Director, Software Engineering (Hybrid - Chicago, IL)

Description

• Resource Allocation: Masterfully balance engineering resources between high-priority client consulting projects and long-term internal platform development.
• Technical Leadership: Leading as a champion for engineering excellence, building a culture of impact for all of Energy Solutions
• Service Delivery: Collaborate with product owners, project managers, business systems analysts and business partners to ensure client deliverables are shipped on time and within budget while avoiding technical debt.
• Modernization: Keep a pulse on the entire software ecosystem, guiding the migration of legacy systems and the adoption of new libraries or frameworks where appropriate.
• Team Management: Lead, mentor, and scale multiple teams of 35+ engineers. You will directly manage Engineering Managers and Team Leads, fostering a culture of accountability and psychological safety.
• Manage stakeholder expectations regarding technical feasibility, timelines, and scope.
• Monitor delivery timelines, mitigating risks and ensuring alignment with client expectations and contractual obligations
• SDLC: Oversee the full SDLC, ensuring rigorous standards for code quality, testing, and documentation.
• Data & Downstream Alignment: Partner with data engineering, business data analytics teams, and downstream application owners to ensure software systems produce high-quality, well-structured data and support seamless integration, enabling architectures that meet the needs of reporting and data analytics.
• Compliance: Establish and enforce security controls, compliance standards, and data protection protocols across all client projects.
• Architecture Authority: Serve as the final authority on software architecture and design patterns. Ensure our diverse software platforms are architected for scalability, focusing on modularity and performance.
• Best Practices: Drive the adoption of modern engineering practices, e.g. Small/Frequent commits, CI/CD, and automated testing methodologies.
• Establish and track Engineering metrics to drive process improvement initiatives to increase velocity and reduce technical debt.

Requirements

• Dual-Focus Experience: Experience working in a Professional Services/Consultancy environment is highly preferred, alongside experience shipping SaaS/PaaS products.
• Hands-on experience or theoretical knowledge of Generative AI / LLM integration in enterprise software.
• Leadership Style: Proven ability to influence partners while mentoring and maturing a software engineering team, including supervisors. You know how to delegate effectively and avoid micromanagement while staying informed.
• Strong conflict resolution and negotiation skills
• Experience: 10+ years in software engineering, with at least 4+ years in a Director or Senior Management role leading teams of 25+ people.
• Experience managing remote or distributed engineering teams.
• Database & Infra: Strong understanding of relational databases and cloud infrastructure (AWS/Azure/GCP).
• Technical Stack: Deep roots in the Python ecosystem. You have built complex applications using Django. Exposure or experience with other programming ecosystems including Java and Mendix is a plus.
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders and clients
• Advanced degree in Computer Science or Engineering.

Benefits

Training + Development

Interview process

Visa Sponsorship

Security clearance