Head of Enterprise API Platform

Guardian Life; Town of Bethlehem (NY); Hybrid; USD 179,000 - 294,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Job summary

Guardian Life is seeking a Head of API Engineering, Platforms & Modernization to lead the strategy and execution of the enterprise API ecosystem. You will modernize our API landscape, set engineering standards, and oversee teams delivering scalable integration solutions across the organization.

You will drive API design, governance, and adoption while partnering with architecture, security, and platform teams to align on patterns and tooling.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.
• 10+ years of software engineering, API development, or platform engineering.
• 5+ years leading engineering teams at enterprise scale.
• Proven experience designing and implementing API strategies and integration architectures.
• Experience modernizing legacy systems into scalable, service-based architectures.
• Strong understanding of API security, governance, and lifecycle management.
• Experience operating in complex, cross-functional environments with multiple stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders and drive enterprise-wide initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and delivery of scalable, reliable API platforms across the enterprise.
• Establish and enforce API standards across security, performance, and lifecycle management.
• Modernize legacy integrations into reusable, well-governed APIs.
• Drive adoption and reuse of APIs across product and engineering teams.
• Partner with architecture, cybersecurity, and platform teams to align on integration patterns.
• Improve developer experience through tooling, automation, and self-service capabilities.
• Build and lead high-performing engineering teams across platform and delivery.
• Reduce duplication and improve efficiency across enterprise integrations.
• Influence technology direction through strong cross-functional partnerships.

Skills

API design

Microservices

Modern integration patterns

Security concepts

Team leadership

Stakeholder influence

Architecture alignment

Education

Bachelor’s degree in CS or Engineering

Tools

AWS

Azure

Job description

Open — Guardian Life has a posting for this job. Posted 20 Oct 2026.

This posting

About this job

Head of API Engineering, Platforms & Modernization (L9)

Role Summary

Guardian is transforming how we deliver digital and data-driven experiences. This role leads the strategy and execution of our enterprise API ecosystem—enabling secure, scalable, and reusable services that power customer, product, and AI capabilities across the organization.

You will modernize our API landscape, establish engineering standards, and lead teams delivering high-quality integration solutions across the enterprise.

You Will

• Lead the design and delivery of scalable, reliable API platforms across the enterprise
• Establish and enforce API standards across security, performance, and lifecycle management
• Modernize legacy integrations into reusable, well-governed APIs
• Drive adoption and reuse of APIs across product and engineering teams
• Partner with architecture, cybersecurity, and platform teams to align on integration patterns
• Improve developer experience through tooling, automation, and self-service capabilities
• Build and lead high-performing engineering teams across platform and delivery
• Reduce duplication and improve efficiency across enterprise integrations
• Influence technology direction through strong cross-functional partnerships

You Have

• Experience leading API, platform, or integration engineering in large-scale environments
• Strong expertise in API design, microservices, and modern integration patterns
• Proven ability to establish standards and drive adoption across teams
• Experience modernizing legacy systems into scalable services
• Strong understanding of security (authentication, authorization, zero-trust)
• Experience leading and developing engineering teams
• Ability to influence senior stakeholders and drive enterprise outcomes

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, API development, or platform engineering
• 5+ years of experience leading engineering teams and delivering at enterprise scale
• Proven experience designing and implementing API strategies and integration architectures
• Experience modernizing legacy systems into scalable, service-based architectures
• Strong understanding of API security, governance, and lifecycle management
• Experience operating in complex, cross-functional environments with multiple stakeholders
• Demonstrated ability to influence senior leaders and drive enterprise-wide initiatives

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with cloud-native architectures (e.g., AWS, Azure)
• Familiarity with event-driven architectures and distributed systems
• Exposure to data and AI integration patterns
• Experience implementing developer platforms or API marketplaces
• Background in financial services or regulated industries

Success Measures

• High platform reliability, performance, and developer experience
• Increased API adoption and reuse across teams
• Reduction in redundant integrations and services
• Strong compliance with security and engineering standards
• Improved delivery speed and predictability
• Reduction in API-related incidents

Location:

• Three days a week at a Guardian office in New York NY, Holmdel, NJ, Bethlehem, PA or Stanford, CT.

Salary Range:

$178,690.00 - $293,560.00

The salary range reflected