VP Engineering - Canada

Symend; Calgary; On-site; CAD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a Vice President of Software Engineering to drive strategic vision and execution. This pivotal role involves leading engineering teams, fostering collaboration with Product teams, and ensuring alignment with business objectives. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in AI tools and machine learning, coupled with a strong background in agile methodologies. You will be instrumental in navigating the challenges of a fast-paced, high-growth environment, implementing best practices, and building high-performing teams. If you are passionate about technology and leadership, this opportunity is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of software engineering leadership experience required.
• Strong experience in early-stage, high-growth tech companies is essential.

Responsibilities

• Lead multiple teams to align technical execution with business goals.
• Ensure best practices in system design, development, and operations.

Skills

Leadership

AI Tools

Machine Learning

Agile Methodologies

Problem Solving

Communication

Education

BSc/MSc in Engineering

Relevant experience

Tools

Software Development Lifecycle

Job description

As Vice President, Software Engineering, you will play a crucial role in driving the company’s strategic vision while ensuring rapid execution. You will lead multiple teams, fostering both people and technical leadership within those teams, while also acting as a key partner to the Product team to align technical execution with business goals. Your ability to balance short-term quick wins with long-term scalable solutions will be essential to success.

This role demands technical depth, strategic foresight, strong project execution skills, and a passion for building high-performing teams. You will be responsible for ensuring best practices are in place, reducing single points of failure by proactively identifying gaps, promoting documentation, and enforcing command and control through autonomy within clear guidelines. A key requirement for this role is proven experience driving AI tools in a software development setting, with exposure to building Machine Learning and AI-backed product features. This is a focal area for the successful candidate, ensuring our AI initiatives align with business objectives and deliver impactful, scalable solutions.

Beyond direct team leadership, you will collaborate closely with Senior Leadership to drive cross-functional initiatives that improve efficiency, scalability, and execution speed. Your experience leading in a fast-paced, early-stage SaaS environment will be instrumental in navigating the challenges and opportunities that come with rapid growth.

Duties and Responsibilities include:

• Serve as a key partner to the Product team, ensuring seamless collaboration between Engineering and Product to drive strategy and execution of the road map.
• Develop and execute a strategic vision that aligns engineering efforts with overall business objectives, balancing speed with long-term sustainability.
• Assess and implement best in class AI-backed software development to ensure our AI initiatives align with business objectives to deliver impactful, scalable solutions.
• Identify and reduce single points of failure by proactively looking under the hood, enforcing documentation, and implementing robust processes to ensure resiliency.
• Establish a culture of command and control—allowing autonomy within clearly defined guidelines to enable efficiency and consistency across teams.
• Guide the team in delivering streamlined solutions by leveraging expertise in program management, cost management, people management, risk management, change management, Agile software development, and scalable system planning.
• Build and maintain high-performing teams that deliver reliable, scalable, and sustainable solutions while ensuring a predictable output.
• Maintain vendor relationships to stay ahead of industry changes, capitalize on opportunities, and optimize cost-value equations.
• Oversee the entire software development lifecycle, ensuring best practices in system design, development, quality, security, privacy, and operations.
• Establish and enforce best practices across major systems, services, technologies, and architecture to drive efficiency and scalability.
• Partner with other engineering leaders to identify roadblocks, skill gaps, and opportunities to enhance developer satisfaction and effectiveness.
• Implement key metrics to track team performance, service health, and overall engineering effectiveness, reporting these on a regular basis.
• Act as a bridge between teams, senior leadership, and executive leadership, ensuring clear and effective communication at all levels.
• Provide hands-on leadership to geographically dispersed teams, conducting regular 1:1s, workload balancing, team meetings, and performance coaching to foster individual and team growth.
• Play a key role in workforce planning, hiring, onboarding, performance management, and, when necessary, managing employee exits.

Qualifications and Experience:

• BSc/MSc in Engineering, Computer Science, or relevant field, OR demonstrable experience commensurate with the education requirement.
• 15+ years of experience in software engineering leadership.
• Strong experience leading engineering teams in early-stage, high-growth managed services tech companies.
• Proven experience driving AI tools in a software development setting, with exposure to building Machine Learning and AI-backed product features. This is a key requirement and focal area for this role.
• A track record of fostering a culture of speed, execution, and strategic alignment with Product teams.
• Strong leadership experience, including coaching and performance management.
• Exceptional problem-solving skills with a focus on scalable, sustainable solutions.
• Strong ability to communicate technical concepts effectively to non-technical stakeholders.
• Deep experience with Agile development methodologies and best practices.

Key Competencies:

• Strong strategic vision with the ability to execute and scale at speed.
• Ability to identify and mitigate single points of failure through proactive documentation and best practices.
• Leadership skills that balance autonomy with clear guidelines to drive efficiency and alignment.
• Strong analytical and decision-making skills to navigate technical and business challenges.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas clearly.
• Deep understanding of agile methodologies and scalable system architectures.
• Proven experience in cross-functional collaboration, particularly with Product teams, to drive business outcomes.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Alignment of engineering initiatives with product and business objectives.
• Delivery of high-quality, scalable solutions with a focus on executing with speed and velocity.
• Reduction of single points of failure and improved documentation practices.
• Team performance, engagement, and retention.
• Clear and consistent communication between engineering, product, and senior leadership.