About the Role
As a Principal Engineer at Genomics England, you will be a hands‑on contributor with exemplary engineering skills and an ability to think strategically to define architectural directions. You may have previously worked in a variety of engineering and architecture roles across different organisational contexts, giving you both technical breadth and depth.
You will be a problem‑solver who identifies risks, issues, gaps and dependencies, and brings people together to find solutions. You will do this through supportive, empathetic and collaborative behaviours – acting as coach, mentor, guide or constructive questioner when the situation demands. You are pragmatic but also mindful of the big picture, balancing the immediate goals of teams against the long‑term direction for their products.
Technical Stack
Our bio‑pipelines platform runs on on‑premise high‑performance compute clusters and AWS. Workflows are orchestrated in Python/NextFlow, and we leverage Dragen for heavy‑lifting. The platform uses Python, MongoDB and DynamoDB to deliver RESTful services, and we are working toward interoperability with the NHS via open standards such as FHIR and GA4GH APIs. Tooling includes Terraform (infra‑as‑code), GitLab (source code & CI/CD), Artifactory (artefact storage) and DataDog (observability).
Key Responsibilities
- Collaborate with product managers, squad engineers, bioinformatics experts and other stakeholders to evolve a continuous roadmap for change.
- Advocate for technical excellence in all conversations, ensuring the functional, safety and operational characteristics of our products improve continuously.
- Stay abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends, incorporating them into our software development practices.
- Contribute to broader technical discussions at Genomics England and help mature our technical practices.
Essential Skills and Experience
- Strong software engineering skills with awareness of design patterns (Python preferred; Typescript/React desirable; polyglot experience ideal).
- Knowledge of various database types and their appropriate application (Postgres/Aurora, MongoDB, Elastic/OpenSearch).
- Experience shaping and guiding architectural choices at both tactical and long‑term strategic levels.
- Experience designing and evolving API schemas.
- DevOps proficiency (CI/CD, infrastructure‑as‑code, operational monitoring and alerting).
- Experience with a major public cloud (AWS preferred but not required).
- Strong interpersonal skills that build trust and connection within and across squads through open, honest communication.
- Comfortable engaging responsively with teams both remotely and in person when required.
- Ability to navigate rapidly to effective solutions through engaged listening, clear documentation and succinct presentation.
Preferred Additional Skills
- Background in healthcare or bioinformatics.
- Experience in regulated environments.
- Familiarity with workflow technologies such as Apache Airflow or NextFlow.
- Proficiency in handling large, complex datasets using tools like Hadoop/EMR or Spark.
Benefits
- Generous Leave: 30 days holiday, bank holidays, additional leave for long service and the option to apply for up to 30 days of remote working abroad annually (approval required).
- Family‑Friendly: blended working arrangements, flexible working, enhanced maternity, paternity and shared parental leave benefits.
- Pension & Financial: defined‑contribution pension (Genomics England double‑matches up to 10%, with contributions potentially higher), life assurance (3× salary) and a Give As You Earn scheme.
- Learning & Development: individual learning budgets, support for training and certifications, and reimbursement for one annual professional subscription (approval required).
- Recognition & Rewards: employee recognition programme and referral scheme.
- Health & Wellbeing: subsidised gym membership, a free Headspace account, and access to an Employee Assistance Programme, eye tests and flu jabs.
Equal Opportunities
Genomics England is actively committed to providing and supporting an inclusive environment that promotes equity, diversity and inclusion best practice both within our community and in any other area where we have influence. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination, harassment, victimisation or bullying at work.
Salary and Contract
Salary from: £103,400 per annum. This is a 1‑Year fixed‑term contract. Closing Date: Monday 22nd June @ 23:00 (UK time).
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