Manager, Product Software Engineering - Frontend
ESPN
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Job summary
Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology in New York is seeking an experienced Software Engineering Manager to lead the JavaScript Disney Media Player across web and connected devices, delivering high-quality playback experiences used by millions of viewers on Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, and ABC News.
You will guide architecture and evolution of a scalable player platform, working with product, design and platform teams.
Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
- 8+ years of relevant software engineering experience, including significant experience leading and managing engineering teams.
- 5+ years of hands‑on, production experience with high‑quality JavaScript and modern web application development.
- Experience building or supporting media playback technologies in web‑based or connected‑device environments.
- Experience leading teams through the full software delivery lifecycle, including development, release, and operational support of consumer‑facing applications.
- Experience owning application availability, reliability, and performance in production environments.
- Strong communication and leadership skills with a demonstrated ability to grow, mentor, and develop engineers.
- Proven ability to collaborate effectively across technical and non‑technical teams, influence stakeholders, and manage cross‑functional dependencies.
- Demonstrated success building inclusive, high‑performing engineering teams.
Responsibilities
- Lead and grow the JavaScript Disney Media Player engineering team through hiring, coaching, performance management, and career development.
- Own execution of the team roadmap, balancing feature delivery, technical investment, platform reliability, and operational excellence.
- Provide technical leadership for the player stack, architecture decisions, and engineering best practices in partnership with senior engineers.
- Partner closely with Product, Design, TPM, and platform teams to align priorities, manage dependencies, and deliver high‑quality customer experiences.
- Foster a culture of accountability, inclusion, continuous learning, and data‑driven decision making to improve playback quality, performance, and reliability across devices.
Skills
Education
Tools
Job description
On any given day at Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology, we’re reimagining ways to create magical viewing experiences for the world’s most beloved stories while also transforming Disney’s media business for the future. Whether that’s evolving our streaming and digital products in new and immersive ways, powering worldwide advertising and distribution to maximize flexibility and efficiency, or delivering Disney’s unmatched entertainment and sports content, every day is a moment to make a difference to partners and to hundreds of millions of people around the world.
On any given day at Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology, we’re reimagining ways to create magical viewing experiences for the world’s most beloved stories while also transforming Disney’s media business for the future. Whether that’s evolving our streaming and digital products in new and immersive ways, powering worldwide advertising and distribution to maximize flexibility and efficiency, or delivering Disney’s unmatched entertainment and sports content, every day is a moment to make a difference to partners and to hundreds of millions of people around the world.
A few reasons why we’d love working for Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology
- Building the future of Disney’s media business: DE&E Technologists are designing and building the infrastructure that will power Disney’s media, advertising, and distribution businesses for years to come.
- Reach & Scale: The products and platforms this group builds and operates delight millions of consumers every minute of every day – from Disney+ and Hulu, to ABC News and Entertainment, to ESPN and ESPN+, and much more.
- Innovation: We develop and execute groundbreaking products and techniques that shape industry norms and enhance how audiences experience sports, entertainment & news.
We’re looking for an experienced Software Engineering Manager to lead the JavaScript-based Disney Media Player experience across web and connected-device surfaces. This team is responsible for delivering high-quality playback experiences used by millions of viewers across Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+, and ABC News, with ownership spanning playback quality, client-side performance, reliability, and operability.
In this role, you will provide both technical and organizational leadership, guiding the design and evolution of a highly scalable player platform that runs across a diverse device ecosystem from web browsers to connected TVs and streaming devices. You will partner closely with Product, Design, and other platform engineering teams to align strategy, execution, and operational excellence.
The ideal candidate is a pragmatic engineering leader who creates clarity in ambiguous environments, communicates effectively with technical and non-technical partners, and build a culture grounded in accountability, inclusion, operational discipline, and continuous learning.
- Lead and grow the JavaScript Disney Media Player engineering team through hiring, coaching, performance management, and career development.
- Own execution of the team roadmap, balancing feature delivery, technical investment, platform reliability, and operational excellence.
- Provide technical leadership for the player stack, architecture decisions, and engineering best practices in partnership with senior engineers.
- Partner closely with Product, Design, TPM, and platform teams to align priorities, manage dependencies, and deliver high-quality customer experiences.
- Foster a culture of accountability, inclusion, continuous learning, and data-driven decision making to improve playback quality, performance, and reliability across devices.
- Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
- 8+ years of relevant software engineering experience, including significant experience leading and managing engineering teams.
- 5+ years of hands‑on, production experience with high-quality JavaScript and modern web application development.
- Experience building or supporting media playback technologies in web‑based or connected‑device environments.
- Experience leading teams through the full software delivery lifecycle, including development, release, and operational support of consumer‑facing applications.
- Experience owning application availability, reliability, and performance in production environments.
- Strong communication and leadership skills with a demonstrated ability to grow, mentor, and develop engineers.
- Proven ability to collaborate effectively across technical and non-technical teams, influence stakeholders, and manage cross-functional dependencies.
- Demonstrated success building inclusive, high-performing engineering teams.
- Familiarity with streaming media concepts and technologies (MSE/EME, HLS, MPEG-DASH, Transport Stream, CMAF).
- Experience delivering playback or streaming video experiences at scale.
- Experience with connected TV, OTT, or streaming device platforms.
- Background partnering closely with Product, Design, and Platform teams on complex, highly visible products.
- Demonstrated success managing and supporting teams distributed across multiple time zones.
- Experience using data, metrics, or experimentation to inform technical decisions and improve user experience.
#hiredisney
The hiring range for this position in New York, NY is $182,400 to $244,600. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.
This position is with Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC, which is part of a business we call Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology.
Disney Entertainment & Sports LLC is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.
The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, visit the Disney candidate disability accommodations FAQs. We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.
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