Roles · Blockchain Developer · Principal

What a Principal } should know

28 core skills, 79 in total. Expectations per skill, and what changes at the next level.

This page lists what a Principal } is expected to know and do, skill by skill. Core skills are the ones a manager and peers assess in a review cycle; the rest count only in self-assessment. Main areas: Programming Fundamentals, Backend Development, Frontend Development.

28core skills
51additional skills
8skill areas
100%at Advanced or Expert
Assess myself as Principal Full role matrix

Core skills for a Principal

Grouped by area. The label on the right is the expected depth: Awareness, Working, Advanced or Expert.

Programming Fundamentals · 2

Defines organizational async strategy for blockchain: enterprise async blockchain monitoring standards, cross-team concurrent transaction governance, async maturity model for Web3 systems. Makes strategic decisions on async infrastructure for blockchain applications.

Defines OOP and SOLID Principles strategy at organizational level. Makes decisions on approaches and tools. Mentors lead developers and shapes technical vision.

Backend Development · 1

Defines Node.js Frameworks strategy at company level. Evaluates new technologies and approaches. Establishes enterprise standards and reference architectures.

Frontend Development · 1

React Core Expert

Defines organizational frontend strategy. Evaluates frameworks and approaches. Shapes platform solutions for all frontend teams.

API & Integration · 1

Defines organizational GraphQL API strategy for blockchain data infrastructure spanning multiple chains and indexing protocols. Designs platform-level subgraph architecture for unified access to on-chain analytics and DeFi protocol data. Establishes enterprise governance for blockchain data APIs balancing decentralization principles with data consistency and query performance.

Testing & QA · 3

E2E Testing Expert

Defines organizational QA strategy. Shapes quality engineering culture. Introduces platform solutions for testing.

Defines organizational QA strategy for blockchain protocol ecosystems spanning consensus mechanisms, smart contract platforms, and cross-chain interoperability. Shapes quality engineering culture integrating formal verification, economic simulation, and adversarial testing methodologies. Introduces platform solutions for automated mainnet fork testing environments and protocol upgrade certification workflows.

Unit Testing Expert

Defines organizational QA strategy for blockchain systems: enterprise smart contract audit standards, cross-team security testing governance, quality engineering frameworks for DeFi/Web3 protocols. Implements platform-wide testing solutions for blockchain reliability and security.

Security · 3

Defines enterprise security strategy. Shapes security architecture. Coordinates compliance. Represents organization in the security community.

Defines enterprise security strategy. Shapes security architecture. Coordinates compliance. Represents organization in the security community.

Defines enterprise security strategy. Shapes security architecture. Coordinates compliance. Represents organization in the security community.

Architecture & System Design · 1

Defines organizational architectural strategy. Designs reference architectures. Establishes architecture governance.

Blockchain & Web3 · 16

Defines organizational cryptographic strategy for blockchain platforms: post-quantum migration roadmap, HSM infrastructure, and key ceremony governance. Evaluates emerging cryptographic primitives and shapes industry-aligned security frameworks.

Defines organizational blockchain strategy: multi-chain architecture, protocol contribution roadmap, and ecosystem partnerships. Evaluates emerging consensus mechanisms and L2 scaling solutions. Shapes company-wide blockchain technology vision.

Researches new consensus mechanisms and their applicability for enterprise tasks. Publishes security assumption analyses and contributes to academic research on distributed consensus.

Defines organizational cross-chain strategy: multi-chain architecture vision, interoperability protocol selection, and ecosystem positioning. Evaluates emerging standards (IBC, XCMP, CCIP) and shapes company-wide cross-chain technology roadmap.

Shapes enterprise DeFi strategy: institutional access, RWA tokenization, compliant DeFi. Researches novel DeFi mechanisms and publishes DeFi infrastructure research.

Defines organizational Ethereum strategy: mainnet vs L2 allocation, protocol contribution roadmap, and ecosystem partnerships with EF/client teams. Evaluates Ethereum roadmap impact (Verkle trees, sharding) on product architecture.

Defines organizational blockchain strategy. Designs cross-chain solutions. Establishes security frameworks.

Shapes enterprise vision of L2 scaling: L3, validium, volition approaches. Researches shared sequencing and based rollups. Publishes L2 infrastructure landscape analysis.

Defines organizational NFT strategy: multi-chain NFT infrastructure, creator economy platform vision, and partnerships with marketplaces/galleries. Evaluates emerging NFT standards and shapes company-wide digital asset technology roadmap.

Defines organizational blockchain security strategy across multiple chains and protocols. Designs cross-chain security frameworks and formal verification standards. Drives industry-level security initiatives and contributes to EIP security proposals.

Defines enterprise testing strategy for smart contracts. Researches formal verification (Certora, K-framework) and mutation testing. Publishes testing methodologies and tools.

Solidity Expert

Defines organizational Solidity development strategy across multiple EVM-compatible chains. Designs cross-chain contract architectures and interoperability standards. Drives adoption of new Solidity features and EVM improvements. Contributes to EIP proposals and community tooling.

Defines organizational tokenomics strategy across multiple products and chains. Designs cross-protocol token interoperability and composable incentive frameworks. Drives industry standards for sustainable token economics and regulatory-compliant token models.

Defines organizational wallet integration strategy across products and chains. Designs account abstraction (ERC-4337) adoption roadmaps and cross-chain wallet standards. Drives innovation in wallet UX including social recovery, passkey authentication, and embedded wallets.

Defines organizational Web3 frontend strategy across products and ecosystems. Designs universal dApp frameworks with chain abstraction, embedded wallet support, and progressive decentralization. Drives adoption of account abstraction UX and contributes to Web3 frontend tooling ecosystem.

Additional skills

Not assessed by the team, but part of the self-assessment and the development plan.

Algorithms & ComplexityAPI DocumentationAPI Documentation WritingApplied CryptographyAWSChatGPT / ClaudeClean CodeCode Quality & RefactoringCode ReviewCross-Chain BridgesCrypto EconomicsCursor IDEDAO GovernanceDApp DevelopmentData StructuresDatabase IndexingDesign PatternsDistributed SystemsDockerGit AdvancedGitHub Actions / GitLab CIGitHub CopilotKubernetes CoreKubernetes OrchestrationMerkle TreesMultithreadingNetwork FundamentalsNFT StandardsNode OperationOpenTelemetryPerformance TestingPostgreSQLPrometheus & GrafanaPrompt Engineering for CodeRedisREST API DesignRust LanguageSmart Contract AuditSmart Contract PlatformsSolidity DevelopmentStructured LoggingSystem Design FundamentalsTerraformToken StandardsType Safety & Type SystemsUnit TestingVyper DevelopmentWeb3 LibrariesWebSocket API DesignZero-Knowledge ProofsZK-Rollups
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} in the open competency matrix: 79 skills across 5 levels. The matrix is free for individuals and stays free.