Principal Software Engineer

Department Description

“We Power the Magic!” That’s our motto at Disney Experiences (DX). Our team creates world-class immersive digital experiences for the Company’s premier vacation brands including Disney’s Parks & Resorts worldwide, Disney Cruise Line, Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa, and Disney Vacation Club.

Team Description:

We are responsible for the end-to-end digital and physical Guest experience for all technology & digital-led initiatives across the Attractions & Entertainment, Food & Beverage, Resorts & Transportation and Merchandise lines of business as well as other initiatives including MyDisneyExperience and Hey, Disney!

This role sits in the Parks Commercial Platforms organization within Technology & Digital for Disney Experiences.

The Principal Software Engineer will report to the Sr. Manager Technology.

About The Role & Team:

• This role provides architecture leadership and end-to-end solution ownership for applications and services within Lodging Sales Distribution. The position leads implementation of complex features, supports planning and estimation for major capital initiatives, and evaluates emerging technologies including AI-enabled delivery capabilities. As the primary subject matter expert during Sev1 and Sev2 incidents, the role leads root cause analysis, remediation planning, and resiliency improvements to minimize downtime. The position also mentors lead and senior engineers while maintaining architectural consistency across multiple systems and teams.

What You’ll Do:

• Own the analysis, design, program, debugging, and modifications of software improvements and/or new products used in local, networked, cloud-based, or Internet-related computer programs

• Lead projects that may be used in commercial and end-user applications or focus on software and tools supporting infrastructure and technology platforms

• Work typically involves large or highly sophisticated software programs and systems

• Possess expertise in current programming languages and technologies, with strong skills in writing code and programming tasks

• Initiate the testing and debugging of applications, using conceptual and innovative thinking to drive sophisticated, highly scalable solutions throughout the organization

• Contribute to the conception, design, development, testing, and implementation of software components, fixes, improvements, and/or new systems and applications

• Exercise full autonomy to interact with users across diverse teams and levels to define system requirements and/or necessary modifications

• Lead and influence the direction and prioritization of the design and development of highly scalable software systems and applications

• Engage in the estimation and planning of highly sophisticated scalable projects and their budget allocations

• Continuously monitor and evaluate emerging technologies within your area of expertise to drive informed decision-making and recommendations

Required Qualifications & Skills

• Minimum 10 years of related work experience

• Excellent communication and leadership abilities, to ensure effective growth and development of team

• A visionary who motivates teams to excel and fosters creativity, consistently driving excellence in all endeavors

• An advocate for a diverse and inclusive culture that encourages innovation and ensures every team member feels a sense of belonging

• Authority in Java/Spring Boot microservices, RESTful API design, Angular, Node.js, cloud hosted and containerized platforms including AWS and Docker, AI tools such as Amazon Kiro, Cursor, Github Copliot and Claude, demonstrating deep expertise and knowledge in the field

Preferred Qualifications:

Technical Skills

• Expertise in Java/Spring Boot microservices, RESTful API design, and service-oriented architecture.

• Strong experience with Angular, Node.js, cloud-hosted and containerized platforms including AWS and Docker.

• Proficiency with deployment configuration management, content delivery technologies, observability platforms, authentication, and authorization frameworks.

• Deep commerce and e-commerce domain knowledge with experience supporting large-scale guest-facing applications.

• Advanced AI-assisted software development using tools such as Amazon Kiro, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, and Claude to accelerate solutioning, prototyping, development, testing, and delivery.

Leadership Skills

• Proven ability to drive architecture decisions, evaluate tradeoffs, and lead complex technical initiatives across organizations.

• Strong collaboration and partnership skills to align multiple engineering teams and accelerate delivery outcomes.

• Experience mentoring senior technical contributors and serving as a recognized subject matter expert during critical incidents. 

Required Education:

• Bachelor's or foreign equivalent Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, Software, Electrical or Electronics Engineering, or comparable field of study, and/or equivalent work experience

#TECHATDISNEY

The hiring range for this position in Orlando, FL is $182,200 - $244,300 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.