Manager, Engineering, Product Acquisition

Thrivent; United States; Remote; USD 139,000 - 189,000; Full time

Job summary

Thrivent is undergoing a digital transformation to empower clients, advisors, and employees with modern tech platforms. The Engineering Manager for Product Acquisition will shape wealth management technology strategy, mentor engineers, and collaborate with Product and other teams to deliver high-impact features.

You will drive architecture-aligned designs, oversee code quality, and promote DevOps, automation, and agile practices while building a high-performing, inclusive team that delivers

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or other technical field or equivalent work experience.
• 5+ years' experience in software development, portfolio strategy and roadmap development.
• 3+ years' management/supervisory experience in IT leading major technical projects.
• Demonstrated experience growing a Product Operating Model (Agile/Scrum).
• Proven leadership managing multidiscipline, high-performance teams.
• Strong project management and execution skills.
• Experience with customers to develop solutions to complex business problems.
• Excellent communication with internal/external stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Review technical solution design ensuring it aligns with architecture and provide guidance.
• Participate in system design discussions to land approaches for delivery.
• Promote and mentor agile practices; support learning events and trainings.
• Help break down barriers and foster strong cross-team relationships.
• Partner with Product Manager on initiatives, epics and features with clear outcomes.
• Collaborate with Product Manager on strategies, roadmaps, targets and measures.
• Create a positive team environment with psychological safety and collaboration.
• Lead talent planning, recruitment, and development across product groups.
• Model Thrivent leadership competencies and uphold company values.
• Manage direct employees and consultants; recruit and build a high-performing team.
• Define engineering standards; promote DevOps and automation.
• Select and manage technology vendors; drive build vs buy decisions.
• Serve as escalation point for production issues and outages.

Skills

Management experience

Agile/Scrum

Product Operating Model

Stakeholder communication

Project management

Cross-functional leadership

Strategy development

Customer problem solving

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or equivalent

5+ years' experience in software development, portfolio strategy and roadmap development

3+ years' management/supervisory experience in IT

Experience with Product Operating Model (Agile/Scrum)

Leadership managing multi-discipline, high-performance teams

Series 99 license

Job description

At Thrivent, we are focused on a digital transformation that will deliver modern, innovative experiences for our clients, financial advisors, and employees. We are investing in data and technology, using DevOps practices, and building an engineering culture of empowered technical experts. Our technologists are involved in work that includes java, react, cloud native development, enterprise integration, automation, cloud data platforms, artificial intelligence, and machine learning as well as maximizing platforms such as Salesforce and AWS.

The Engineering Manager for Product Acquisition will help define and drive Thrivent’s Wealth Management and Insurance Product technology strategy and execution. We are looking for a manager with hands‑on technical experience to drive the strategy along with helping coach and mentor a team of engineers. You will lead a team of engineers and will collaborate with other engineering teams within the organization regarding strategy, adoption of our product operating mode, operational excellence, DevOps/engineering maturity, and implementation of the platform. If you are excited and passionate about leading a team to set and drive the Thrivent Digital Advisor Experience forward,

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES:

Designing Solutions

• Review technical solution design ensuring it aligns with our architecture. Provide guidance and direction to the team.
• Take part in system design and architecture conversations with the team to land approaches to deliver solutions.

Developing Software

• Has Developed software. Can read code and stays up to date on best practices.
• Ensure code reviews are completed - Problem solving and analytical skills

Learning and applying new techniques

• Promotes and empowers sharing ideas, best practices, etc ensuring the team has space for these activities.
• Anticipates and analyzes trends in technology and assesses the impact of emerging technologies on the business

Collaborating within and across teams

• Supports the team agile practices and learning events / trainings
• Helps break down barriers for the team
• Builds strong working relationships with peers across teamsUnderstands the desired and actual outcomes as well as the technology delivered by the team
• Strong organizational and program management experience.
• Partner with Product Manager on Initiatives/ Epics/ Features and provides clarity on desired outcomes as well as technical expertise.
• Collaborates with Product manager for strategies, operating plans, targets and measures for product groups
• Creates a positive team environment where individuals have psychological safety and work collaboratively while understanding, respecting, challenging and appreciating each other’s ideas

Collaborating across the organization

• Align your team with the priorities of the company and the technology organization for a given product area.

Setting product/platform technology strategy

• Participates in setting the product and platform technology vision, strategies, initiatives, roadmaps , objectives and alignments
• Represents the business value of technology upgrades, etc. and influences prioritization in the product roadmap
• Empowers the team to select the right tool and platforms for the given product area.

Defining Engineering standards/patterns

• Collaborating with Engineers to ensure adoption of Engineering best practices and promote DevOps practices and automation.
• Contributes to the creation of enterprise frameworks and patterns

DevOps

• Define and supports the development Lifecyle processes
• Supports the team and removes barriers to resolving production incidents/problems
• Ensure DevOps principles via observability, monitoring and alerting
• Understands the health of technology products and promotes prioritization of work to maintain and continuously improve
• Serve as an escalation point in product level support for ongoing maintenance and production issues

Selecting & Managing Technology Vendors

• Be an advocate to the team to define criteria’s for selecting the right platform/technology
• Guides the team to build consensus on an approach and driving a build vs buy decision with the team. In a buy decision, works with the team to decide on criteria and vendor selection.
• Execute or manage the overall technology solutions, platforms for the product groups and associated vendor relationships.

Coaching Engineers

• Holding regular 1:1s with team members and team meeting,
• Provides constructive feedback, guidance and coaching to help engineers grow their skills and experience.
• Provides career planning advice to engineers and creates development plans to help them achieve their career goals which leverages their skills and capabilities and provides them with learning opportunities.

Recruiting/building talent

• Leads the process of selecting and engaging the right consulting partners
• Planning in advance for future people needs for the product groups, collaborate with the other teams on the recruitment process
• Recruits, develops, and sustains a high-performing team while promoting a culture of shared accountability, operational excellence, and partnership across the organization.
• Models Thrivent’s leadership competencies - courage, collaboration, and commitment by demonstrating resiliency, working together to make the best decisions, and holding yourself and others accountable.
• Supports and/or develops an environment in which Thrivent employees and colleagues are focused on continuous improvement, exceptional employee engagement, and an unwavering commitment to our clients. Shapes and/or supports a culture that represents the Thrivent purpose, promise and values, ensuring that Thrivent’s trust and reputation remain strong with its clients.
• Manage a team of direct employees and consultants.

QUALIFICATIONS & SKILLS:

Required:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or other technical field or equivalent work experience
• 8+ years of progressively responsible positions in Information Technology including 5+ years' experience in software development, portfolio strategy and roadmap development.
• 3+ years' management/supervisory experience in specific IT functional area discipline, e.g. applications development or equivalent skills leading major technical projects with accountability for enforcing talent management needs and performance standards.
• Demonstrated experience and leadership introducing and growing a Product Operating Model (Agile/Scrum).
• Demonstrated leadership and experience managing multidiscipline, high-performance work teams.
• Strong competency in project management and execution of multiple or large projects.
• Experience working with customers to develop solutions to complex business problems.
• Proven ability to communicate effectively with internal/external stakeholders to support business initiatives.
• Proven ability to function in an environment which requires flexibility, good judgment and intelligent decision making, often based on limited information and/or extreme conditions.
• Ability to formulate, implement and evaluate plans, programs and procedures applicable to customer relationship and demand management.

Preferred:

• Direct experience in Life, Health and Annuity insurance products, delivering technology for Financial Advisors.
• Series 99 license or above.

Pay TransparencyThrivent’s long-term growth depends on attracting, rewarding, and retaining people who are committed to helping others thrive with purpose. We accomplish this by offering a wide variety of market competitive compensation programs to attract, reward, and retain top talent. The applicable salary or hourly wage range for this full‑time role is $139,455.00 - $188,676.00 per year, which factors in various geographic regions. The base pay actually offered will be determined by a variety of factors including, but not limited to, location, relevant experience, skills, and knowledge, business needs, market demand, and other factors Thrivent deems important. Thrivent is unique in our commitment to helping people to be wise with money and live balanced and generous lives. That extends to our benefits. The following benefits may be offered: various bonuses (including, for example, annual or long-term incentives); medical, dental, and vision insurance; health savings account; flexible spending account; 401k; pension; life and accidental death and dismemberment insurance; disability insurance; supplemental protection insurance; 20 days of Paid Time Off each year; Sick and Safe Time; 10 paid company holidays; Volunteer Time Off; paid parental leave; EAP; well‑being benefits, and other employee benefits. Eligibility for receipt of these benefits is subject to the applicable plan/policy documents. Thrivent’s plans/policies are subject to change at any time at Thrivent’s discretion.

Thrivent provides Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) without regard to race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, marital status, citizenship status, military or veteran status, genetic information, or any other status protected by applicable local, state, or federal law. This policy applies to all employees and job applicants.

Thrivent is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, please let us know by sending an email to [e-mail] or call 800-847-4836 and request Human Resources.

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