Amazon

Software Development Engineer, AWS OpenSearch Service

Amazon$143K — $194K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 3+ years of professional software development experience
  • 2+ years in system design or architecture focusing on reliability and scaling
  • 1+ years as a software development engineer or a related role
  • 1+ years designing and developing large-scale, distributed software applications
  • Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or related field

Responsibilities

  • Design and manage components of a large-scale distributed control plane
  • Identify and implement simplifications in code and infrastructure
  • Take ownership of the systems built, including incident response and operational improvements
  • Address challenges in cluster orchestration and lifecycle workflows
  • Effectively use AI tools throughout the software development lifecycle
  • Write maintainable code in Java, Rust, Python, or Go
  • Collaborate with senior engineers to convert requirements into deliverables
  • Continuously evaluate and improve existing systems for customer benefit

Benefits

  • Health insurance (medical, dental, vision)
  • 401(k) matching
  • Paid time off
  • Parental leave
  • Mental health support and resources
Full Job Description
Come join the OpenSearch Control Plane team. We are responsible for a service that:

- Reliably manages a large fleet of cloud-native OpenSearch clusters and collections, freeing customers from sizing, scaling, and patching decisions

- Guarantees high availability and durability for mission-critical search and observability workloads at the scale of the most demanding internet businesses

- Orchestrates and automates the complete lifecycle of an OpenSearch cluster or collection - from creation through scale-up, scale-out, upgrade, replication, and fail-over

The OpenSearch control plane is not just any distributed system. It orchestrates a fleet of clusters across every AWS region, detects and recovers from node failures in seconds, and serves workloads that span petabytes of customer data. Most recently, we launched **OpenSearch Serverless NextGen** - delivering ultra-fast collection provisioning and true scale-to-zero capacity, so customers pay only for what they use and get a working environment in seconds rather than minutes. We are not done; this is one of many investments raising the bar for what customers can expect from a managed search service.

OpenSearch itself is a community-driven, Apache 2.0-licensed open-source search and analytics suite built on Apache Lucene. Since launching in July 2021, the project has delivered multiple major and minor releases advancing core search, vector search, and analytics. Our next phase focuses on transforming OpenSearch into an intelligent retrieval engine - one that meets the evolving needs of customers running search, analytics, and AI-powered workloads across structured, unstructured, and multi-modal data.

We work in Java, Rust, Python, and Go. We contribute upstream to OpenSearch and Apache Lucene. We are customer-obsessed, operate with the entrepreneurial pace of a startup inside one of the world's largest cloud providers, and value strong intuition backed by metrics.

**Operations is core engineering on this team, not overhead.** Engineers operate what they build, and we treat customer-impacting incidents with the same engineering rigor we apply to feature work. Reliability and Static Stability is a forcing function for design, not a phase after launch.

Key job responsibilities

- Design, develop, and operate components of a large-scale distributed control plane - reason about failure modes, multi-tenant isolation, and blast-radius before writing code

- Look for opportunities to simplify - consolidate duplicate abstractions, remove dead code, reduce configuration sprawl, and challenge complexity that doesn't earn its keep

- Treat operations as core engineering - own the systems you build end-to-end, participate fully in incident response and RCAs, and drive operational improvements that reduce cost and maintenance burden

- Solve real problems in cluster orchestration, capacity provisioning, lifecycle workflows, multi-tenant infrastructure, query routing, and operational tooling

- Use AI coding assistants and GenAI tools effectively across the software development lifecycle - from design and prototyping through coding, testing, code review, debugging, and operations - applying engineering judgment to validate AI-generated output against Amazon's correctness, security, and operational bar

- Write robust, efficient, and maintainable code in Java, Rust, Python, or Go

- Partner with senior engineers to translate ambiguous requirements into concrete deliverables; prototype, test, and validate

- Continually challenge what exists and explore what should change to better serve customers

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS

- 3+ years of non-internship professional software development experience

- 2+ years of non-internship design or architecture (design patterns, reliability and scaling) of new and existing systems experience

- 1+ years of software development engineer or related occupational experience

- 1+ years of designing and developing large-scale, multi-tiered, multi-threaded, embedded or distributed software applications, tools, systems, and services using: C#, C++, Java, or Perl experience

- 1+ years of Object Oriented Design experience

- Bachelor's degree or foreign equivalent in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field

- Experience programming with at least one software programming language

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

- 3+ 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, TX, Austin - 143,700.00 - 194,400.00 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
Net Income
$21.3 billion
Founded
1994
5 Year Trend
+28.1%
Revenue
$386 billion
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