Okay, I've searched for Principal Software Engineer positions specializing in AI and Security in San Jose, CA that are full-time, require 10+ years of experience, and include medical insurance benefits. I have found 56 positions matching your criteria.

Sure. Here's the analysis:

Job Analysis:

The Principal Software Engineer - AI & Security at NetApp is fundamentally a strategic technical leadership role aimed at pioneering the integration of AI-driven intelligence and security within the company’s data storage platforms. The position requires not only deep technical expertise in AI/ML, security technologies, and large-scale distributed storage architectures, but also the ability to shape product vision, lead cross-geographical engineering teams, and collaborate extensively with product management and customers. Success in this role means driving innovation that aligns with NetApp’s mission to make storage infrastructure smarter and subscription services more valuable, especially for AI workloads and secure data governance. The candidate must navigate complex trade-offs in architecture, handle both technical and organizational challenges, and translate market and customer insights into scalable, reliable product solutions. Leadership and communication skills are critical, as the role demands evangelizing new platforms internally and externally, while maintaining close coordination across diverse teams in India and the US. The role requires a blend of hands-on technical depth, forward-looking strategic insight, customer obsession, and a collaborative mindset to thrive in a fast-evolving but mature enterprise AI and storage environment.

Company Analysis:

NetApp positions itself as an intelligent data infrastructure pioneer, blending proven approaches with innovative thinking to help enterprises harness the full power of their data. The company’s emphasis on hybrid work environments and inclusive culture reflects a balanced approach between collaboration and autonomy. NetApp operates in a competitive, evolving market space where AI, security, and cloud-native storage solutions are paramount, demanding agility and continual innovation. This means a Principal Engineer has an opportunity to influence both product direction and enterprise customers' data strategies significantly. The culture likely values continuous learning, customer-centric thinking, and mutual support, which is crucial given the complexity and cross-team dependencies in this role. Being part of a company that emphasizes both technical mastery and strategic market impact offers a candidate long-term growth potential, as NetApp balances established market presence with the drive to lead in next-generation AI and security-enabled storage solutions. The role’s geographic span and leadership scope provide high visibility and impact but require adaptability to diverse cultural and operational styles.

Absolutely. Here are some mock interview questions that could come up:

• Behavioral: Tell me about a time when you had to lead a geographically distributed engineering team to deliver a complex software product. How did you ensure collaboration and alignment?
• Behavioral: Describe a situation where you had to make a critical architectural decision involving trade-offs between performance, scalability, and security. What factors influenced your choice?
• Behavioral: Share an example of when you had to engage directly with customers to gather requirements for a technical product. How did you translate their feedback into actionable engineering tasks?
• Behavioral: Can you discuss a time when you had to evangelize a new technology or product feature internally or externally? How did you approach gaining adoption?
• Technical: How would you architect a secured data intelligence platform that supports AI workloads and ensures data governance across cloud and on-premises environments?
• Technical: What are key considerations when designing microservices-based SaaS offerings for large-scale storage and AI/ML data pipelines?
• Technical: Can you explain how you would integrate AI/ML capabilities effectively into a storage infrastructure to optimize data accessibility and security?
• Technical: What tools, frameworks, or methodologies have you used to drive CI/CD processes in complex, multi-team AI or storage software projects?
• Situational: Imagine a scenario where two critical product teams have conflicting visions for the AI and security roadmap. How would you manage this conflict to ensure timely delivery of a coherent product?
• Situational: If a newly launched AI-driven data protection feature is underperforming in customer environments, how would you diagnose and address the issue?
• Situational: Suppose you identify an emerging trend in AI security that could disrupt your current platform architecture. How would you evaluate and incorporate this trend while minimizing risk?
• Company Fit/Motivation: What excites you most about NetApp’s mission to become the most intelligent storage provider in the enterprise AI space?
• Company Fit/Motivation: How do your personal and professional values align with NetApp’s emphasis on collaboration, customer obsession, and innovation?
• Company Fit/Motivation: Given NetApp’s hybrid working environment and emphasis on diverse teamwork across geographies, how do you approach building strong working relationships remotely?
• Candidate to Ask Interviewer: How does NetApp envision the evolution of AI and security within its product roadmap over the next 3–5 years?
• Candidate to Ask Interviewer: What are the biggest cultural or organizational challenges the AI & Security engineering teams currently face?
• Candidate to Ask Interviewer: How does NetApp support continuous learning and career growth for senior technical leaders within distributed teams?