Staff Software Engineer in Cambridge

Join to apply for the Staff Software Engineer role at Illumina. What if the work you did every day could impact the lives of people you know? Or all of humanity? At Illumina, we are expanding access to genomic technology to realise health equity for billions of people around the world. Our efforts enable life-changing discoveries that are transforming human health through the early detection and diagnosis of diseases and new treatment options for patients. Working at Illumina means being part of something bigger than yourself. Every person, in every role, has the opportunity to make a difference. Surrounded by extraordinary people, inspiring leaders, and world-changing projects, you will do more and become more than you ever thought possible.

Illumina Lab Services (ILS) has an exciting opportunity for an experienced software engineer to join the software and test team. This team builds software used by scientists to track and process large quantities of clinical genomic data and was instrumental in delivering the 100,000 genomes project. Building on this success, ILS is entering the next phase of the project and needs a Staff Software Engineer to help define the architecture and drive development of software that manages laboratory operations.

You’ll join a highly motivated team of software and test engineers that work closely with other teams across ILS, including bioinformatics and lab operations. Day-to-day activities span the entire development lifecycle and include both hands-on development and providing expertise to help define software architecture and design. This role also requires some technical leadership and would suit an experienced, proactive engineer who is looking for that next challenge. Most importantly you will have an opportunity to be part of a multidisciplinary group that delivers software solutions to support cutting-edge sequencing operations that make a difference to peoples’ lives.

You’re a collaborative and detail-oriented software engineer who thrives in Agile teams and enjoys working across the full development lifecycle. You bring strong experience in backend development with Python and REST APIs, and ideally have worked with client-side frameworks like AngularJS. You’re comfortable with CI/CD pipelines, containerisation tools like Docker and Kubernetes, and have a solid grasp of relational databases such as PostgreSQL or MySQL. Experience with regulated environments, cloud services (AWS), and event-driven architectures (Kafka or RabbitMQ) would be a plus. You’re a natural communicator who documents and shares knowledge instinctively, and you’re motivated by the opportunity to contribute to meaningful healthcare innovation.

• Collaborate with software engineers, test engineers and product owners across a global team to design, develop, and maintain full-stack applications and services in Agile teams.
• Lead technical discussions across local and global teams and provide guidance during architectural decision making.
• Maintain software designs and implement code changes to ensure alignment with software requirements.
• Be an advocate for our SDLC and ensure that software is developed in compliance with our quality management system and medical device standards.
• Maintain awareness of industry trends and evaluate suitability of new software technologies to platform development efforts.
• Provide technical assistance to escalated operational issues.
• Contribute to a shared responsibility for devops best practice.
• Scope to potentially broaden the role to include line-management in the future.

Bachelor's degree or higher in computer science, or a related engineering subject. Or equivalent experience.

Our team members are bright, energetic, and dedicated – they are the driving force behind our innovation and impact. To attract the best and brightest, we offer a competitive employee benefits program. We view it as a smart investment in our people, one that recognises the tremendous value they bring to our business every day. At Illumina, we push boundaries. We think beyond the conventional. We dream big. With the energy of so many bright and accomplished people, the opportunities are endless.