Principal Software Engineer (Java, AWS)

The Very Group; Liverpool; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A retail organization based in Liverpool is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to lead the software development lifecycle. You will collaborate with diverse teams to deliver industry-leading systems and mentor junior engineers. The ideal candidate is skilled in Java, Spring, and AWS, with a passion for code quality and best practices. This role offers a hybrid working model, and a range of benefits including a flexible allowance and generous vacation time.

Benefits

Flexible, hybrid working model

Inclusive culture

£1,000 flexible benefits allowance

30 days holiday + bank holidays

Udemy learning access

Up to 25% discount on Very.co.uk

Matched pension up to 6%

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in building, integrating, and managing complex software architectures.
• Strong hands-on experience with Java, Spring, AWS components, and CI/CD tools.
• Proven ability to mentor and guide less experienced engineers.
• Skilled in building applications with security, reliability, scalability, and high availability.

Responsibilities

• Lead the full software development lifecycle including coding practices and operations.
• Collaborate with Engineers, Product Owners, Business Analysts, and Architects.
• Drive improvements in continuous integration and deployment processes.

Skills

Java

Spring

AWS components

CI/CD tools

Code quality

Collaboration

Education

Degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience

Job description

About us.

We are The Very Group and we’re here to help families get more out of life. We know that our customers work hard for their families and have a lot to balance in their busy lives. That’s why we combine amazing brands and products with flexible payment options on Very.co.uk to help them say yes to the things they love. We’re just as passionate about helping our people get more out of life too; building careers with real growth, a sense of purpose, belonging and wellbeing.

About the role.

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will be responsible for designing, building and running front-end and/or back-end software solutions in an agile delivery squad. This role is hands‑on, you’ll be actively involved in designing, implementing and running the products and services that your squad is responsible for. You’ll help shape best practices in software engineering, then both work to and coach other Squad members into driving and ensuring high quality solutions.

What you’ll be doing:

• Lead the full software development lifecycle, including coding practices, frameworks, technical debt, and operations within your squad.
• Collaborate with Engineers, Product Owners, Business Analysts, and Architects to design and deliver industry‑leading systems.
• Influence and implement engineering standards and tools, driving adoption across squads and tribes.
• Design and build software that balances commercial needs with the future tech roadmap.
• Take ownership of code quality, non‑functional requirements (performance, security, scalability), and best practices for logging, monitoring, and alerting.
• Drive improvements in continuous integration and deployment processes.
• Identify and mitigate risks, obstacles, and issues impacting technical products.
• Provide run support for technical products within your squad.
• Mentor and coach other engineers, fostering a culture of continuous improvement.
• Champion engineering successes internally and externally to build our brand and attract talent.
• Stay ahead of the curve by understanding the external technology landscape and applying insights to enhance our engineering practices.

About you

• Extensive experience in building, integrating, and managing complex software architectures, ideally across multi‑cloud environments.
• Strong hands‑on experience with Java, Spring, AWS components, and CI/CD tools (e.g., GitLab CI).
• Proven ability to mentor and guide less experienced engineers.
• Passionate about code quality, testing, and engineering best practices.
• Skilled in building applications with security, reliability, scalability, and high availability from the ground up.
• Excellent collaboration and communication skills.
• Degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience.
• Comfortable sharing knowledge and stories internally and externally to strengthen our engineering brand.

Some of our benefits

• Flexible, hybrid working model
• Inclusive culture and environment
• £1,000 flexible benefits allowance to suit your needs
• 30 days holiday + bank holidays
• Udemy learning access
• Up to 25% discount on Very.co.uk
• Matched pension up to 6%
• More benefits can be found on our career site

How to apply

Please note that the talent acquisition team are managing this vacancy directly, and if successful in securing this role, you will be required to undertake a credit, CIFAS, Right to Work checks and if a specific requirement of your role a DBS (criminal records) check. Should your application progress we require you to let the team know if there is anything you need to disclose in relation to any of these checks prior to them being undertaken, including any unspent criminal convictions.

What happens next?

Our Talent Acquisition team will be in touch if you’re successful so keep an eye on your emails! We’ll arrange a short call to learn more about you, as well as answer any questions you have.

For this role after meeting our Talent Acquisition Team you can expect a 2 stage process.

First Stage - A Technical Interview, we will ask you to complete a take home task which we will use as the basis for the conversation, we will dig deeper into some of your decisions (60-90 minutes on Teams)

Second Stage - Behavioural Interview, this interview focuses more on your softer skills, how you like to work as part of a Software Engineering Team (60 minutes onsite)

If you'd like to know more about our interviews, you can find out here.

Equal opportunities

We’re an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, colour, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.