Principal Software Engineer - Zalando Payments (all genders)

Role Reporting directly to the Director, you will provide hands‑on technical leadership for the entire department, influence engineering strategy, technical standards and culture, and own the architecture of systems built within the area. You will partner with Product and Engineering Management to ensure technology enables departmental objectives and business value, and drive project delivery with an “agent‑augmented delivery” concept. Responsibilities - Own technical design and end‑to‑end delivery of departmental projects, creating robust designs for mid‑to‑large scale initiatives and taking responsibility for implementation and high‑quality solutions. - Partner with leadership as the primary technical point of contact for Product and Engineering Management, translating objectives into concrete software solutions. - Execute high‑impact engineering work, contributing significant code, prototyping, and deep‑dive troubleshooting to de‑risk complex features. - Lead the integration of autonomous agents and AI‑assisted workflows into the software development lifecycle. - Coach and mentor engineers through paired delivery, acting as a Talent Champion and ensuring technical excellence. - Drive operational excellence by improving systems and processes to enhance production readiness and architectural scalability. - Collaborate across departments and with other Principal Engineers to shape technical strategy, standards and engineering culture at the organizational level. Qualifications - Proven ability to take end‑to‑end ownership of mission‑critical engineering initiatives and quickly master new domains. - Strong customer focus and experience building customer‑facing products at scale. - Experience with agentic systems, AI‑driven software development lifecycles, or autonomous‑agent integration. - Demonstrated proactive technical leadership, mentorship and communication skills. - Track record of influencing company‑wide strategy and leading change management. - Deep expertise in AI tools and methods that improve delivery, quality or engineering excellence. - Experience developing solutions for regulated financial institutions or the payments/fintech sector. - History of reporting to senior engineering leadership and delivering impactful technical improvements. What We Offer - Employee shares program - 40 % off fashion and beauty products, 30 % off Zalando Lounge and external partner discounts - Two paid volunteering days per year - Hybrid working model with up to 60 % remote work and the option to work abroad up to 30 days per year - 27 days of vacation per year (starting) - Relocation assistance (subject to agreement) - Family services, health and wellbeing options (including Gympass) and mental health support