Whitepages engineering is a small team with outsized impact—and we’re hiring a Principal Software Engineer to join our high-performing group of technical leaders. This is a hands-on individual contributor role, reporting into the CTO, with broad organizational influence—not a management or team lead position. You’ll shape technical direction, raise engineering standards, and help teams solve complex, high-leverage problems. We build full-stack products that serve millions and generate real revenue, working across backend services, data systems, and user-facing applications where your judgment matters most. 

We care deeply about how software is built. Our stack currently spans Scala, Python, TypeScript, and SQL, with a bias toward well-typed, correct systems. We use AI tooling in our daily work and are actively shaping an agentic development practice that scales both speed and quality. Strong opinions are expected—but so is the discipline to evolve them with evidence. This is a place for engineers who have shipped, learned from what didn’t work, and can apply that experience to deliver production systems that drive real business outcomes. 

Our culture is grounded in ownership, impact and results. We prioritize clarity over cleverness, make tradeoffs explicit, and optimize for meaningful impact. As a Principal Engineer, you’ll operate at that level—owning outcomes, influencing broadly, and consistently delivering work that matters. 

Key Responsibilities:

Technical Leadership

• Influence architectural direction and drive clarity on complex technical decisions 
• Guide engineers through ambiguous tradeoffs (e.g., build vs. buy, system design, scaling strategies) 
• Review designs and code to elevate engineering quality and decision-making across teams 
• Ensure systems are production-ready, with strong observability, reliability, and operational performance 
• Partner with product and leadership to align technical decisions with business impact, cost, and long-term value 

Hands-On Engineering

• Design, build, and ship production software across backend, data, and frontend systems 
• Lead complex, cross-cutting initiatives from concept to delivery 
• Develop scalable systems, patterns, and tools that improve team productivity and system quality 
• Simplify architectures by reducing unnecessary complexity and improving system clarity 

Raising the Bar

• Mentor engineers through reviews, pairing, and technical guidance 
• Identify and address gaps in engineering practices, skills, and systems 
• Drive adoption of modern development practices, including AI-assisted workflows 
• Create lasting leverage through reusable patterns, tools, and improved ways of working 

• Bachelor's degree in CS, Engineering, or related field; or equivalent experience 
• Related Master’s degree or equivalent a plus 
• 10+ years of increasingly progressive software engineering experience, including one or more years operating at a staff or principal level preferred 
• Strong backend expertise with exposure to frontend and full-stack systems 
• Experience working across multiple programming languages (e.g., Scala, Python, TypeScript, or similar) 
• Strong proficiency with SQL and data modeling 
• Experience building and operating scalable systems in production environments 
• Familiarity with data pipelines and distributed systems concepts 
• Ability to effectively evaluate technical decisions in terms of performance, reliability, cost, and business impact 
• Strong written communication skills for design docs, proposals, and technical discussions 
• Demonstrated ability to communicate technical concepts in a way non-technical stakeholders can understand 
• Proven track record of influencing technical direction and improving engineering organizations 
• Proven success operating effectively in ambiguous, fast-moving environments 
• Strong problem-solving skills with sound judgment in tradeoffs and prioritization 
• Experience working on consumer-facing products or large-scale systems is preferred 
• Exposure to modern development practices, including AI-assisted tooling  

Whitepages is a nimble, high-impact team of ~50 team members, operating with the autonomy and ownership of a small company while reaching millions of users. We’re remote-first with a thoughtful hybrid model that balances flexibility and connection. Seattle-based employees work from home four days a week and our centrally located downtown office on Tuesdays, along with one designated in-office week each quarter. For team members based in CA, CO, WI, FL, MD, or CT, you will work from home and we bring  everyone together in Seattle for one week each quarter to collaborate in person. This role is only open current residence of the states outlined above. 

Compensation  includes a competitive base salary plus participation in both quarterly  and annual bonus programs tied to company performance. The base salary  range for this role is $175,000–$250,000, plus bonus opportunity. Salary dependent on location (WA, CA, CO, WI, FL, MD, CT) and experience. 

Whitepages is proud to be an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace. We value authenticity and welcome people of all backgrounds to join us in our mission.