About the role
As a Principal Software Engineer, you will make an impact by leading the design, development, and delivery of secure, high-performing payments platforms while owning outcomes from build through go-live and production support. You will be a valued member of the Payments Engineering team and work collaboratively with Product Managers, Project Managers, Solution Architects, Operations teams, and Australian-based clients and partners.
In this role, you will:
Lead and mentor an engineering team while remaining hands-on with solution design and development of backend services and APIs
Own end-to-end delivery, including go-live and post-production support, building trust with clients throughout
Act as a client-facing technical leader, running discussions, resolving issues, and aligning on delivery with local stakeholders
Drive incident triage, troubleshooting, and root cause analysis, working closely with Operations teams and clients to resolve live issues, including participation in the on-call roster once onboarded
Guide agile execution by taking on Scrum Master responsibilities and championing CI/CD and deployment automation
What you need to have to be considered
Extensive commercial software engineering experience at a Principal or Staff level, with a proven record of leading teams, engaging clients, and owning outcomes
Strong backend engineering expertise in Java and Spring Boot,



including microservices and API design (payments context preferred)
Solid understanding of the payments domain, including the payment lifecycle (authorisation, capture, settlement), transaction processing systems, reconciliation, refunds, and chargebacks
Experience with payment gateway or orchestration platforms and PCI-DSS compliant systems
Strong production mindset covering troubleshooting, incident triage, and root cause analysis, with comfort working in high-pressure live environments and willingness to participate in the on-call roster
Based in Australia, with the ability to engage directly with local clients and stakeholders, a strong understanding of the local client environment and communication style, and time zone alignment
These will help you stand out
Experience with CI/CD pipelines and deployment automation
Experience with database interaction and collaboration with DBAs
Experience with large-scale system integration
Experience taking on Scrum Master responsibilities and guiding agile execution
Track record of building client trust during delivery and production situations
We're excited to meet people who share our mission and can make an impact in a variety of ways. Don't hesitate to apply, even if you only meet the minimum requirements listed. Think about your transferable experiences and unique skills that make you stand out as someone who can bring current and exciting things to this role.

📌 Principal Software Engineer - Payments (New South Wales)
🏢 Cognizant
📍 New South Wales