Amazon

Senior Software Engineer, Managed Streaming Kafka (MSK)

Amazon • $168K — $227K *
Seattle, WA 98115In-Person
Enterprise Technology
5 - 7 years of experience
Today
Be an Early Applicant
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of professional software development experience
  • 5+ years of programming experience with at least one language
  • Proven experience in leading design or architecture of systems
  • Experience in mentoring or leading an engineering team
  • 5+ years of experience in the full software development life cycle

Responsibilities

  • Design features and improve performance of the Kafka platform
  • Prototype solutions and ship code that directly serves customers
  • Collaborate with engineering teams to shape the roadmap
  • Identify necessary changes in the upstream platform for customer needs
  • Contribute to the open-source community by shipping changes back to Kafka

Benefits

  • Health insurance including medical, dental, and vision
  • 401(k) matching
  • Paid time off
  • Parental leave
  • Mental health support and employee assistance programs
Full Job Description
Come build the future of data streaming with the Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (MSK) team.

We're looking for builders who want to work on one of the fastest-growing services in AWS. Amazon MSK is a fully managed Apache Kafka service, and if you care about data streaming, open source, and operating at scale, this is the team.

You'll work across the full stack: the control plane APIs, the Kafka platform itself, and the tooling that makes Kafka easier to run for everyone. Upstream compatibility is a core tenet. Your changes to Kafka ship back to open source. That's the deal, and it's a good one. You get to build inside AWS and contribute to one of the most widely adopted open-source platforms in the world.

Day to day, you'll design features, improve performance, prototype solutions, and ship code that serves customers directly. You'll collaborate with engineers across the team and work with senior leaders to shape the roadmap, including identifying what needs to change in the upstream platform to unlock what customers need next.

We're looking for people who've built large-scale distributed systems, who enjoy hard problems, and who can reason about tradeoffs at the intersection of performance, reliability, and cost. Experience with Kafka, Kinesis, Flink, or Spark is a plus. What matters more is that you're curious, you ship, and you think in systems.

Recent MSK innovations:

- MSK Replicator for External Clusters (April 2026): Replication from external Apache Kafka clusters to MSK Express Brokers and back, enabling migration and multi-cloud distribution.

- Topic Management APIs (February 2026): New CreateTopic, UpdateTopic, and DeleteTopic APIs with console integration, eliminating the need to maintain Kafka admin clients.

- Apache Kafka 4.1 Support (October 2025): Queues as a preview feature, a new Streams Rebalance Protocol in early access, and Eligible Leader Replicas (ELR).

- 5x More Partitions on Express Brokers (July 2025): Partition-bound workloads can now be hosted on fewer brokers, simplifying cluster sizing.

- Seamless Certificate Renewals (May 2025): Brokers receive updated encryption certificates without restarts.

- Express Brokers (re:Invent 2024): Up to 3x more throughput per broker, 20x faster scaling, 90% faster recovery, and hands-free unlimited storage.

- KRaft Mode (May 2024): Clusters run without ZooKeeper, supporting up to 60 brokers.

- Tiered Storage (2023): Decouples compute from storage to optimize cost and scalability.

Learn more about Amazon MSK:

- AWS re:Invent 2024: Express Brokers for Amazon MSK

- AWS re:Invent 2023: How Rivian builds real-time analytics from electric vehicles

- AWS re:Invent 2021: How Coinbase uses Amazon MSK as an event store for applications

- AWS re:Invent 2020: How Goldman Sachs uses an Amazon MSK backbone for Transaction Banking Platform

- AWS re:Invent 2020: How New Relic is migrating its Apache Kafka cluster to Amazon MSK

- AWS re:Invent 2018: Amazon Managed Streaming for Apache Kafka (Amazon MSK) Launch

- MSK Tiered Storage: Optimize cost and improve Kafka scalability

Utility Computing (UC)

AWS Utility Computing (UC) provides product innovations from foundational services such as Amazon S3 and Amazon EC2 to consistently released new product innovations that continue to set AWS apart in the industry. As a member of the UC organization, you'll support the development and management of Compute, Database, Storage, Internet of Things (IoT), Platform, and Productivity Apps services in AWS, including support for customers who require specialized security solutions for their cloud services.

About the team

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, Seattle - 168,100.00 - 227,400.00 USD annually

About Amazon

Audible is a provider of spoken audio information and entertainment , on the Internet. They provide premium spoken audio content, such as audio versions of books and newspapers and radio programs, that is delivered over the Internet and played back on personal computers and hand-held electronic devices. The Audible service allows consumers to purchase and download their content from their Website, store it in digital files and play it back on personal computers and electronic devices. More than 15,000 hours of audio content are available on their Web site, including audio versions of books, periodicals and radio programs. Several manufacturers have agreed to support and promote the playback of their content on their hand-held audio-enabled electronic devices.

Amazon Careers

Joining Amazon presents an unparalleled opportunity to become part of a vibrant team pushing the boundaries of innovation and growth in the global marketplace. As a leader in e-commerce, technology, and logistics, Amazon offers a variety of job opportunities that cater to a range of skills and professional interests. Work You’ll Do At Amazon, every day is an opportunity to collaborate with the brightest minds in technology and business to redefine what’s possible. Whether you’re interested in software development, marketing, human resources, or customer service, Amazon has a position waiting for you. Transform the way the world shops and innovates with our diverse and inclusive team. Amazon is not just a company; it’s a community where you can drive real change and contribute to projects impacting millions globally. Lead with Innovation and Leadership Amazon is the perfect place to enhance your leadership and innovation skills. Our culture encourages pushing the envelope and imagining the unimaginable. Here, you will lead projects that challenge the status quo and define new industry standards. Work with a team that values diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment. Our leadership is focused on harnessing the collective power of unique perspectives to foster growth and innovation. Explore Amazon’s Employment Benefits Amazon’s commitment to its employees extends beyond just career growth. We offer competitive benefits, including health care, parental leave, and diversity training, ensuring that our team not only excels professionally but also enjoys well-being and security. Internship and Networking Opportunities Start your career with an Amazon internship and gain hands-on experience that matters. Our internships provide a gateway to full-time employment and an opportunity to network with professionals across various sectors of the company. Future-Proof Your Career With Amazon, your career path is filled with numerous opportunities for advancement. Our learning and development programs are designed to nurture your professional growth and keep you at the forefront of industry trends. Stay Connected Join Our Team Discover the job opportunities at Amazon that match your skills and interests. We are constantly on the lookout for passionate, curious, and innovative team players ready to make a difference. Keep Up to Date Stay ahead with career tips, insider perspectives, and industry-leading insights you can put to use today—all from the people who work here. Job Alert Emails Customize your subscription to receive job alerts, the latest news, and insider tips tailored to your preferences. Explore the exciting and rewarding career opportunities that await at Amazon. Amazon is more than just a company—it’s a platform for building a promising future. Whether you’re starting or looking to advance your career, Amazon offers the resources, support, and network you need to succeed. Join us, and be a part of our continuing mission to be Earth's most customer-centric company.
Learn more about Amazon
Size
1,608 employees
Market Cap
$832.6 billion
Industry
Retail & Consumer Goods
Net Income
$21.3 billion
Founded
1994
5 Year Trend
+28.1%
Revenue
$386 billion
NASDAQ
AMZN
* Ladders Estimates

Similar Jobs

Ad banner background

Get Ready For Your
Next Interview

More Jobs at Amazon

More Enterprise Technology Jobs

Find similar Senior Software Engineer, Managed Streaming Kafka (MSK) jobs:

NationwideSeattle, WA