databases for semantic search and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG).
Implement robust white-box testing and continuous evaluation metrics to monitor AI outputs for factual correctness, hallucinations, and safety compliance.
Champion secure, reliable, and scalable software solutions through architectural leadership, risk management, and continuous improvement of engineering practices.
Technical Leadership & Workflow Optimization
Mentor and scale an engineering team, establishing engineering standards, best practices, and architectural governance for secure coding, continuous integration, and cloud-native deployment.
Drive AI-assisted engineering velocity by integrating next-gen development tools (e.g., Cursor, Claude Code, Windsurf) into the team's daily Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC).
Establish governance policies and coach developers on the responsible use of AI, focusing on input data sensitivity, license compliance, and security guardrails.
Evaluate existing systems, services, APIs, and data models to identify opportunities for modernization, scalability, and performance improvements.
Influence Across Teams & Developer Experience
Facilitate technical leadership forums with Product Owners, Technical Leads, Architects, and Engineering Managers.
Drive conversations around architecture, engineering health, technical debt, AI adoption, and continuous improvement.
Foster collaborative decision-making through architecture reviews, RFCs, and technical discussions.
Promote self-service engineering capabilities and platform enablement.
Drive automation initiatives that improve productivity and software quality.
Team Interaction & Work Environment
Significant, ongoing interaction with the Scrum team, including all ceremonies (Daily Standups, Sprint Planning, Grooming, Retro, Demo) and PR reviews.
Regular engagement with other teams as needed.
Strong collaboration is required across the role.
Requirements
Candidate Requirements
Education & Experience
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field, plus 10+ years of professional software engineering experience OR
Master's degree plus 8+ years of experience, including 2+ years in a technical leadership role.
Core Software Engineering
Backend Systems: Deep proficiency in backend environments, microservices architectures, and API design using Java.
Cloud & DevOps: Extensive experience with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes) and public cloud infrastructure such as AWS.
AI & LLM Infrastructure
Orchestration & Tooling: Hands-on experience with production-level AI agents, prompt engineering, and advanced Agentic PDLC patterns.
Vector Databases: Practical knowledge of vector technologies such as Pinecone, Milvus, Chroma, or pgvector.
AI Tool Fluency: Demonstrated mastery of AI coding assistants and a firm understanding of Model Context Protocol (MCP) to mediate agent connections with external databases.
Additional Qualifications
Proven experience designing and delivering large-scale distributed systems.
Strong expertise in software architecture, APIs, microservices, cloud-native applications, and modern engineering practices.
Experience influencing multiple engineering teams and leading organization-wide technical initiatives.
Strong communication, collaboration, and stakeholder management skills.
Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and drive technical excellence.
Experience with Generative AI, AI agents, LLM-powered applications, or intelligent automation platforms.
Knowledge of security architecture, application security, and cloud security best practices.
Experience establishing technical governance and engineering standards across multiple teams.
Soft Skills
Ability to work under pressure and within time constraints.
Passion for technology and an eagerness to contribute to a team-oriented environment.
Ability to lead architectural designs and work across teams to develop solutions.
Benefits
401(k)
Dental insurance
Vision Insurance
Disability insurance
Employee assistance program
Health insurance
Health savings account
Life insurance
Paid time off
Paid Holidays
Please follow the link to our website for a list of job openings in Engineering, IT, Project Management, and more! https://www.dsnworldwide.com
Salary expectations: 161000-171000 per annual

Work arrangement
No