Job Description

Wells Fargo is seeking a Principal Engineer to join the Strategic Services & Advanced Technology (SSAT) team within the Digital Technology and Innovation group. This role will lead the architecture, design, and modernization of a next-generation Document Generation & Customer Communication Platform, shaping enterprise-grade solutions across Java-based distributed systems, legacy mainframe applications, Agentic AI and GenAI capabilities, and vendor off-the-shelf products, while upholding the highest standards of scalability, security, resiliency, and regulatory compliance in a banking environment. This position requires a highly respected technical leader who can operate as an architect, strategist, hands-on engineer, and trusted advisor to leadership across multiple groups.

In this role, you will:

Act as a trusted technical advisor to leadership, influencing highly complex engineering decisions across applications, architecture, platforms, APIs, and enterprise Document Generation technology ecosystems.
Define and drive end-to-end architecture for high-volume, mission-critical platforms, leveraging Java, Spring Boot, microservices, APIs, event-driven systems, vendor off-the-shelf software, and modern UI frameworks such as React.
Lead the strategy and resolution of complex, enterprise-scale technology challenges, applying long-term thinking, innovation, and architectural judgment across multiple business and engineering organizations.
Architect and integrate Generative AI and Agentic AI solutions into the Enterprise Document Generation & Customer Communication platform, including LLM-powered applications, RAG architectures, embeddings, vector databases, orchestration frameworks, and AI-enabled developer or business workflows.
Balance innovation with risk management, regulatory compliance, and operational stability, ensuring solutions are secure, resilient, and production-ready.
Conduct architectural design reviews, code reviews, proofs of concept, and technology evaluations, identifying architectural risks, technical debt, and modernization opportunities, and recommending pragmatic remediation strategies.
Mentor and guide engineers at all levels, elevating engineering standards, providing technical leadership, and fostering a culture of innovation, ownership, continuous learning, and operational excellence.
Translate deep technical expertise and business domain knowledge across Documents, Digitization, and AI into actionable platform roadmaps and well-architected engineering solutions aligned with both tactical and strategic objectives.
Define vision and provide technical direction for integration and adoption patterns, orchestration, observability, and operational controls within the Enterprise Document Generation & Customer Communication platform.
Maintain awareness of industry best practices and emerging technologies across Document Generation, Customer Communications, and Agentic AI / GenAI, recommending innovations that improve operational efficiency or provide competitive advantage.
Engage strategically with engineering leaders, architects, and executives across the enterprise, acting as a trusted expert and thought leader for Document Generation and Customer Communications platforms.
Participate in architectural design discussions, conduct rigorous code reviews, and uphold high standards for technical documentation and engineering quality.
Troubleshoot and resolve complex issues across development, test, and production environments, ensuring platform stability and reliability.

Required Qualifications:

7+ years of professional software engineering experience, or equivalent demonstrated through a combination of work experience, training, military service, or education, with progressively increasing scope and technical responsibility.
5+ years of experience designing, building, and owning large-scale, production-grade distributed systems, including event-driven architectures and real-time data streaming technologies such as Kafka or equivalent platforms.
5+ years of experience in system design and architecture for high-scale applications, with demonstrated depth in performance optimization, fault tolerance, resiliency, and operational reliability.
7+ years of experience in the Java ecosystem, including Core Java, Spring Boot, RESTful APIs, microservices, concurrency, and performance tuning, delivering scalable, enterprise-grade backend services, APIs, and orchestration workflows.
5+ years of experience in data architecture and persistence strategies, including relational and/or NoSQL databases, data modeling, and high-throughput data access patterns in distributed systems.
3+ years of experience with cloud-native platforms and architectures, including containerization, distributed runtime environments, and scalable deployment and operational models.
3+ years of experience applying security, data privacy, and governance principles, particularly within regulated enterprise environments, ensuring solutions meet compliance and risk management standards by design.

Desired Qualifications:

Demonstrated ability to operate effectively within highly matrixed organizations, influencing technical direction and outcomes without direct authority.
Experience with enterprise document generation and customer communication platforms, such as OpenText Exstream, Adobe Experience Manager, SmartCOMM, Quadient Inspire, or comparable solutions.
Enterprise Content Management (ECM) experience, including document generation, storage and retention strategies, MIME types, accessibility (ADA) compliance, and multi-language content support.
Experience with large-scale batch processing and mainframe-based systems, including integration with modern distributed and cloud-native architectures.
Hands-on experience delivering Generative AI solutions, including work with large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), embeddings, vector databases, Python development, and agent-based frameworks or orchestration patterns.
Experience integrating AI capabilities into enterprise backend platforms and digital workflows, with a focus on security, resiliency, and operational readiness.
Strong frontend architecture and development experience, using modern frameworks and technologies such as React or Angular, JavaScript/TypeScript, HTML, and CSS, with the ability to deliver secure, scalable enterprise user experiences.

Job Expectations:

Ability to travel up to 10% of the time
This position is not eligible for Visa sponsorship or transfer of visa
Ability to work on-site at approved location
Relocation assistance is not available for this position

Posting Locations:

1525 W WT Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC
2222 W Rose Garden Lane, Phoenix, AZ
2600 S Price Rd., Chandler AZ
550 S 4th St., Minneapolis, MN
800 S Jordan Creek Pkwy., Des Moines, IA

Pay Range

Reflected is the base pay range offered for this position. Pay may vary depending on factors including but not limited to demonstrated examples of prior performance, skills, experience, or work location. Employees may also be eligible for incentive opportunities.

$159,000.00 - $254,000.00 USD Annual

Posting End Date: 24 Apr 2026

*Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

We Value Equal Opportunity

Wells Fargo is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected characteristic.

Employees support our focus on building strong customer relationships balanced with a strong risk mitigating and compliance-driven culture which firmly establishes those disciplines as critical to the success of our customers and company. They are accountable for execution of all applicable risk programs (Credit, Market, Financial Crimes, Operational, Regulatory Compliance), which includes effectively following and adhering to applicable Wells Fargo policies and procedures, appropriately fulfilling risk and compliance obligations, timely and effective escalation and remediation of issues, and making sound risk decisions. There is emphasis on proactive monitoring, governance, risk identification and escalation, as well as making sound risk decisions commensurate with the business unit’s risk appetite and all risk and compliance program requirements.

Candidates applying to job openings posted in Canada: Applications for employment are encouraged from all qualified candidates, including women, persons with disabilities, aboriginal peoples and visible minorities. Accommodation for applicants with disabilities is available upon request in connection with the recruitment process.

Wells Fargo Recruitment and Hiring Requirements:

Third-Party recordings are prohibited unless authorized by Wells Fargo.
Wells Fargo requires you to directly represent your own experiences during the recruiting and hiring process.

Pay Range

$159,000.00 - $279,000.00

Benefits

Wells Fargo provides eligible employees with a comprehensive set of benefits, many of which are listed below. Visit Benefits - Wells Fargo Jobs for an overview of the following benefit plans and programs offered to employees.