Principal Engineer, Frontend

About the role

Plane is building a local‑first, real‑time work management platform. As a Principal Frontend Engineer you will lead the design and delivery of the browser client that supports offline editing, synchronization and collaborative features for thousands of users.

Responsibilities

• Drive the frontend architecture to support real‑time, local‑first collaboration across boards, documents and other core surfaces.
• Own client‑side state management, synchronization, caching, offline behavior and conflict resolution.
• Optimize rendering performance, memory usage and interaction latency in large, data‑heavy workspaces.
• Define engineering standards and review high‑risk implementations for the frontend stack.
• Partner with product, design and backend teams in multiple locations to ship end‑to‑end features.
• Mentor engineers and contribute to the open‑source components of Plane’s UI library.

Eligibility

• At least 10 years of software engineering experience with React and TypeScript at scale.
• Demonstrated ability to build real‑time applications using WebSockets or similar event‑driven technologies.
• Hands‑on experience with local‑first challenges such as client‑side persistence, synchronization and offline support.
• Proven track record of identifying and fixing performance bottlenecks in complex, data‑rich interfaces.
• Strong understanding of state‑management patterns and browser architecture.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.

Skills

• React, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, MobX
• WebSockets, IndexedDB, Service Workers, client‑side synchronization
• ProseMirror‑based rich‑text editor
• Electron, Vite, internal component library
• Performance profiling and optimization tools
• Collaboration protocols such as CRDTs or Operational Transformation (nice to have)

Benefits

• Work on a product used by Fortune 500 companies and fast‑growing startups alike.
• Contribute to an open‑source codebase with high visibility and impact.
• Collaborate across global teams in San Francisco, London and Hyderabad.
• Opportunity to shape the future of human‑AI collaborative work platforms.
• Supportive environment that values end‑to‑end ownership and continuous learning.