Principal Software Engineer

Posted:
1/13/2026, 7:24:09 PM

Experience Level(s):
Expert or higher ⋅ Senior

Field(s):
Software Engineering

Job Requisition ID #

26WD94865

Principal Software Engineer – Forma Design

Join Autodesk and the Forma Design team as a Principal Software Engineer. In this role, you’ll stay deeply hands-on while shaping technical direction across teams and domains. You’ll work closely with Engineering Managers, Product Managers, Designers, and other engineers to turn complex design automation challenges into scalable, user-facing product capabilities.

We believe there is a better way to design our cities. To enable this, we aim to transform how architects and engineers work through collaborative, outcome-driven design tools. Your contributions will have a direct impact on shaping our offering—enabling users to discover smart, sustainable solutions and gain valuable insights in their projects.

About the role and the team

You’ll be part of a dedicated product team within Forma Design, working in an empowered product triad together with Product and Design. Together, you will discover, validate, and deliver automation capabilities that reduce manual work, increase consistency, and allow best practices, standards, and domain knowledge to be embedded directly into design workflows.

This role is about turning design automations into a first-class product capability. Automations are created as reusable, configurable building blocks that can be applied and adapted across different projects and contexts, without requiring users to write code or understand the underlying implementation. 

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will operate beyond a single team. You’ll help set technical direction, solve complex cross-cutting problems, and ensure our architecture, systems, and ways of working scale sustainably as our product and organization grow.

On the engineering side, you’ll work with a wide range of technologies, including web, large-scale systems, and cloud computing, tackling challenging problems alongside highly engaged and motivated colleagues. In line with our culture, principal engineers lead through influence, collaboration, and example—not authority.

About us

Our tools help architects, urban planners, and real estate developers find the smartest and most sustainable ways to unlock the potential of their projects. We focus on enabling outcome-based design through assessing the living quality (sun, daylight potential, noise, et al), environmental impact (embodied and operational carbon), and profitability of our users' projects.

Learn more about our products in this video.

What will help you succeed in this role

  • Strong hands-on engineering background building cloud-based, user-facing systems
  • Proven experience driving architectural or technical decisions beyond a single team
  • Ability to operate with clarity and confidence in ambiguous problem spaces
  • Strong collaboration and communication skills across disciplines and seniority levels
  • Cares deeply about writing code that delivers value to users quickly and sustainably

You might also bring

  • Experience with TypeScript, serverless architectures, or AWS
  • Background in large-scale systems, platforms, or shared infrastructure
  • Interest in AI-enabled workflows or design automation (you don’t need to be an expert)
  • Experience working in empowered, product-led teams

Why you might love this role

  • You enjoy solving complex problems that cut across teams and domains
  • You care about sustainability and real-world impact
  • You like shaping products collaboratively with Product and Design
  • You want to stay hands-on while influencing technical direction at scale

Learn More

About Autodesk

Welcome to Autodesk! Amazing things are created every day with our software – from the greenest buildings and cleanest cars to the smartest factories and biggest hit movies. We help innovators turn their ideas into reality, transforming not only how things are made, but what can be made.

We take great pride in our culture here at Autodesk – it’s at the core of everything we do. Our culture guides the way we work and treat each other, informs how we connect with customers and partners, and defines how we show up in the world.

When you’re an Autodesker, you can do meaningful work that helps build a better world designed and made for all. Ready to shape the world and your future? Join us!

Salary transparency

Salary is one part of Autodesk’s competitive compensation package. Offers are based on the candidate’s experience and geographic location. In addition to base salaries, our compensation package may include annual cash bonuses, commissions for sales roles, stock grants, and a comprehensive benefits package.

Diversity & Belonging
We take pride in cultivating a culture of belonging where everyone can thrive. Learn more here: https://www.autodesk.com/company/diversity-and-belonging

Are you an existing contractor or consultant with Autodesk?

Please search for open jobs and apply internally (not on this external site).

Autodesk

Website: http://www.autodesk.com/

Headquarter Location: San Francisco, California, United States

Employee Count: 10001+

Year Founded: 1982

IPO Status: Public

Last Funding Type: Seed

Industries: 3D Technology ⋅ Architecture ⋅ Construction ⋅ Manufacturing ⋅ Software ⋅ Software Engineering