Software Engineer II

Booking.com • Washington D.C., DC

18d • Onsite

About The Position

Booking.com (USA), Inc, one of the support companies in the United States, is seeking a full time Software Engineer in Washington, DC for the Data and Machine Learning department. Our teams build the technical foundation that enables secure, compliant, and scalable use of data across Booking.com. We develop platforms and services that help discover and classify data and ML/AI assets, enforce governance and access policies, and provide reliable controls, visibility, and automation across the company’s data ecosystem. Depending on the team, this work may span data classification, privacy and governance automation, or identity and access management for data platforms. Across all areas, we partner closely with engineering, legal, privacy, compliance, and data stakeholders to solve complex platform problems with a strong focus on reliability, scalability, and developer experience.

This role is a strong opportunity for a software engineer who wants to work at the intersection of data platforms, governance, privacy, security, and compliance. You will design, build, and operate backend systems and platform capabilities that help Booking.com scale its data and ML/AI ecosystem safely and responsibly. You will contribute to the systems that govern how data and services are discovered, classified, protected, accessed, and monitored. This may include building automation for governance workflows, developing services and APIs, integrating with internal and external platforms, implementing policy enforcement mechanisms, improving auditability and compliance controls, and creating scalable foundations for responsible data use. In this role, you will work closely with engineers, data scientists, and business stakeholders to translate complex operational, legal, privacy, or compliance requirements into practical and scalable technical solutions. You will take ownership of production systems, make sound engineering decisions, and help build platforms that are secure, reliable, observable, and easy to use.

Requirements

• 3+ years of experience in software development, with a strong focus on backend systems, platform engineering, or data-intensive systems.
• Strong programming skills in Java, NodeJS, Python, or similar languages.
• Experience designing and operating distributed systems that are observable, reliable, and scalable.
• Experience building services, APIs, workflows, or automation that solve operational problems and reduce manual effort.
• Ability to work across system boundaries and integrate multiple platforms, tools, or services into cohesive solutions.
• Ability to translate complex business, legal, privacy, or compliance requirements into technical specifications and scalable software solutions.
• Comfortable owning production systems, improving operational excellence, and making technical decisions within a team.
• Strong collaboration and communication skills, with the ability to work effectively with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

• Familiarity with cloud or data platforms such as AWS, Snowflake, or similar technologies is a strong plus.
• Familiarity with data governance, privacy, compliance, identity and access management, or security concepts is a strong plus.
• Understanding of concepts such as data catalogs, lineage, classification, policy enforcement, access controls, auditability, GDPR/CCPA, or PII protection is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and operate scalable backend and platform systems that support Booking.com’s data governance, privacy, security, and access management ecosystem.
• Develop automation that reduces manual operational work in areas such as data discovery, classification, policy enforcement, access provisioning, monitoring, and compliance controls.
• Build and maintain services, APIs, workflows, and integrations across internal platforms and external systems.
• Improve reliability, observability, performance, and fault tolerance of production systems that operate at scale.
• Implement and maintain enforceable controls that support secure and compliant handling of data, services, and ML/AI assets.
• Create technical solutions that provide clear visibility into risk, compliance posture, access activity, and governance state for engineering and business stakeholders.
• Collaborate with cross-functional partners including Privacy, Legal, Risk, Security, Data, and Platform teams to translate requirements into scalable software solutions.
• Contribute to technical design, architecture decisions, and engineering best practices across the team.
• Take initiative to address the larger technical needs of the product you work on and always keep the customer at the center of everything you do.
• Promote and drive impactful and innovative engineering solutions.
• Advocate for best engineering practices within the team.
• Act as an intermediary for problems, with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Contribute to the growth of Booking.com through interviewing, on-boarding, or other recruitment efforts.
• Represent Booking.com values, both within the company and in the external community.
• Technical, behavioral and interpersonal competence advancement via on-the-job opportunities, experimental projects, hackathons, conferences, and active community participation.

Benefits

• Medical, life, and disability insurance
• Annual paid time off and generous paid leave scheme including: parent, grandparent, bereavement, sick, and care leave.
• Industry leading product discounts for yourself, friends, and family, including automatic Genius Level 3 status.
• Free access to online learning platforms, mentorship programs, and a complimentary Headspace membership.
• Collaborative, friendly and diverse culture.
• Referral Program.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: No Education Listed