Role Overview for VP, Software Engineering with a SaaS Company – Seattle, WA
JRG Partners is proud to partner with a trailblazing, high-growth Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company based in the vibrant tech hub of Seattle, WA. Our client is a recognized leader in their industry, providing an innovative platform that transforms how businesses operate and achieve success. They are fueled by a passion for customer success, a commitment to building a world-class product, and a culture of collaborative excellence. As they enter their next phase of exponential growth, we are seeking a visionary and strategic Vice President of Software Engineering to join their executive leadership team.
This is a rare and career-defining opportunity to shape the future of a company on a meteoric rise. Reporting directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), the VP of Software Engineering will be the engineering keystone of the organization. You will be entrusted with the leadership of the entire engineering department, responsible for setting the technical vision, scaling a high-performing team, and ensuring the flawless execution and delivery of an ambitious product roadmap. This role demands a leader who can operate at a high strategic level while also possessing the technical depth to guide architectural decisions and mentor engineering leaders.
The ideal candidate is a seasoned executive who masterfully blends deep technical expertise with exceptional people leadership and a strong sense of business acumen. You will be responsible for scaling the team, processes, and technology stack to support rapid international expansion and an ever-increasing user base. If you are a leader who thrives on building great teams, great products, and a great culture, we encourage you to apply.
Key Responsibilities of VP, Software Engineering with a SaaS Company – Seattle, WA
As the Vice President of Software Engineering, you will own the end-to-end technical execution and team health. Your responsibilities will be broad and impactful, covering strategic leadership, team development, product delivery, and operational excellence.
Strategic & Technical Leadership
- Develop, articulate, and execute a long-term technical vision and strategy that aligns with the company’s ambitious business goals and product roadmap.
- Serve as a key member of the senior leadership team, partnering with the CEO, CPO, and other executives to define strategic priorities and translate them into actionable engineering initiatives.
- Drive innovation by staying at the forefront of technology trends, evaluating and adopting new tools, frameworks, and methodologies that enhance product capabilities and engineering productivity.
- Lead critical architectural decisions, ensuring the platform is robust, scalable, secure, and maintainable to support millions of users and transactions globally.
- Champion a culture of technical excellence, instilling best practices for software design, coding standards, rigorous code reviews, and comprehensive testing across the organization.
Team Building & Cultural Development
- Lead, mentor, and inspire a world-class, multi-disciplinary engineering organization, fostering a culture of ownership, collaboration, psychological safety, and continuous learning.
- Scale the engineering team by attracting, hiring, and retaining top-tier talent, from individual contributors to engineering managers and directors.
- Implement robust career development frameworks, providing clear growth paths, mentorship opportunities, and succession planning for all team members.
- Conduct regular performance reviews, provide constructive and timely feedback, and manage the professional growth of the engineering leadership team.
- Promote a positive and inclusive work environment that values diversity of thought and experience, and encourages open communication and healthy, constructive debate.
Execution & Delivery
- Oversee the entire software development lifecycle (SDLC), from ideation and planning to deployment and maintenance, ensuring the timely and high-quality delivery of complex software projects.
- Implement and refine development processes, leveraging principles of Agile software development to optimize for speed, predictability, and quality without sacrificing innovation.
- Establish, monitor, and report on key performance indicators (KPIs) and engineering metrics (e.g., cycle time, deployment frequency, change failure rate, system uptime) to drive continuous improvement.
- Work in close partnership with Product Management to ensure a well-defined and prioritized backlog, clear product specifications, and a seamless, collaborative relationship between product and engineering.
- Proactively manage technical debt, creating a strategic plan to balance the need for new feature development with the long-term health and stability of the platform.
Operational & Financial Management
- Develop and manage the annual engineering budget, including headcount, infrastructure costs, software licenses, and professional development expenses, ensuring fiscal responsibility.
- Optimize resource allocation across teams and projects to ensure engineering efforts are focused on the highest-impact initiatives that drive business value.
- Oversee the company’s cloud infrastructure strategy, ensuring it is cost-effective, secure, compliant, and highly available to meet and exceed customer SLAs.
- Establish and maintain strong relationships with third-party vendors and technology partners to leverage external expertise and solutions effectively.
Requirements for the VP, Software Engineering with a SaaS Company – Seattle, WA
We are seeking a candidate with a proven track record of technical leadership and a passion for building high-performing teams in a fast-paced environment.
Professional Experience
- A minimum of 15 years of progressive experience in software engineering, with at least 7-10 years in a senior leadership capacity (e.g., Director, Senior Director, VP of Engineering).
- Demonstrable experience leading and scaling engineering organizations within a high-growth B2B SaaS or enterprise software company. Proven success in growing a team from 50 to 200+ engineers is highly desirable.
- A strong track record of successfully delivering complex, scalable, and mission-critical software products to a global market.
- Experience managing multiple distributed or co-located engineering teams and fostering a cohesive and productive global culture.
Technical Acumen
- Deep and broad knowledge of modern software architecture, including microservices, serverless computing, event-driven architectures, and distributed systems.
- Extensive experience with public cloud platforms (AWS preferred, but experience with Azure or GCP is also valuable).
- Familiarity with modern DevOps practices, including Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), infrastructure as code (IaC), and comprehensive automated testing.
- A strong understanding of data architecture, data engineering, and the principles of building data-intensive applications.
- While not expected to be a daily coder, the candidate must possess the technical credibility and depth to lead senior engineers and architects and command their respect in technical discussions.
Leadership & Business Skills
- Exceptional leadership and people management skills with a genuine passion for mentoring and developing talent at all levels of the organization.
- Outstanding communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to articulate a compelling technical vision to both technical and non-technical audiences, including the executive team, board of directors, and customers.
- Proven ability to think strategically and translate high-level business objectives into a clear, executable technology strategy.
- Strong business acumen and a data-driven approach to decision-making, using metrics to guide strategy and measure success.
- Experience managing departmental budgets, performing cost-benefit analysis, and making sound financial decisions that align with company goals.
Education
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related technical field is required. A Master’s degree or MBA is a significant plus.
Benefits & Perks Offered
Our client believes in investing in their people and offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package designed to support your well-being and professional growth.
Competitive Compensation
A highly competitive base salary, an executive-level annual performance bonus, and a substantial equity package.
Comprehensive Health Coverage
Premium medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your dependents with significant company contributions.
Retirement Planning
A 401(k) plan with a generous company match to help you save for your future.
Flexible Time Off
An unlimited Paid Time Off (PTO) policy, encouraging you to take the time you need to rest and recharge.
Professional Development
A generous annual budget for conferences, courses, certifications, and other learning opportunities to support your continued growth.
Work-Life Balance
A hybrid work model offering flexibility, combined with a modern, collaborative office space in the heart of Seattle.
Family Support
Comprehensive parental leave policies for all new parents.
Additional Perks
Commuter benefits, wellness stipend, team-building events, and a fully stocked kitchen.
How to Apply
JRG Partners has been exclusively retained for this critical search. If you are a transformative engineering leader ready to take on a new challenge and make a lasting impact at a category-defining SaaS company, we want to hear from you. To apply, please submit your resume and a cover letter detailing your experience and why you are the ideal candidate for this role. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.
JRG Partners is a leader in executive recruitment for the technology sector. Learn more about our Technology Executive Search practice and how we connect innovative companies with world-class talent.
