Principal Software Engineer; Java​/Kafka​/Python​/AWS - Remote

Principal Software Engineer (Java / Kafka / Python / AWS) - 3 month contract to hire - 100% Remote

Optomi, in partnership with one of the largest freight railroad networks in the country, is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to support modernization efforts within the Mechanical division. This role centers on rebuilding legacy microservices, scaling event‑driven systems, and processing high‑volume IoT detector data that drives safety and operational decisions across the rail network in North America. The ideal professional is a backend‑strong engineer with deep Java, Spring Boot, Python, and Kafka experience who enjoys modernizing distributed systems while contributing to cloud‑native development and mentoring junior engineers.

• Building event‑driven services with Java, Spring Boot, Kafka
• Developing backend workflows and data processing using Python
• Contributing to AWS cloud‑native development & Dev Sec Ops  automation
• Supporting both new builds and existing systems
• Mentoring junior developers and influencing technical direction

• Strong experience in backend development using Java and Spring Boot
• Python experience for backend automation & data workflows
• Hands‑on experience with event‑driven architecture using Kafka
• Experience with AWS and microservice‑based architecture
• Exposure to front‑end technologies such as Type Script and Angular
• Experience with IoT or high‑volume data environments

• Seniority Level: Mid‑Senior level
• Employment Type: Full‑time
• Job Function: Engineering and Information Technology
• Industries: Transportation, Logistics, Supply Chain and Storage & Rail Transportation