Principal Engineer (John Lewis Commercial)

Apply on JLP Jobs - the official careers website for John Lewis Partnership, John Lewis & Partners, and Waitrose & Partners.

About the role

The Partnership is the UK's most successful omni-channel retailer, including two of the UK's most loved department store and grocery brands with annual sales revenues exceeding £12B. Our Engineering practice comprises 80+ teams working on Cloud Platforms, Mobile Apps, E-Commerce, and Machine Learning. We promote collaboration, knowledge sharing, and continuous learning among our Engineers.

John Lewis Commercial ensures the right products are available at the right price across all sales channels, maintaining sufficient stock in our omnichannel business. The supporting technology combines third-party platforms, bespoke in-house systems, and legacy mainframe applications interconnected through integrations. These systems are designed to be resilient and adaptable to improve operational efficiency and business responsiveness.

Find out more about being a Software Engineer in the Partnership, and the technology we use.

At a glance

• Contract type: This position is a permanent contract.
• Salary: £75,000 - £140,000
• Flexible Working: Hybrid role, primarily from home (UK) and London Head Office, with occasional visits to other locations as needed. Most engineers visit the office once or twice a month, with some requiring more frequent attendance.

Key Responsibilities

• As a Principal Engineer, you will align engineering strategy with business objectives, influence system operations, and guide change across John Lewis Commercial. Your role involves managing work methods, team structure, and resource models to optimize engineering capabilities.

• You will modernize and simplify complex legacy systems to enable agility, productivity, and maintainability, helping to establish Product ways of working.

• Collaborate with stakeholders such as Product Leads, Delivery Managers, Infrastructure Leads, and Senior Engineers, including other Principal Engineers responsible for different business areas or technical specialisms.

• Demonstrate a passion for delivering innovative, high-quality software solutions and a track record of working on complex projects.

Essential skills/experience

• Strong engineering background with experience in modern techniques like Continuous Delivery and Domain Driven Design.

• Experience implementing solutions in large, complex environments with both modern and legacy technologies.

• Leadership experience across multiple teams, working with senior stakeholders, and influencing significant investments.

• Knowledge of various architectural styles (monolith, microservices) and integration patterns (REST, streams, event-based).

• Skills in increasing system resilience and scalability, applying Lean and Systems Thinking techniques.

Desirable skills/experience

• Retail industry experience.

• Hands-on software engineering experience.

• Management or enterprise architecture roles across multiple teams.

Next Steps

• Complete the application form, including uploading your CV and answering questions. Refresh the page after each step.

• Successful candidates will undergo screening, formal, and informal interviews.

• Let us know if you need adjustments during the process.

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The Partnership

We're the largest employee-owned business in the UK, home to John Lewis and Waitrose. We're committed to building a happier world, innovating, and diversifying. As Partners, we share ownership, responsibility, and success, fostering an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive.

Note: Some roles require pre-employment vetting, including DBS checks and financial probity assessments. Apply promptly, as vacancies may close early. We support flexible working arrangements to promote work-life balance.