RDS provides customers with databases that have multiple-nines of durability and availability. Achieving this level of reliability requires building control and monitoring systems that automatically detect and handle many types of failures within seconds, and data replication options that accommodate various geographical distribution and disaster recovery objectives. The challenge is further heightened by needing to handle huge numbers of databases, multiple database engines (RDS supports MySQL, Oracle, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, MariaDB, and Amazon Aurora), and a wide variety of customer workloads.
This role is for the AWS RDS for SQL Server team. SQL Server is a relational database management system developed by Microsoft. Amazon RDS for SQL Server makes it easy to set up, operate, and scale SQL Server deployments in the cloud. For more information on RDS SQL Server, please visit: http://aws.amazon.com/rds/sqlserver
To achieve our goals in this area, we are looking for a Software Engineer who loves to dive in and solve fundamental Computer Science and Systems problems around performance, timing, state machine logic and distributed systems algorithms. Candidates need to have a strong sense of ownership, passion to provide a great customer experience and excellent troubleshooting skills even when in high-pressure situations. If you'd like to be a part of creating always-on databases in the AWS cloud, this is the job for you!
Key job responsibilities
Define strategy in ambiguity - Identify problems and opportunities where the path forward isn't clear, and design long-term solutions using sound judgment and stakeholder input
Lead end-to-end delivery - Own the full lifecycle of solutions, from scoping and design through execution, simplifying complexity for the best outcome
Drive cross-functional influence - Collaborate across teams, organizations, and geographies to align on goals and deliver results across one or more programs
Solve complex problems - Tackle challenging business and technology issues, define project requirements, and resolve escalations decisively
Communicate at all levels - Write strategic narratives and present to senior leadership; build consensus across diverse stakeholders
Balance short-term and long-term - Make trade-offs between immediate delivery needs and sustainable, scalable solutions while mitigating long-term risks
Mentor and develop talent - Coach and grow team members, raising the bar on team capability
Drive operational excellence - Champion best practices and process improvements that elevate team performance
Clear blockers and drive resolution - Navigate difficult situations, escalate appropriately, and keep programs moving forward
Deliver lasting impact - Produce work that shapes long-term team direction and goals
A day in the life
As a Senior SDE, you'll split your time between hands-on coding and leading technical direction for your team. Day-to-day, you're designing systems, reviewing architectures, unblocking engineers, and writing narratives to align stakeholders - from product managers and designers to senior leadership. You own ambiguous, cross-cutting problems end-to-end: figuring out what to build, driving consensus when people disagree, making trade-off calls, and mentoring junior devs along the way. It's part IC, part tech lead, and you're expected to find the path forward even when the problem isn't well-defined.
About the team
We're the team behind Amazon RDS for SQL Server - making it ridiculously easy for customers to run SQL Server in the cloud without wrestling with infrastructure. We tackle gnarly distributed systems challenges (automated failover, zero-downtime patching, scaling at cloud speed) for customers ranging from scrappy startups to Fortune 500 giants. The culture? Collaborative, high-ownership, and refreshingly low on bureaucracy - we ship fast, learn from our customers, and actually enjoy the work. If you like solving puzzles that millions of people quietly depend on every day, you'll fit right in.
BASIC QUALIFICATIONS
- 5+ years of non-internship professional software development experience
- 5+ years of programming with at least one software programming language experience
- 5+ years of leading design or architecture (design patterns, reliability and scaling) of new and existing systems experience
- Experience as a mentor, tech lead or leading an engineering team
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- 5+ years of full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations experience
- Bachelor's degree in computer science or equivalent
The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.
USA, WA, Redmond - 168,100.00 - 227,400.00 USD annually
