Director of Engineering

We are looking for a dynamic and visionary Technical Director to lead, inspire, and scale a team of talented engineers. This role is ideal for someone who combines deep technical expertise with proven hands-on people leadership, thrives in fast-paced environments, and is passionate about building world-class software solutions in the storage and infrastructure domain. As the Technical Director, you will be directly responsible for managing 25+ engineers, fostering a culture of autonomy, ownership, and excellence. You'll be at the heart of product innovation, driving technical excellence, championing best practices, and empowering engineers to deliver high-quality, high-performing software that powers mission-critical workloads

Responsibilities:

• Lead the end-to-end development lifecycle for Data, Core's flagship products SAN Symphony and Open, EBS, from requirements analysis and design to coding, testing, and release, ensuring timely delivery of robust, scalable solutions.
• Directly manage and mentor 25+ engineers in a flat structure, balancing hands-on technical leadership with strategic direction.
• Navigate the dual challenge of driving modern cloud-native innovation with OpenEBS while ensuring enterprise-grade reliability and steady rhythm for SANsymphony.
• Provide architectural and technical guidance, reviewing designs and code, and championing modern engineering approaches across a large, diverse team.
• Build and nurture a high-performing engineering culture through clear goal setting, mentorship, performance management, and professional development without traditional management hierarchies.
• Inspire innovation through proof-of-concepts, design exploration, and technical deep dives while maintaining a close connection to the codebase.
• Remove roadblocks, resolve conflicts, and create an environment where engineers can do their best work with high autonomy.
• Partner with cross-functional teams, product management, QA, release management, and documentation to drive seamless product delivery.
• Champion engineering excellence by establishing quality standards, driving automation, and strengthening DevOps practices across the organisation.
• Scale the team through strategic hiring and developing diverse talent, building a culture that values creativity, ownership, and customer-first thinking.
• Define and execute a multi-year technical strategy and roadmap for storage products.
• Communicate progress, risks, and solutions effectively to senior leadership and stakeholders across geographies.

Requirements:

• 20+ years of software engineering experience, including 8+ years in engineering leadership/people management.
• Proven ability to directly lead teams of 25+ engineers in flat organisational structures, with experience managing large teams without intermediate management layers.
• Strong background in software-defined storage with hands-on experience in block storage technologies and concepts (replication, snapshots, encryption, mirroring, etc. ).
• Experience managing the complexity of both innovation-focused and stability-focused products simultaneously.
• Deep programming expertise in functional languages (C, Golang, Rust) and at least one OO language (C++, C#, Java, or Python).
• Proficiency with system-level concepts, including SCSI, NVMe, containers, and Kubernetes-based architectures.
• Track record of excellence in system design, debugging, and guiding architectural decisions.
• Strong knowledge of modern engineering management practices: agile SDLC, project planning, estimation, DevOps, CI/CD, and automation.
• Exceptional communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to influence across teams and geographies.
• Comfort with hands-on technical involvement while managing at scaleable, to context-switch between code reviews and strategic planning.
• Self-starter mindset with the ability to thrive in dynamic, distributed, and innovation-driven environments.
• Bachelor's/Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field; degrees from premier institutes preferred.

Preferred Skills:

• Experience leading open-source projects or distributed engineering teams.
• Linux kernel or device driver development experience.
• Strong understanding of white-box testing methodologies.
• Experience with flat organisational structures in product companies.
• Track record of managing large teams without traditional hierarchies.