Principal Engineer

We believe in better. And we make it happen. 

Better content. Better products. And better careers. 

Working in Tech, Product or Data at Sky is about building the next and the new. From broadband to broadcast, streaming to mobile, SkyQ to Sky Glass, we never stand still. We optimise and innovate. 

We turn big ideas into the products, content and services millions of people love. 

And we do it all right here at Sky. 

What you'll do:  

• Technical Mentorship: Act as the technical lead engineers working cross-functionally in an agile environment; act as a top-notch coder and expert in the domain, capable of deep diving into details of components and features, uplifting capability and shaping engineering maturity across the Domain. 

• Architecture Partnership: Define and guide the technical architecture for complex, high impact data products and platforms. Manage Solution Architects and act as the natural bridge between Data Engineering and Data Architecture as well as colleagues in wider Technology. 

• Standards Setting: Establish engineering patterns, coding standards, and best practices adopted across multiple squads. 

• Design & Innovation: Translate sophisticated business and technical requirements into scalable, cloud native data solutions. Able to create and build frameworks to support CI/CD pipelines and future capability; drive adoption of new tools, technologies, and engineering approaches that support a cloud-agnostic, AI-ready future 

• Assurance & Excellence: Embed rigorous validation, profiling, reconciliation, and automated testing into all engineering work; lead monitoring, observability, and performance optimisation to ensure resilient, reliable data products. 

• Strategic Influence: Partner with architects, product leaders, and senior stakeholders to shape roadmaps and platform direction. Work collaboratively with your Principal Engineer peers to ensure consistent and joined-up approaches to our biggest priorities and challenges. Communicating in both deeply technical and plain and simple terms. 

What you'll bring:  

• Technical Mastery: Deep expertise in cloud data engineering, distributed processing, and enterprise-scale data architecture. Excellent GCP/Python and/or Node JS 8+ knowledge, and CI/CD experience (ideally with Jenkins). 

• Advanced SQL: Master-level proficiency in SQL (ideally BigQuery), with strong optimisation and performance-tuning skills. Experience following coding standards and performing peer code reviews. 

• Data Modelling & Insight: Strong capability in designing intuitive, scalable data models and semantic layers aligned to business meaning; skilled in advanced data profiling, anomaly detection, and statistical reasoning to ensure data integrity. 

• Collaboration: Able to influence senior stakeholders, simplify complex concepts, and build strong cross-functional relationships. 

• Technical Leadership: Expert in data quality frameworks, governance standards, and secure handling of sensitive data; connects engineering choices to long-term platform strategy, organisational goals, and future scalability. 

• Understanding: Uses deep business context within the specific Domain to shape proactive, value-driven engineering decisions; also equipped with first-class communication skills, able to grasp very complex data principles and processes, and decipher them in order to walk non-experts through them and gain support.  

Team overview:  

Our vision is to enable Sky’s growth ambitions though Data and AI: deepening customer relationships, optimising commercial performance, and enhancing operational efficiency. 

Our Principal Engineers work within Domains and manage our Solution Architects. With top-notch skills, they act as our Technical Leads, setting and improving standards across the team and helping to raise the bar on what’s possible. As a senior role, they’re also our bridge into wider teams such as Architecture and Technology, ensuring we work together in harmony in pursuit of our data strategy. 

Our Residential Products Domain is part of the Customer Directorate within Sky Data. It’s where we build and maintain data products and data assets for Sky’s Connectivity business – including Sky Broadband and Sky Mobile – as well as Sky TV and Sky Protect. We work within the Value Streams, as part of cross-functional teams driving exciting roadmaps; we also support broader work where we help to transform how things get done. That means we’re at the heart of the action, supporting and working on the products that keep our customers connected and protected, and which directly drive their Sky experience. Whether we’re helping to create magic on screen via the products people watch or using data and AI to improve how our business is set up behind the scenes, one thing’s for sure – this is a winning team that collaborates across Sky to make a genuine difference. 

The rewards  

There's one thing people can't stop talking about when it comes to #LifeAtSky: the perks. Here’s a taster: 

• Sky Q, for the TV you love all in one place 

• The magic of Sky Glass at an exclusive rate 

• A generous pension package 

• Private healthcare 

• Discounted mobile and broadband 

• A wide range of Sky VIP rewards and experiences 

Inclusion & how you'll work: 

Recognised by The Times and Stonewall, we take pride in our approach to diversity and inclusion. Investing in society, fighting racial injustice and setting ambitious targets for representation at Sky. 

We’ve embraced hybrid working and split our time between unique office spaces and the convenience of working from home. You’ll find out more about what hybrid working looks like for your role later on in the recruitment process. 

Your office space:  

Osterley:  

Our Osterley Campus is a 10-minute walk from Syon Lane train station. Or you can hop on one of our free shuttle buses that run to and from Osterley, Gunnersbury, Ealing Broadway and South Ealing tube stations. There’s also plenty of bike shelters and showers.  

On campus, you’ll find 13 subsidised restaurants, cafes, and a Waitrose. You can keep in shape at our subsidised gym, catch the latest shows and movies at our cinema, get your car washed and even get pampered at our beauty salon.   

We'd love to hear from you  

Inventive, forward-thinking minds come together to work in Tech, Product and Data at Sky. It’s a place where you can explore what if, how far, and what next. 

But better doesn’t stop at what we do, it’s how we do it, too. We embrace each other’s differences. We support our community and contribute to a sustainable future for our business and the planet. 

If you believe in better, we’ll back you all the way. 

Just so you know: if your application is successful, we’ll ask you to complete a criminal record check. And depending on the role you have applied for and the nature of any convictions you may have, we might have to withdraw the offer.