Principal Engineer

Principal Engineer (.NET/AI)

Manchester City Centre (Hybrid - 3 days onsite)

Up to £85,000

Are you a Principal or Lead-level .NET Engineer who enjoys shaping technical direction, solving complex integration challenges, and elevating engineering standards across business? Do you want to influence how AI is thoughtfully embedded into a modern software product, without being expected to be an AI researcher?

We're partnered with an international software house based in Manchester that's continuing to scale its global SaaS offering. They've just created a Principal Engineer role to provide technical leadership across their platform, integrations, and future-facing initiatives - including the practical use of AI across the business.

As their Principal Engineer, your primary focus remains hands-on .NET engineering, but with wider ownership and influence in:

• Provide technical leadership across the core SaaS platform and integrations
• Design and build scalable, API-first .NET backends
• Partner with product, architecture, and leadership to identify and implement high-value AI use cases safely and pragmatically
• Act as the technical authority for complex integrations, bespoke client needs, and platform extensibility
• Influence architecture, coding standards, and long-term technical strategy
• Mentor senior engineers and raise overall engineering standards

What They're Looking For:

• Proven experience as a Principal, Lead, or very Senior .NET Engineer with a background building and scaling SaaS platforms
• Deep experience with APIs, integrations, and distributed systems
• Comfortable influencing technical direction and working with senior stakeholders
• Exposure to AI-enabled features (or curiosity and pragmatism around adopting AI responsibly)

What's in It for You?

• Up to £85,000 salary (depending on experience)
• Hybrid working - 3 days per week in a genuinely impressive Manchester city centre office
• 25 days holiday, enhanced pension, private healthcare, and more
• Clear progression and influence - this is a true principal role, not a dressed-up senior position

This is a rare opportunity to step into a Principal Engineer role where you'll shape both the technical foundations and the future direction of a growing SaaS platform - including how AI is used properly, not just for buzzwords.

Sounds exciting? Apply now to find out more.