Principal Software Engineer

What’s Under the Hood

DriveTime Family of Brands is the largest privately owned used car sales finance & servicing company in the nation. Headquartered in Tempe, Arizona and Dallas, Texas, we create opportunities and improve the lives of our customers and our employees by placing a focus on putting the right customer, in the right vehicle, on the right terms and on their path to ownership.

The DriveTime Family of Brands spans across DriveTime, Bridgecrest and SilverRock.  You can find us at the intersection of technology and innovation as we use our proprietary tools and over two decades of industry knowledge to redefine the process of purchasing, financing, and protecting your vehicle. 

That’s Nice, But What’s the Job?

This is not a position for which sponsorship will be provided. Individuals with temporary visas or who need sponsorship now or in the future are not eligible for hire at this time.

In short, as a Principal Software Engineer, you will serve as a technical leader responsible for driving complex, business-critical initiatives across the organization. You will partner closely with product, architecture, and business stakeholders to design scalable solutions, lead engineering strategy, and solve challenging technical problems using modern cloud-native technologies. This role requires a hands-on engineer who can influence technical direction, champion best practices, and help shape the future of our software platforms while delivering measurable business impact.

In Long, as the Principal Software Engineer, you will be responsible for:

• Leading the design, development, and delivery of enterprise-scale software solutions and strategic technology initiatives.
• Architecting and building modern applications using object-oriented programming languages such as C#, Java, or Python.
• Designing, developing, and optimizing APIs using RESTful services, GraphQL, and serverless architectures.
• Driving application integration efforts across internal systems and external third-party platforms.
• Collaborating with product, architecture, and business teams to align technical solutions with organizational objectives.
• Providing technical leadership and guidance to engineering teams through architecture reviews, code reviews, and best practice development.
• Designing and implementing scalable data solutions leveraging both relational and non-relational databases.
• Developing secure applications utilizing modern authentication and authorization frameworks and identity providers.
• Contributing to front-end application development using modern frameworks such as Angular, React, or Vue.
• Building and deploying cloud-native applications within Azure and other cloud environments as needed.
• Partnering with marketing and customer technology teams to integrate Customer Data Platforms (CDPs) and Customer Engagement Platforms (CEPs).
• Evaluating emerging tools, technologies, and engineering practices to improve software quality, scalability, and operational efficiency.
• Influencing technical strategy and communicating architectural decisions to senior leadership and key stakeholders.
• Balancing technical excellence, delivery timelines, and business priorities to achieve successful outcomes.

So What Kind of Folks Are We Looking For?

• Ability to establish strong cross-functional partnerships across product, engineering, architecture, and business teams.
• Strong engineering fundamentals with the ability to identify enduring solutions beyond technology trends.
• Proven ability to navigate and influence product and engineering tradeoffs.
• Demonstrated leadership through influence, collaboration, and technical expertise.
• Results-oriented mindset with a focus on delivering high-impact business outcomes.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with the ability to engage technical and non-technical audiences.
• Data-driven approach to decision-making and problem-solving.
• Strong analytical thinking and the ability to solve complex challenges regardless of technology stack.
• Passion for innovation, continuous learning, and mentoring fellow engineers.

The Specifics.

• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience.
• Bachelor’s Degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Extensive experience with object-oriented programming languages such as C#, Java, or Python.
• Expertise in API design and development using RESTful services, GraphQL, and serverless architectures.
• Experience working with relational and non-relational databases including Microsoft SQL Server, MongoDB, PostgreSQL, or similar technologies.
• Experience integrating enterprise applications and third-party systems.
• Exposure to authentication and authorization platforms such as Okta, Auth0, Cognito, Firebase, or similar solutions.
• Experience with modern front-end frameworks such as Angular, React, or Vue.
• Experience building solutions in cloud environments, preferably Microsoft Azure.
• Experience with Customer Data Platforms (CDPs), preferably Segment, or similar technologies.
• Experience with Customer Engagement Platforms (CEPs), preferably Braze, or similar technologies.

Nice to Haves

• Experience with low-code or workflow automation platforms such as Pega, Segment, Decisions, or similar technologies.
• Experience working within highly regulated or enterprise-scale environments.
• Prior experience leading large-scale modernization, digital transformation, or cloud migration initiatives.
• Background implementing event-driven or microservices-based architectures.
• Experience mentoring senior engineers and helping establish engineering standards across multiple teams.

So What About the Perks? Perks matter

• Work From Home. Feel free to rock the casual wear while still being camera ready.  You will be working from your home office (in an approved city & state) and make sure you have a conducive and quiet workspace with no distractions and reliable and secure internet.
• Medical, dental, and vision, oh my! DriveTime Family of Brands covers a sizable amount of insurance premiums to ensure our employees receive top-tier healthcare coverage. 
• But Wait, There’s More. 401(K), Company paid life insurance policy, short and long-term disability coverage to name a few.
• Growth Opportunities. You grow, I grow, we all grow!  But seriously, DriveTime Family of Brands is committed to providing its employees with every opportunity to grow professionally with roughly over 1,000 employees promoted year over year.
• Tuition Reimbursement. We’re as passionate about your professional development as you are. With that, we’ll put our money where our mouth is.
• Wellness Program. Health is wealth! This program includes self-guided coaching and journeys, cash incentives and discounts on your medical premiums through engaging in fun activities!
• Gratitude is Green.  We offer competitive pay across the organization, because, well… money matters!

• Paid Time Off. Not just lip service: we work hard, to play hard!  Paid time off includes (for all full-time roles) wellness days, holidays, and good ole' fashioned YOU time!  For our Part-timers, don't fear you get some time too...vacation time is available - the more you work, the more you earn!

Anything Else?  Absolutely.

DriveTime Family of Brands is Great Place to Work Certified! And get this: 90% of our rockstar employees say they feel right at home here.  We could spend a lot of time having you read about ALL our awards, but we’ll save time (and practice some humility) just naming a few others; Comparably Awards: Best Company for Diversity, Best Company Culture and Best Company Leadership, oh and don’t forget Phoenix Business Journal Healthiest Employers (okay, we’ll stop there)!

Hiring is contingent upon successful completion of our background and drug screening process. DriveTime is a drug-free, tobacco-free workplace and an Equal Opportunity Employer.

And when it comes to hiring, we don't just look for the right person for the job, we seek out the right person for DriveTime. Buckle up for plenty of opportunities to grow in a professional, fun, and high-energy environment!