Director of Engineering

Harnham; Phoenix (AZ); Hybrid; USD 129,000 - 215,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Benefits

Job summary

Harnham is seeking a Director of Engineering to lead and scale a real-time platforms and autonomous technology stack in Phoenix. This hands-on leader will drive architecture, platform evolution, and a high-performing team while partnering with stakeholders on mission-critical solutions.

The role blends software craftsmanship with strategic leadership, demanding expertise in distributed systems, cloud infrastructure, and AI-enabled development.

Qualifications

• Extensive software engineering experience with strong technical foundation.
• Experience as Principal Engineer, Technical Architect, Engineering Manager, or Director.
• Hands-on coding skills and ability to stay close to technology.
• Deep expertise in architecture, system design, and distributed apps.
• Experience building and scaling products in startup or early-stage environments.
• Understanding of frontend, backend, cloud infrastructure, and integrations.
• Experience owning production systems, reliability, monitoring, and incident management.
• Track record of hiring, coaching, developing engineering talent.
• Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration.
• Comfort working with AI-powered development tools and modern workflows.
• Ability to thrive in fast-moving, ambiguous, high-growth environments.

Responsibilities

• Define and lead the technical vision, architecture, and roadmap.
• Drive platform evolution, decide what to enhance, replace, or rebuild.
• Stay involved in software development, architecture reviews, and technical decision making.
• Build systems that are scalable, reliable, secure, and easy to maintain.
• Create development standards, testing strategies, and release processes.
• Own platform performance, monitoring, uptime, and operational readiness.
• Partner with users and business stakeholders to solve real-world operational challenges.
• Recruit, mentor, and grow a high-performing engineering team.
• Evaluate new technologies and guide strategic technical investments.
• Support the adoption of AI-assisted development and intelligent automation initiatives.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Software architecture

Distributed systems

Cloud infrastructure

Hiring & coaching

AI tooling

Hands-on coding

Job description

DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING - REAL-TIME PLATFORMS & AUTONOMOUS TECHNOLOGY

PHOENIX, AZ

HYBRID

Up to $215,000 BASE + EQUITY + BENEFITS

The Opportunity

We're working with an emerging technology company focused on building software that powers remote operations, intelligent automation, and mission-critical decision making. Their platform combines live data, video, connected devices, and AI-driven capabilities to help customers manage and respond to real-world events more efficiently. They are seeking a Director of Engineering to serve as the company's technical leader and engineering builder. This is a unique opportunity for someone who enjoys creating products from the ground up, solving complex technical challenges, and influencing everything from architecture and engineering practices to hiring strategy and team development. This role is ideal for a hands-on engineering leader who still loves building software while helping scale an organization.

The Engineering Environment

The team is focused on:

• Real-time applications that support operational workflows
• Highly available cloud-based platforms and distributed systems
• Live data, video, and connected-device integrations
• AI-enabled products and autonomous capabilities
• Modern software development practices and automation
• Scalable architecture and long-term platform strategy
• Close collaboration across Product, Operations, and Engineering

What You'll Do

• Define and lead the technical vision, architecture, and engineering roadmap
• Drive the evolution of the platform, identifying what should be enhanced, replaced, or rebuilt
• Stay actively involved in software development, architecture reviews, and technical decision making
• Build systems that are scalable, reliable, secure, and easy to maintain
• Create development standards, testing strategies, and release processes
• Own platform performance, monitoring, uptime, and operational readiness
• Partner with users and business stakeholders to solve real-world operational challenges
• Recruit, mentor, and grow a high-performing engineering team
• Evaluate new technologies and help guide strategic technical investments
• Support the adoption of AI-assisted development and intelligent automation initiatives

What We're Looking For

• Extensive software engineering experience with a strong technical foundation
• Experience as a Principal Engineer, Technical Architect, Engineering Manager, or Director-level leader
• Strong hands-on coding skills and a willingness to stay close to the technology
• Deep expertise in software architecture, system design, and distributed applications
• Experience building and scaling products in startup or early-stage environments
• Strong understanding of frontend, backend, cloud infrastructure, and system integrations
• Experience owning production systems, reliability, monitoring, and incident management
• Track record of hiring, coaching, and developing engineering talent
• Excellent communication skills and cross-functional collaboration abilities
• Comfort working with AI-powered development tools and modern engineering workflows
• Ability to thrive in fast-moving, ambiguous, high-growth environments

Why This Role

• Build and shape the engineering organization from an early stage
• Own key technology decisions, architecture, and engineering processes
• Influence the future direction of a mission-critical software platform
• Work on products that bridge software and real-world operations
• Collaborate directly with executive leadership and product stakeholders
• High levels of autonomy, ownership, and visibility
• Significant equity opportunity with long-term growth potential
• Unique chance to leave a lasting impact on both the technology and the organization

This is an outstanding opportunity for a senior technical leader who wants to combine hands-on engineering with strategic leadership. The ideal candidate enjoys building products from the ground up, leading through influence and execution, and solving complex technical challenges in environments where software, operations, and emerging technologies intersect.