Software Engineer Principal - Ansible/Python

Overview At PNC, our people are our greatest differentiator and competitive advantage in the markets we serve. We are all united in delivering the best experience for our customers. We work together each day to foster an inclusive workplace culture where all of our employees feel respected, valued and have an opportunity to contribute to the company’s success. As a Software Engineer Principal - Ansible/Python within PNC's Technology organization, you can be based in Pittsburgh, PA; Strongsville, OH; Cleveland, OH; Birmingham, AL; Phoenix, AZ; Lakewood, CO; Dallas, TX. PNC is an in-office company that fosters a supportive culture where employees can thrive and achieve balance. We encourage candidates to connect with their recruiter and hiring manager to understand workplace expectations and ensure the role aligns with their goals.   PNC will not provide sponsorship for employment visas or participate in STEM OPT for this position.

The Software Engineer Principal is a part of a team responsible for modernizing legacy technology by moving to an Ansible‑based backend and Python‑driven automation, with a strong emphasis on reliability and operational readiness. Focused on technology and business resiliency, They will own and build systems that support high availability, disaster recovery, and automated failover between data centers. This is a hands‑on individual contributor role with technical leadership responsibilities. The engineer spends most of the time building and operating systems, while also guiding technical direction and supporting team members.

Design, build, and maintain backend infrastructure that supports high availability and automated failover between data centers Architect and implement resiliency solutions for distributed systems, including failover and failback workflows Develop and manage automation for recovery operations using Ansible and Python Lead disaster recovery testing and validate system resiliency and readiness Collaborate closely with architects to align designs with long‑term resiliency goals Partner with product owners to plan work, refine requirements, and size epics and user stories Work within an Agile delivery environment, contributing to planning and execution Establish and promote best practices for reliability, recovery, and continuity engineering Mentor junior engineers through technical guidance and hands‑on collaboration Contribute directly to backend development and operational improvements as needed Operate as a senior individual contributor with a player‑coach mindset, spending most time on hands‑on development while providing technical leadership Preferred Technical Skills Hands‑on expertise with Ansible for infrastructure automation and orchestration of failover workflows Strong Python experience building automation, services, and resiliency tooling Strong experience with backend engineering in distributed systems Experience with distributed task processing using Celery, including asynchronous workflows, retries, and scheduling Solid understanding of high availability, disaster recovery, and resiliency architectures Experience designing systems that handle failure scenarios gracefully Experience building application programming interfaces using FastAPI Familiarity with relational database access using SQLAlchemy or SQLModel Preferred Experience Operating at a senior or principal engineering level in scope and impact Experience collaborating closely with product owners, architects, and engineering peers Experience contributing to Agile planning, estimation, and delivery Ownership of outcomes and drives work from design through implementation and validation Aligns business strategy with software solutions. Proposes, designs & codes software solutions to address complex business needs. Oversees technical and procedural documentation required. Leads complex problem solving. Provides technical guidance and support to