Software Engineering Discipline Lead

Electro Optic Systems; Canberra; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Electro Optic Systems in Canberra is seeking an experienced Software Engineering Manager to lead the software engineering discipline. You will define and enforce processes, manage resources, and ensure compliance with quality standards.

The ideal candidate will have a degree in Software Engineering and over 10 years of relevant experience, including managing dispersed teams. Familiarity with safety-critical software standards is a plus. This role offers an opportunity to drive significant impact on key engineering projects.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of software engineering experience, including functional management.
• Experience with geographically distributed engineering teams.
• Familiarity with safety-critical software standards desired.

Responsibilities

• Define and enforce software engineering standards and processes.
• Lead resource planning and software arbitration across projects.
• Establish quality assurance practices for governance oversight.
• Monitor and enforce software quality metrics for delivery.
• Manage software engineering toolchains and CI/CD pipelines.

Skills

Resource management

Software engineering processes

Quality assurance

Technical standards compliance

Team leadership

Education

Degree in Software Engineering or related field

Job description

We continually strive to help our workforce achieve their professional and personal goals, engaging them in challenging and inspiring projects.

Key Accountabilities

• Workforce Capacity & Resource Arbitration: Managing the finite software engineering resource pool; deciding allocations and balancing priorities across project delivery, product development, and sustainment, including making conscious trade-offs regarding technical debt.
• Engineering Governance & Standards: Establishing and enforcing software development processes, quality benchmarks, and regulatory/safety compliance.
• Quality Assurance & Compliance: Accountable for driving the overall quality framework, robustness, and contractual compliance of software delivered by the discipline, operating under the technical and quality authority of the Chief Engineer - Hardware.
• Capability Development: Defining training matrices, career pathways, and recruitment strategies to scale the software engineering practice.
• Delivery Effectiveness: Accountable for the collective health, productivity, and output of the entire software engineering team.
• Line Management: Formal line management, performance evaluations, and leadership development for Software Team Leads.

Key Responsibilities

• Define, mandate, and rigorously enforce software engineering processes, technical standards, and frameworks, holding teams accountable for compliance and consistent application.
• Lead software resource planning and execute software resource arbitration across projects, products, and sustainment activities.
• Establish and maintain software verification, validation, and quality assurance practices to provide independent governance oversight across projects and products.
• Establish, monitor, and enforce software quality metrics (such as defect density, test coverage, and code quality benchmarks) to ensure high-quality software delivery.
• Conduct or delegate architecture and code reviews to ensure compliance with software engineering standards and architectural principles.
• Maintain visibility of software technical debt across products and projects, developing remediation and investment strategies for the Chief Engineer -Hardware.
• Manage the software engineering toolchains, version control, CI/CD pipelines, and licensing infrastructure required to support the software development lifecycle.
• Lead performance management, career progression, compensation reviews, and succession planning activities across the Software Discipline.

Key Attributes & Experience

• Degree in Software Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 10+ years of software engineering experience, with proven experience in functional management or leading engineering teams.
• Extensive engineering experience across the product lifecycle in an engineering environment.
• Experience managing geographically distributed engineering teams across multiple physical sites.
• Familiarity with safety-critical software standards (e.g., DO-178C, DEF STAN 00-56) or secure systems development desirable.
• Registration on, or eligible to gain registration on the NER as a Professional Engineer is desirable.