Engineering Manager, Platform and Automation

commonsku; Canada; Remote; CAD 150,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the promotional products space is seeking an Engineering Manager to oversee Platform and Automation teams. This role involves managing DevOps and Data Engineering functions while fostering a culture of technical excellence and collaboration. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in software engineering and a passion for mentoring engineers. Join a remote-first organization that values creativity and teamwork.

Benefits

Flexible work environment

Group RRSP plan with employer contributions

Parental leave top-up

Annual office closure between December 25 and January 1

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in software engineering.
• 1–3+ years of experience managing engineers.

Responsibilities

• Manage Platform and Automation teams for DevOps, Data Engineering, and QA.
• Partner with engineering team to deliver scalable software solutions.
• Champion agile mindset and lead complex engineering projects.

Skills

Agile principles

Communication

Leadership

Job description

Join the team that is changing the promo industry

commonsku is changing the way businesses within the $26 Billion promotional products space work. We are the leading platform for promo product distributors–combining CRM, Order Management, and eCommerce into one sophisticated hub.

But, we don't just sell software; we believe in helping our customers build better businesses. Through collaboration, connection, and our skummunity (commonsku-community, get it?), we are elevating our customers and the world of branded merchandise. We are thought and brand leaders, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in promo.

Our culture and values

Our values – Community First, Ten Steps Ahead, Fast Forward, and Delightful Work – drive us to create an exceptional experience for our customers, our partners, our industry, and our team.

We believe in the power of a team of nice people who are great at what they do. It’s pretty simple, really! We love creativity, a great sense of humour, enthusiasm, collaboration, risk-taking, optimism, and diverse opinions.

We are remote-first and maintain our headquarters in Toronto, ON. Our team spans across Canada and into the US. We gather together in Toronto at least twice a year, so no matter where we live, we get to spend time together to collaborate, learn, and celebrate! (It’s the best!)

And we’re growing! We’re looking for our next:

Engineering Manager, Platform and Automation

As an Engineering Manager, you will be managing our Platform and Automation teams, which are responsible for our DevOps, Data Engineering, and QA functions. This role is a key leader responsible for driving technical and people strategy for these teams, as well influencing the entire Engineering team.

You will partner with the engineering team and Principal Engineers to deliver high quality and scalable software solutions to drive commonsku’s growth. You will have the opportunity to shape and execute long term technical initiatives that anticipate business and platform needs over a 12-18 month horizon. While you may not directly code day-to-day, you will provide technical guidance, review technical solutions and help the engineers grow their technical skills.

This role will have the opportunity to develop and grow high performing teams by attracting and retaining top talent. You will partner with the VP of Technology and Senior Engineering Manager to shape the future of engineering at commonsku - fostering a culture of strong technical and operational excellence and scaling engineering process.

You’ll work on:

• Partnering with the VP of Technology and Principal Engineers to shape roadmaps and define clear technical and performance requirements for future initiatives.
• Championing the agile mindset with team rituals and processes that support predictable delivery, fast feedback loops, and continuous improvement.
• Leading the delivery of complex, cross-functional engineering projects. Scoping and staging work into well-defined milestones, ensuring alignment with commonsku's vision.
• Serving as a technical leader and thought partner, resolving ambiguity and applying strong engineering judgment to ensure sustainable and scalable systems.
• Building, growing, and retaining a team of talented engineers by fostering an environment of psychological safety, accountability, and technical excellence.
• Providing regular coaching, feedback, and career development aligned with our career ladder.
• Ensuring each team member understands how their work connects to customers, mission, and business strategy.
• Balancing business, customer, and technical trade-offs thoughtfully and transparently.
• Identifying strategic opportunities to improve engineering practices, tools, or systems — and driving adoption of improvements at scale.
• Representing engineering in company-level initiatives, helping others understand the impact, scope, and feasibility of proposed technical solutions.
• Modeling clear, proactive, and tailored communication across levels and audiences.
• Sharing learnings, progress, and outcomes broadly and effectively to ensure visibility and alignment.

With the experience we think will help you succeed:

• 8+ years of experience in software engineering, with a proven track record of delivering scalable, high-quality software in a fast-paced environment, particularly in the spaces of DevOps, QA, and data engineering. You do not need to be an expert in all three. Experience in one or more, and a willingness to learn the others is what we’re looking for.
• 1–3+ years of experience managing engineers, including hiring, onboarding, performance management, and career development.
• Experience partnering with cross-functional partners to shape roadmaps, define scope, and deliver customer and user-centric features.
• Strong understanding of Agile principles and experience evangelizing them.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex, cross-functional projects from concept to delivery, balancing technical trade-offs and business outcomes.
• Strong technical background with hands-on experience in system design, architecture, and modern development practices.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Proven experience mentoring and growing engineers across varying levels, fostering a high-performance, feedback-driven culture.
• Proven ability to build and scale engineering processes that support team health, delivery speed, and code quality.
• Ability to operate with a sense of urgency and action, customer-first philosophy and ability to think and act strategically
• Nice to have: Experience with Generative AI and applying it to solve customer problems

Compensation, Benefits, and Work Environment:

• We believe in paying fairly and being proactive about ensuring our team is rewarded growth and innovation. We value unique contributions and being a place where people can grow and do the best work of their careers. Starting compensation for this role is $150,000 to $170,000 annually, with the initial salary based on past experience.
• We offer benefits coverage for employees, a group RRSP plan with employer contributions, annual office closure between December 25 and January 1, parental leave top-up, and a flexible work environment that supports individuals, families, and people of diverse needs. Oh and super cool merch!
• This role is open to candidates based in and legally eligible to work in Canada, with the exception of Quebec. (We love the province, we are not currently in a position to employ folks there! Désolé!)

Interested? Excellent!

Apply now at commonsku.com/careers! We’ll review your application and get back to you as soon as we can.

AI and Our Hiring Process

commonsku embraces the opportunities that AI presents to enable humans to do better work! We do not use AI to screen applications, but we do use it to help take notes during phone screens. If you use AI in your materials, please make sure to review and personalize responses before submitting so we can get to know you (and not ChatGPT).

commonsku is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.