Principal Software Engineer

About KLDiscovery

KLDiscovery is a global eDiscovery and legal technology provider serving large law firms, corporate legal departments, and government agencies. We build and operate the products and services that legal teams rely on to manage, process, and review case data at scale. With operations across multiple countries and a client base that includes AmLaw 200 firms, we handle some of the largest and most complex matters in the industry.

About the Role 

The Principal Software Engineer role at KLDiscovery is cross-cutting by design. Principal Software Engineers are not permanent members of any team. They move to other teams based on needs or project priorities. You will provide architectural judgment across product areas that don't have dedicated Architect coverage, identify risks before they compound, mentor developers, and enforce engineering standards. You are the technical voice that connects Engineering leadership, Architecture, and the development teams doing the work. 

We offer competitive total compensation that includes base pay, bonus potential, inclusive benefits, wellness programs, and perks. We use market and industry data to inform pay decisions while considering geography and labor markets, individual experience, and business needs. Individual compensation will vary, although a reasonable estimate of the current annualized base pay range for this position is $140,000 to $160,000.

Job location: Remote (but candidate must be based in the United States)

Key Responsibilities:

• Identify and raise risks across multiple modules, including security risks and downstream platform impacts, before they reach production
• Provide architectural guidance across multiple product areas and make cross-module design decisions
• Work closely with Team Leadership and Architects to translate architecture decisions into work the Engineering team can execute
• Write and refine requirements for features in collaboration with Product and Team Leadership
• Provide input on Engineering and coding standards and hold the team to them
• Mentor and guide less experienced engineers toward solutions, making it a learning experience rather than just handing out answers
• Identify technical debt across projects and use a data-driven approach to advocate for addressing it
• Support multiple product areas concurrently and context-switch between efforts as priorities shift

You Will Also

• Perform and set expectations for peer code reviews
• Drive automated testing practices including integration, end-to-end, and regression tests
• Own and improve automated build and release pipelines
• Support production applications including bug fixes and enhancements within defined SLAs (Service Level Agreements)

Shared Expectations:

• Produce high-quality software and automate repetitive work
• Share knowledge, keep learning, and take initiative to make things better
• Communicate directly and clearly; report issues or roadblocks that may affect the team's success
• Take ownership of your work and its outcome; set realistic expectations and deliver on them
• Be respectful, contribute to a positive team culture, and support feedback with data and examples
• Make data-driven decisions wherever possible

 What You Bring (required skills):

• Track record as a senior or principal-level engineer building and maintaining web applications across multiple product areas or organizations
• Strong proficiency in Angular and .NET (C#); experience with API design and building services that other teams consume
• Demonstrated history of identifying and mitigating technical risk across multiple codebases or product areas
• Ability to operate independently, make sound architectural trade-off decisions, and communicate those decisions clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders
• Understanding of how to design and develop with security in mind, particularly in environments handling sensitive client data
• Experience mentoring engineers at various levels and elevating a team's overall output

Nice to Have (preferred skills):

• Experience with Microsoft