Master Thesis – The Hunt for Bottlenecks in Distributed Systems – IKEA of Sweden

Hej Master thesis student, 

Do you want to furnish the future to make room for everyone? 

Modern distributed systems generate massive amounts of telemetry data, but identifying what actually causes performance issues remains a challenge. While metrics, logs, and traces provide visibility, they often fail to explain where time is spent inside a system, creating "unattributed latency" and making bottlenecks difficult to detect and resolve. 

In this thesis, you will explore how observability data can be correlated and analyzed to identify bottlenecks, explain system behavior, and support performance optimization in production-scale distributed systems. 

Your new assignment 

You will design and evaluate a framework for observability and bottleneck detection that helps engineering teams understand system performance beyond individual metrics and dashboards. 

The thesis will include: 

• Investigating methods for correlating metrics, logs, and traces across distributed systems 

• Designing a framework for identifying performance bottlenecks and unattributed latency 

• Establishing data-driven baselines for system behavior 

• Exploring how latency, resource consumption, and compute cost can be combined to detect bottlenecks 

• Evaluating the framework in a production-scale environment 

The deliverables are: 

• A framework for observability and bottleneck detection in distributed systems 

• Dashboards and visualizations describing system behavior and performance deviations 

• Guidelines for establishing baselines and identifying bottlenecks 

• Recommendations for performance optimization and future automation opportunities 

• An end report written in English 

What we'd like you to bring to the table 

We think that you: 

• Are currently pursuing a Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Science, Information Systems, or a related field 

• Have an interest in distributed systems, observability, system performance, and cloud-native technologies 

• Enjoy data analysis, problem-solving, and turning complex information into actionable insights 

• Are fluent in English 

More information 

Inter IKEA Group is the group of companies that connects IKEA franchisees with range development and suppliers and aligns the overall IKEA strategic direction. Every day, we strive to develop, produce, and sell products and services that are affordable and accessible to everyone. With us, you contribute to building a democratic brand and workplace that has a positive impact on both the planet and people's lives. 

This assignment belongs to IKEA of Sweden Technology. The work can be carried out in a hybrid setup, with opportunities to collaborate with colleagues in Malmö. 

Please note: To apply for this thesis assignment, you have to be enrolled in a thesis course at university level at a Swedish university. 

We welcome your application 

Get ready to assemble something new! We look forward to receiving your application by 9th of November. Please submit both your CV and motivation letter in English. 

In your motivation letter, we'd love to hear: 

• Why this thesis topic interests you 

• How your studies and experience relate to distributed systems, observability, data analysis, or cloud technologies 

In case you are two students wishing to write this thesis together, we ask you to please submit one application each and clearly state the other person's name and your wish to collaborate. 

At IKEA, we are looking for people who believe everyone deserves a seat at the table. You're welcome no matter where you come from, what you believe, or what you look like. We don't even care how you have furnished your home. We're interested in you simply because you're you. We believe that people's different perspectives, backgrounds, and personalities make us better at understanding our customers' dreams and needs. 

If you have a special need that requires accommodation in the recruitment process, just let us know. 

For any questions about the role, please contact the supervisor kirill.ivanov@inter.ikea.com. If you have any questions regarding the recruitment process, please contact the recruiter vera.bendz1@inter.ikea.com. Please note that we do not accept applications via email. Applications sent to these email addresses will be deleted in accordance with GDPR requirements. Please submit your application through the job ad page. 

We look forward to hearing from you!