AI-First Software Engineering Manager

Cengage Group; Columbus (OH); Remote; USD 102,000 - 163,000; Full time

Job summary

Cengage Group is seeking a Software Engineering Manager to lead a globally distributed engineering team building AI-first tools for our CLP platforms. You will define technical strategy, mentor engineers, and partner with product and design to deliver high-impact features with accessibility at the forefront.

You will drive modern delivery through automation, GenAI integration, and a Product Operating Model, balancing tech debt with new capabilities while maintaining security and resilience for a

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related field.
• 2+ years of technology leadership experience, including developing technology strategies, fostering innovation, and leading globally distributed teams.
• Working knowledge of AI concepts, including machine learning, LLMs, multimodal models, prompt engineering, AI agents, RAG, and vector databases.
• Hands‑on experience integrating or experimenting with commercial and open‑source GenAI technologies and toolkits (e.g., coding assistants, OpenAI, Hugging Face, LangChain).
• Experience modernizing legacy or monolithic architectures, migrating systems to modular, cloud‑native platforms, and implementing hybrid cloud strategies.
• Ability to design and develop APIs that integrate legacy systems with modern solutions.
• Comfortable designing and deploying solutions on AWS, GCP, or Azure, including containers, serverless, and cloud storage/compute services.
• Proven ability to build secure, resilient, scalable, high‑availability enterprise systems for global user bases.
• Strong experience with agile delivery (Scrum, Kanban, SAFe) and tooling such as Jira or Azure DevOps
• Demonstrated success organizing teams and delivery around a Product Operating Model
• Strong hands‑on expertise with Java development required (5 years minimum)
• Strong hands‑on expertise with React or other modern front‑end technology required (5 years minimum)
• Strong cross‑functional collaboration skills in distributed, remote‑first environments.
• Ability to clearly communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non‑technical audiences, including executives.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and grow a high‑performing engineering team focused on quality, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Reimagine and optimize software delivery processes using modern tools, automation, and generative AI.
• Engage in driving POM Discovery activities including continuous customer engagement, both internal and external, to derive solutions that meet end user, company, and technology goals.
• Track quality and efficiency improvements through well instrumented SDLC tools and report progress to executive teams.
• Balance technical debt and other maintenance activities alongside new feature development within each sprint.
• Work with partners and customers to establish and handle product backlogs, product estimates and budgets.
• Stay in front of emerging technologies and industry trends to inject continuous innovation into our product roadmaps.

Skills

Java

React

Agile Delivery

Leadership

Cross-functional collaboration

Communications

GenAI concepts

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science

Tools

Jira

Azure DevOps

AWS

GCP

LangChain

OpenAI API

Job description

Cengage Group is seeking a Software Engineering Manager to lead a globally distributed engineering team building AI-first tools for our CLP platforms. You will define technical strategy, mentor engineers, and partner with product and design to deliver high-impact features with accessibility at the forefront.

You will drive modern delivery through automation, GenAI integration, and a Product Operating Model, balancing tech debt with new capabilities while maintaining security and resilience for a