Principal Software Engineer - Platform Engineering Workflow Automation

ServiceNow · San Francisco

Software EngineeringEngineering, Infrastructure and OperationsFull-timeposted 6d ago

Company Description

It all started when engineer Fred Luddy wrote code that automated a tedious task for his coworker, Phyllis. She cried tears of joy. That moment inspired Fred to build a company that could do that for everyone—freeing people from busywork so they could focus on meaningful work. Today, ServiceNow is the AI control tower for business reinvention. Our ServiceNow AI platform brings together any AI, any data, and any workflow— helping 85% of the Fortune 500® work smarter, faster, and better. We're building an AI-native culture where technology and talent are unstoppable together. And we're just getting started.

Join us to put AI to work for people.

Job Description

About the team

We build the workflow and automation engines that power how work gets done across the ServiceNow Platform. Our engines process billions of workflow transactions every month across enterprise customers, and we're now extending that foundation to support AI-native, agentic workflows.

This is a team that cares about getting the architecture right, not just shipping features. We spend real time on performance, reliability, and making sure the platform holds up as customers push more volume and more complexity through it.

What you'll do

As a Principal Software Engineer, you'll take on hard architecture problems across our workflow and automation stack, including how we evolve it toward agentic, AI-driven execution at scale.

Lead architecture and technical direction for problem areas across the portfolio, working with product and engineering leads to figure out what's blocking progress and where the real opportunities are.
Get hands-on. Build the prototypes and reference implementations that prove out an architectural idea before a whole team commits to it.
Test ideas with real experiments and real data, not just design docs. Use what you learn to shape the direction.
Help move existing workflow capabilities toward AI-native patterns: agentic execution, better use of context and data, more autonomous flows, and connect that to concrete engineering work.
Dig into cases where an agentic feature exists but isn't delivering the value it should. Figure out if it's the architecture, the data, the UX, or the cost model, and drive the fix.
Write down the patterns and tradeoffs that work so other teams don't have to rediscover them.
Sit in on design reviews and tough calls across teams. Push back with data when something looks risky, and help teams weigh shipping speed against long-term durability.
Work across engineering teams to share what's working and help good patterns spread faster.

What we're looking for

15+ years of engineering experience, or equivalent.
Real experience building and running large-scale distributed systems: workflow engines, integration platforms, data-heavy products, or cloud infrastructure.
Solid grasp of system design for scale, reliability, observability, and production readiness, including database architecture at high transaction volume.
Strong depth in Java, Python, or a comparable language.
A track record of setting technical direction and influencing architecture across teams, even without a formal reporting line.
Comfortable leading through credibility and collaboration rather than title.
Good judgment on when to invest in long-term architecture versus when to just ship.
Experience mentoring senior engineers and building patterns that other teams actually reuse.
Experience with AI-powered products, agentic systems, or workflow automation platforms is a strong plus.
Comfortable reasoning about AI-assisted workflows: data quality, correctness, evaluation, safety, and where a human needs to stay in the loop.
Bonus if you've worked on large-scale enterprise customers or led complex platform migrations.

Why this role

You'd be shaping how our workflow and automation engines move into an agentic future, on a platform that already runs at serious scale. You'd work with teams that care about doing this well, not just doing it fast.

Qualifications

To be successful in this role, you have:

15+ years of related engineering experience, or equivalent practical experience.
Strong experience building and operating large-scale distributed systems, workflow engines, integration frameworks, or cloud-scale infrastructure handling high transaction volume.
Deep understanding of system design for scale, reliability, observability, fault tolerance, data quality, security, and production readiness.
Strong technical depth in Java, Python, or similar programming languages.
Proven ability to define technical direction, influence architecture across teams, and translate ambiguous product strategy into executable engineering plans.
Ability to operate as a Principal IC by leading through technical credibility, collaboration, and influence rather than formal authority.
Strong judgment in balancing long-term architecture with pragmatic execution, customer impact, engineering velocity, and business priorities.
Experience mentoring senior engineers, raising engineering standards, and building reusable patterns that create leverage across teams.
Experience with AI-powered products, automation platforms, AI-assisted workflows, or agentic systems is strongly preferred.
Ability to reason about AI-assisted enterprise workflows, including data quality, workflow correctness, evaluation, observability, safety controls, and human-in-the-loop review.
Experience with workflow automation, business process management, low-code/no-code platforms, or process/task orchestration at scale is a strong plus.
Experience working with large-scale enterprise customers, production systems, and complex migration or modernization efforts is a plus.

For positions in this location, we offer a base pay of $221,200 - $387,100, plus equity (when applicable), variable/incentive compensation and benefits. Sales positions generally offer a competitive On Target Earnings (OTE) incentive compensation structure. Please note that the base pay shown is a guideline, and individual total compensation will vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, competencies, and work location. We also offer health plans, including flexible spending accounts, a 401(k) Plan with company match, ESPP, matching donations, a flexible time away plan and family leave programs. Compensation is based on the geographic location in which the role is located and is subject to change based on work location.

Additional Information

Work Personas

We approach our distributed world of work with flexibility and trust. Work personas (flexible, remote, or required in office) are categories that are assigned to ServiceNow employees depending on the nature of their work and their assigned work location. Learn more here. To determine eligibility for a work persona, ServiceNow may confirm the distance between your primary residence and the closest ServiceNow office using a third-party service.

Equal Opportunity Employer

ServiceNow is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, gender identity, veteran status, or any other category protected by law. In addition, all qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with legal requirements. 

Accommodations

We strive to create an accessible and inclusive experience for all candidates. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete any part of the application process, or are unable to use this online application and need an alternative method to apply, please contact globaltalentss@servicenow.com for assistance.

Export Control Regulations

For positions requiring access to controlled technology subject to export control regulations, including the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), ServiceNow may be required to obtain export control approval from government authorities for certain individuals. All employment is contingent upon ServiceNow obtaining any export license or other approval that may be required by relevant export control authorities.