Engineering Manager

Talently; Denver (CO); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work model

Downtown Denver office

Job summary

Talently is seeking an Engineering Manager in Denver to shape an early-stage software team delivering AI-powered tools. You will lead a cross-functional pod, own architectural decisions, and stay close to code while guiding product development from design to customer delivery.

The role blends hands-on technical leadership with hiring, culture building, and collaboration with product, design, and data teams in a hybrid environment.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of professional software development experience, incl. 3+ years leading teams
• Ownership of team performance, hiring, and delivery outcomes
• Senior level technical depth with hands-on coding and architecture
• Experience with React and Python (FastAPI) in a full-stack context
• Practical experience with AI coding tools (Claude Code, OpenAI Codex)
• Experience shipping products or features powered by LLMs
• Startup experience and ability to work cross-functionally
• Based in the Denver metro area and able to work from a downtown office 3 days/wk

Responsibilities

• Lead a cross-functional engineering pod, set priorities and delivery cadence
• Own design reviews, architectural trade-offs and engineering quality
• Stay hands-on to provide technical judgment and code support
• Manage performance, give feedback, and coach engineers
• Recruit, interview, and hire engineers with a repeatable process
• Evaluate AI coding tools and identify productivity gains
• Coordinate with leadership to align architecture and priorities
• Translate tech direction into execution plans with customers/design partners

Skills

10+ years dev

Lead engineering teams

Ownership of performance

Senior technical depth

React & Python

AI coding tools

LLMs product shipping

Startup cross-functional

Denver-based

Founding engineer (nice-to-have)

Data infra / ML / AI tooling

Interview process / hiring bar

Design usability

Tools

OpenAI Codex

Claude Code

FastAPI

Job description

Join an early-stage company in the software development industry building AI-powered tools. As an Engineering Manager, you’ll help shape a growing engineering organization, lead a cross-functional pod, and guide product development from technical decisions through customer delivery. This hybrid opportunity combines hands-on technical leadership with the chance to influence hiring, team culture, and how AI tools support engineering work.

Responsibilities:

• Lead a cross-functional engineering pod, setting priorities, establishing a reliable delivery cadence, and removing blockers.
• Own technical decisions within your feature area, including design reviews, architectural trade-offs, and engineering quality.
• Stay hands-on and close to the code to provide sound technical judgment and support engineers.
• Manage performance, provide timely feedback, and coach engineers to grow their skills and impact.
• Recruit, interview, and hire engineers while developing a repeatable hiring and interview process.
• Evaluate AI coding tools such as Claude Code and Codex, identifying where they can improve engineering productivity.
• Partner with engineering leadership and other pod leads to align architecture, interfaces, and shared priorities.
• Translate technical direction into clear execution plans, and work with customers and design partners to shape product development.

Must-Have Skills:

• 10+ years of professional software development experience, including at least 3 years leading engineering teams.
• Demonstrated ownership of team performance, hiring, and delivery outcomes.
• Strong player-coach capabilities, with senior-level technical depth and a willingness to stay engaged in implementation details.
• Experience with modern React and Python, including FastAPI, or comparable full-stack expertise.
• Practical experience with AI coding tools such as Claude Code or OpenAI Codex, paired with sound judgment about their use.
• Experience building with LLMs, including shipping a real product or feature powered by them.
• Startup experience and comfort working across engineering, product, design, and data in an evolving environment.
• Based in the Denver metro area and able to work from the downtown office three days per week.

Nice-to-Have Skills:

• Experience as a founding or early engineer at an early-stage startup.
• Background in data infrastructure, machine learning, AI tooling, or AI evaluation systems.
• Experience establishing an interview process and hiring bar from the ground up.
• A strong eye for design and product usability.