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Software Engineer II - Technical Leadership Track

Chicago, IL (Elmhurst)

 

About the job

Who We Are

McMaster-Carr is a leading e-commerce company that industrial customers have trusted for over 120 years. Our products help them get manufacturing lines back up quickly, keep operations running smoothly, and prototype the next generation of innovative solutions. We earn and keep that trust by offering the right products, making them easy to find, and delivering them fast, so our customers can solve problems with greater speed, precision, and ease.

Our industry-leading e-commerce experience, indispensable product selection, and world-class service bring hundreds of thousands of customers to our site each day. But we’re never standing still. Our curious, exceptional people are at the heart of our evolution. They turn new challenges and disruptive technologies into opportunities to refine our operations, expand our offering, and deliver a better experience for every customer.

What You'll Do
As part of our software engineering team, you'll contribute to the high-scale production software that powers our e-commerce experience and our world-class operations. From customer-facing web features to distribution center automation, we design and scale critical systems that enable McMaster-Carr to ship 98% of items from stock and deliver same-day or next-day. We expect progression to technical leadership roles that include people, project, and technology management responsibilities.

As a software engineer, you'll work on projects like:

  • Improve how customers find what they need on our website - Design and test new features that make our site faster, smarter, and easier to use—so 400,000 daily customers can enjoyably find the products they need.
  • Apply AI to real-world operation - Use tools like generative AI to streamline customer service, create better product descriptions and visuals, and automate internal workflows.
  • Make fulfillment smarter and help us plan ahead - Design systems that improve how we pick, pack, and ship orders so thousands of customers each day get what they need, faster.

You’ll have the opportunity to work across a wide range of technologies and business areas—delivering solutions that make a real difference for our customers and our company. Day-to-day, you'll:

  • Build High-Quality Systems: Implement features that span multiple layers of our tech stack, applying best practices and minimizing risk.
  • Solve Problems, Not Just Tasks: Tackle assignments that require thoughtful solutions and a deep understanding of the customer benefit or business need, not just execution.
  • Coach and Collaborate: Participate in code reviews, mentor more junior engineers, and contribute to team-wide engineering quality.
  • Own Your Development: Develop domain expertise, explore new technologies, and bring new perspectives to the challenges your team is tackling.

Over time, you’ll grow into a technology leader who plays a key role shaping high-impact projects.

Cash Compensation

  • Total cash compensation is generally around $208,000 to $273,000 and includes a profit sharing based on company profitability.
  • You will also receive a relocation stipend and signing bonus.

Benefits

Growth & Learning

  • 100% tuition reimbursement
  • Informal and formal mentorship
  • Employee resource groups

Health & Wellbeing

  • Medical, dental, pharmacy, and vision plans with no monthly premiums
  • Inclusive, all-gender benefits

Family & Future

  • Paid parental leave for all new parents
  • Adoption and surrogacy assistance
  • First-time home buyer assistance
  • Industry-leading company-funded retirement accounts

Time Off

  • Paid vacation and personal time

Who You Are

We’re looking for curious, driven engineers who thrive in collaborative environments and love solving hard problems. Ideal candidates will have:

  • Experience working on large-scale, service-oriented systems.
  • Strong proficiency in compiled languages such as C#, Java, C++, or Rust.
  • A thoughtful, analytical approach to problem-solving and software design.
  • Clear, confident communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences.
  • Interest in growing as a mentor, coach, and leader.

 

 

Equal Opportunity Employer

We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and dedicated to providing employees a workplace with reasonable accommodations and free of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation. At McMaster-Carr, we do not make employment decisions based on age, ethnicity, citizenship status, military status, gender identity and expression, race, religion, disability status, marital status, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected group.

This position is not eligible for work authorization sponsorship by McMaster-Carr.

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I certify that all information and the resume I have provided in order to apply for and secure work with McMaster-Carr is true, complete and correct. I understand any information provided by me that is found to be false, incomplete or misrepresented in any respect, will be sufficient cause to (i) cancel further consideration of this application, or (ii) immediately discharge me from McMaster-Carr's service, whenever it is discovered.

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