Principal/Staff Software Engineer - AI tools and Adoption

Yahoo Mail is the ultimate consumer inbox with hundreds of millions of users. It’s the best way to access your email and stay organized from a computer, phone or tablet. With its beautiful design and lightning fast speed, Yahoo Mail makes reading, organizing, and sending emails easier than ever.

Yahoo Mail is seeking a Principal/Staff Software Engineer to lead our AI adoption initiative across the Engineering organization. You will be the driving force behind improving our 400+ engineers productivity by transforming development practices embedded with AI.
As the lead of AI initiatives in Engineering, you will orchestrate an engineering-wide transformation that makes AI-driven productivity a core engineering competency. This role requires someone who can navigate the rapidly evolving AI landscape, drive adoption across diverse teams, and deliver measurable business impact.

Responsibilities:

• Drive Cultural Transformation: Lead the evolution from AI-curious to AI-native engineering practices across all relevant teams

• Champion Change Management: Convert skeptics into advocates through data-driven demonstrations of value and hands-on enablement including Proof of concept

• Tool Evaluation & Selection: Continuously assess emerging AI tools (Copilot, Claude Code, Codex, etc.) and make data-driven recommendations based on Mail legacy Infrastructure

• Measure & Accelerate Adoption: Establish KPIs, track progress from the current 50% to 100% adoption, and implement interventions to accelerate uptake

• Build Communities of Practice: Create forums for knowledge sharing, celebrate wins, and foster peer-to-peer learning

• Architecture & Integration: Design technical frameworks for integrating AI tools into existing development workflows and CI/CD pipelines

• Virtual Engineer Implementation: Lead proof-of-concepts for coding agents in standardized tasks (Lite Connectors via CoIL, code refactoring, test generation)

• Security & Compliance: Partner with Security and Legal teams to ensure AI tool usage protects IP and meets compliance requirements

• Technical Standards: Establish best practices, guidelines, and guardrails for AI-assisted development

• Performance Optimization: Analyze and optimize the technical performance and cost-efficiency of AI tool deployments

• Innovation Pipeline: Maintain awareness of cutting-edge AI developments and identify opportunities for competitive advantage

• Remove Barriers: Identify and systematically eliminate technical, cultural, and process obstacles to AI adoption

• Communicate Impact: Regularly present adoption metrics, success stories, and ROI to engineering leadership and executives

Qualifications:

• Have experience with latest AI tech - Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, Claude Code, ChatGPT, OpenAI Codex, GitHub Copilot

• 10+ years of software engineering experience with proven expertise across multiple programming languages and paradigms

• Deep hands-on experience with AI-powered development tools (GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, etc.)

• Strong understanding of LLMs, prompt engineering, and AI model capabilities/limitations

• Experience with CI/CD, DevOps practices, and modern software development workflows

• Track record of evaluating and implementing new technologies at scale

• Proven ability to drive technical initiatives across large engineering organizations 

• Experience leading without authority and influencing senior technical leaders

• Track record of successful change management in engineering contexts

• Demonstrated ability to convert technical innovations into business value

• Experience presenting to C-level executives and board members

• Experience driving tool adoption across diverse technical teams

• Strong communication skills with the ability to create compelling narratives for different audiences

• Data-driven approach to measuring and improving adoption metrics

• Patience and empathy when working with skeptics and late adopters

The material job duties and responsibilities of this role include those listed above as well as adhering to Yahoo policies; exercising sound judgment; working effectively, safely and inclusively with others; exhibiting trustworthiness and meeting expectations; and safeguarding business operations and brand integrity.

At Yahoo, we offer flexible hybrid work options that our employees love! While most roles don’t require regular office attendance, you may occasionally be asked to attend in-person events or team sessions. You’ll always get notice to make arrangements. Your recruiter will let you know if a specific job requires regular attendance at a Yahoo office or facility. If you have any questions about how this applies to the role, just ask the recruiter!

Yahoo is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, and will not be discriminated against based on age, race, gender, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, disability or any other protected category. Yahoo will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with applicable law. Yahoo is dedicated to providing an accessible environment for all candidates during the application process and for employees during their employment. If you need accessibility assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability, please submit a request via the Accommodation Request Form (www.yahooinc.com/careers/contact-us.html) or call +1.866.772.3182. Requests and calls received for non-disability related issues, such as following up on an application, will not receive a response.

We believe that a diverse and inclusive workplace strengthens Yahoo and deepens our relationships. When you support everyone to be their best selves, they spark discovery, innovation and creativity. Among other efforts, our 11 employee resource groups (ERGs) enhance a culture of belonging with programs, events and fellowship that help educate, support and create a workplace where all feel welcome.

The compensation for this position ranges from $143,625.00 - $299,375.00/yr and will vary depending on factors such as your location, skills and experience.The compensation package may also include incentive compensation opportunities in the form of discretionary annual bonus or commissions. Our comprehensive benefits include healthcare, a great 401k, backup childcare, education stipends and much (much) more.

Currently work for Yahoo? Please apply on our internal career site.