Principal Architect
- Role
- Engineering Management
- Experience
- Principal
Open to US only. Set where you work from to check your eligibility.
No BS summary
Principal-level architect to lead design and delivery of Amazon Connect contact-center solutions and AI-native conversational agents. Requires deep hands-on Amazon Connect and generative/conversational AI experience plus strong AWS serverless engineering (Python, TypeScript/Node.js). US-based candidates only; visa sponsorship is not available.
Core skills
Required skills
Optional skills
Caylent is an AI-first cloud services company that helps organizations turn ambitious ideas into meaningful business impact. As an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner and a charter member of Anthropic’s Claude Partner Network, we combine deep expertise in AWS, artificial intelligence, and Anthropic’s Claude platform to help customers modernize their technology, build intelligent products, and move AI from experimentation into production. Our capabilities span generative and agentic AI, cloud migration and modernization, cloud-native application development, data and analytics, DevOps, managed services, security and compliance, and customer experience transformation. At Caylent, our people always come first. We are a fully remote global company with employees in Canada, the United States and Latin America. We celebrate the culture of each of our team members and foster a community of technological curiosity. Come talk to us to learn more about what it means to be a Caylien! The Mission We are seeking a talented Principal Architect to join our growing CXE (Contact Center Experience) practice. The right candidate is someone who combines deep hands-on Amazon Connect and conversational AI expertise with the technical leadership to own delivery of complex, AI-native contact center solutions end to end. Your mission will be to lead the architecture and technical delivery of Amazon Connect and AI agent solutions for our customers, providing expert guidance, managing technical risk, and ensuring that scope, deliverables, and objectives align to business outcomes and Caylent best practices while leading the Caylent technical team to deliver with excellence. Your Assignment AI Agent & Conversational AI Development Build AI-native self-service using Amazon Connect AI agents, Amazon Q in Connect, and Amazon Bedrock (Claude model family), implementing multi-agent orchestration patterns, with orchestrator agents delegating to task-specific agents and escalation paths to human queues Engineer prompts and tool-calling integrations at production scale: SearchProfiles lookups, case creation, external API tools, authentication flows, and guardrails against hallucination and verification loops Implement barge-in handling, fallback, and error-recovery behavior for voice AI, and validate it with turn-by-turn trace analysis Optimize inference cost and latency hands-on: model tier selection (Haiku vs. Sonnet vs. Opus), prompt caching, and token budgeting against containment-rate targets Diagnose AI agent performance using observability tooling (agent spans and CloudWatch) that correlates contact flow logs, conversation transcripts, AI agent spans, tool executions, and token usage to isolate latency, cost, and quality issues Build conversational experiences where intent-based NLU is the right fit, including multilingual support and SSML-tuned voice interactions Leverage Claude Code to enhance, develop, and/or create system architectures and components Amazon Connect Platform Engineering Build contact flows that integrate AI agents, Lambda-backed business logic, Customer Profiles, and dynamic data-driven routing Implement Amazon Connect Cases and Tasks solutions: case templates, queue-based work allocation, SLA monitoring, approval workflows, and migrations from legacy case systems Configure and operationalize Contact Lens for real-time sentiment, post-contact summaries, category rules, and quality management Implement proficiency-based and attribute-driven routing, outbound campaigns (including answering machine detection and compliance controls) Build out the Amazon Connect analytics data lake (Glue, Lake Formation, Athena) and QuickSight dashboards for real-time operations and executive reporting Support legacy platform migrations (i.e. Avaya, Genesys, Connect, NICE): flow conversion, data migration, parallel-run validation, and production cutover on live contact centers Full-Stack & Portal Engineering Build custom Agent Workspace experiences with the Amazon Connect Streams API, third-party app embedding, and CRM screen-pop integrations Build serverless, event-driven backends with Lambda, EventBridge, Step Functions, SQS/SNS, DynamoDB, and Kinesis for real-time event processing and customer journey orchestration Infrastructure, Delivery & Quality Author infrastructure as code with AWS CDK (TypeScript) as the primary tool, CloudFormation, or Terraform where customer environments require them Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions) and automated test suites: Jest/Vitest/PyTest, Playwright E2E and API tests, and integration tests against live Connect instances Follow phased rollout patterns for production contact centers where downtime is measured in missed calls; write deployment runbooks Instrument monitoring and alerting (CloudWatch metrics, alarms, and custom dashboards across voice, chat, tasks, queues, agents, Lambda, and AI agents) and participate in production incident triage Apply security and compliance baselines in everything you ship: least-privilege IAM, DevSecOps scanning, encryption standards Collaboration & Practice Contribution Work directly with customer engineering teams: pair on integrations, run technical working sessions, demo completed workstreams, and lead knowledge transfer so customers can operate what you build Own architecture decisions within your workstream; evaluate native Connect capability before custom builds ("configuration over customization"), surface trade-offs to practice leads, and document decisions Perform code reviews, uphold engineering standards, and mentor junior and mid-level CX engineers through pairing and review feedback Contribute reusable assets back to the practice: shared CDK constructs, skills/plugins, demo environments, and internal tooling, so the next engagement starts further ahead Support pre-sales when needed: build proof-of-concept demos and provide implementation-grounded input on estimates and SOW technical scope Consulting & Leadership Lead a 5–10 person team of BAs, engineers, and architects to deliver the solution, providing day-to-day technical direction and unblocking the team Own solution delivery planning, ensuring scope, deliverables, and objectives stay aligned to business goals and Caylent best practices Drive risk management and mitigation, identifying technical risks early and steering the team through resolution Serve as the primary technical escalation point for the client, translating business needs into technical direction for the team Ensure technical delivery quality, reviewing architecture and implementation decisions against Caylent standards Mentor and guide team members, fostering growth and consistent technical practices across the group Your Qualifications 10+ years of hands-on software engineering experience, including 2+ years building on Amazon Connect or comparable CCaaS platforms at enterprise scale Strong, current Amazon Connect skills: contact flows, routing, Cases and Tasks, Contact Lens, Customer Profiles, Streams API, and the Connect data/analytics stack Hands-on experience with conversational and generative AI, Amazon Lex plus LLM-based development (Amazon Bedrock, Q in Connect, or equivalent), including prompt engineering and tool calling Strong Python, Typescript/Node.js, Javascript, and React experience; solid AWS serverless engineering (Lambda, EventBridge, API Gateway, DynamoDB, Step Functions) Experience with docker containers, web applications, databases (i.e. DynamoDB, SQL, Aurora) Infrastructure as code proficiency with AWS CDK or Terraform, including multi-account deployment patterns Understanding of RAG concepts and LLMOps Experience shipping and supporting production systems, testing discipline, observability instrumentation, and incident debugging across the full stack Clear communication with customer-facing composure, able to demo your work, explain trade-offs, and run working sessions with both client engineers and C-suite members Preferred Qualifications AWS certifications (Solutions Architect, Developer, or ML/Connect-relevant Specialty) Contact center migration experience (i.e. Avaya, Genesys, Connect, NICE) Contact center operations fluency: Quality management, outbound compliance, and CX KPIs (containment, AHT, CSAT, NPS, SLA) Consulting or client-delivery background Benefits 100% remote work Generous holidays and flexible PTO Competitive phantom equity Paid for exams and certifications Peer bonus awards State of the art laptop and tools Equipment & Office Stipend Individual professional development plan Annual stipend for Learning and Development Work with an amazing worldwide team and in an incredible corporate culture The base salary range for this position is $165,000 - $185,000 per year. If you are hired at Caylent, your base salary is determined on factors such as skills, experience, geographic location, and other market conditions. While it's not typical for offers to be made at the top of the range, please keep in mind that the base salary range is only one component of your overall compensation. Additionally, you are eligible for the benefits, bonuses, and incentives as listed above in the job description! NOTE: We’re unable to provide visa sponsorship now or at any time in the future. At Caylent, we are committed to fair, transparent, and inclusive hiring practices. As part of our recruitment process, we may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools or automated systems to assist with the screening and evaluation of applications to help match candidate qualifications with job requirements. These tools are designed to support — not replace — human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are always made by our trained recruitment professionals. If an AI or automated tool is used during your application process, it will only be in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, and your information will be handled in a secure and confidential manner. If you have any questions, please contact talent@caylent.com Caylent is a place where everyone belongs . We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Our approach helps us to build a winning team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and abilities. So, regardless of how your diversity expresses itself, you can find a home here at Caylent. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We prohibit discrimination and harassment of any kind based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, veteran status, genetic information, disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. If you would like to request an accommodation due to a disability, please contact us at hr@caylent.com.
What you'll do
- Lead the architecture and technical delivery of Amazon Connect and AI agent solutions end to end.
- Build AI-native self-service using Amazon Connect AI agents, Amazon Q in Connect, and Amazon Bedrock (Claude model family).
- Implement multi-agent orchestration patterns with orchestrator agents delegating to task-specific agents and escalation to human queues.
- Engineer prompts and tool-calling integrations at production scale (SearchProfiles lookups, case creation, external API tools, authentication flows, guardrails).
- Implement barge-in handling, fallback, and error-recovery behavior for voice AI and validate with turn-by-turn trace analysis.
- Optimize inference cost and latency: model tier selection, prompt caching, and token budgeting.
- Diagnose AI agent performance using observability tooling correlating contact flow logs, transcripts, agent spans, tool executions, and token usage.
- Build conversational experiences with intent-based NLU, multilingual support, and SSML-tuned voice interactions.
- Leverage Claude Code to enhance or create system architectures and components.
- Build contact flows integrating AI agents, Lambda-backed business logic, Customer Profiles, and dynamic routing.
- Implement Amazon Connect Cases and Tasks: templates, queue-based work allocation, SLA monitoring, approval workflows, and migrations.
- Configure and operationalize Contact Lens for real-time sentiment, summaries, category rules, and quality management.
- Implement proficiency-based and attribute-driven routing and outbound campaigns including answering machine detection and compliance controls.
- Build the Amazon Connect analytics data lake (Glue, Lake Formation, Athena) and QuickSight dashboards.
- Support legacy platform migrations (Avaya, Genesys, Connect, NICE): flow conversion, data migration, parallel-run validation, and production cutover.
- Build custom Agent Workspace experiences with the Amazon Connect Streams API and CRM screen-pop integrations.
- Build serverless, event-driven backends (Lambda, EventBridge, Step Functions, SQS/SNS, DynamoDB, Kinesis) for real-time event processing.
- Author infrastructure as code with AWS CDK (TypeScript), CloudFormation, or Terraform.
- Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions) and automated test suites (Jest/Vitest/PyTest, Playwright E2E).
- Follow phased rollout patterns and write deployment runbooks for production contact centers.
- Instrument monitoring and alerting (CloudWatch metrics, alarms, custom dashboards) and participate in incident triage.
- Apply security and compliance baselines: least-privilege IAM, DevSecOps scanning, encryption standards.
- Work directly with customer engineering teams: pair on integrations, run technical working sessions, demo workstreams, and lead knowledge transfer.
- Own architecture decisions within workstream; evaluate native Connect capability before custom builds and document decisions.
- Perform code reviews, uphold engineering standards, and mentor junior/mid-level CX engineers.
- Contribute reusable assets to the practice: shared CDK constructs, skills/plugins, demo environments, and internal tooling.
- Support pre-sales: build proof-of-concept demos and provide implementation-grounded input on estimates and SOW technical scope.
- Lead a 5–10 person team of BAs, engineers, and architects; provide day-to-day technical direction and unblock the team.
- Own solution delivery planning, drive risk management and mitigation, and serve as primary technical escalation for the client.
What they require
- 10+ years of hands-on software engineering experience, including 2+ years building on Amazon Connect or comparable CCaaS platforms at enterprise scale.
- Strong, current Amazon Connect skills: contact flows, routing, Cases and Tasks, Contact Lens, Customer Profiles, Streams API, and the Connect data/analytics stack.
- Hands-on experience with conversational and generative AI, Amazon Lex plus LLM-based development (Amazon Bedrock, Q in Connect, or equivalent), including prompt engineering and tool calling.
- Strong Python, TypeScript/Node.js, JavaScript, and React experience; solid AWS serverless engineering (Lambda, EventBridge, API Gateway, DynamoDB, Step Functions).
- Experience with docker containers, web applications, and databases (DynamoDB, SQL, Aurora).
- Infrastructure as code proficiency with AWS CDK or Terraform, including multi-account deployment patterns.
- Understanding of RAG concepts and LLMOps.
- Experience shipping and supporting production systems with testing discipline, observability instrumentation, and incident debugging across the full stack.
- Clear communication with customer-facing composure; able to demo work, explain trade-offs, and run working sessions with client engineers and C-suite members.
- Ability to lead architecture and technical delivery, mentor engineers, own delivery planning, and act as primary technical escalation.
- We’re unable to provide visa sponsorship now or at any time in the future.
Benefits
- 100% remote work
- Generous holidays and flexible PTO
- Competitive phantom equity
- Paid for exams and certifications
- Peer bonus awards
- State of the art laptop and tools
- Equipment & Office Stipend
- Individual professional development plan
- Annual stipend for Learning and Development
- Work with an amazing worldwide team and in an incredible corporate culture
Caylent is an AI-first cloud services company that helps organizations turn ambitious ideas into meaningful business impact. As an AWS Premier Tier Services Partner and a charter member of Anthropic’s Claude Partner Network, we combine deep expertise in AWS, artificial intelligence, and Anthropic’s Claude platform to help customers modernize their technology, build intelligent products, and move AI from experimentation into production.