Software Engineering Manager, Drive Gen AI Quality and Context

Google; Boulder (CO); On-site; USD 207,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

Google in Boulder, CO seeks a Software Engineering Manager to lead a team focused on Drive Gen AI Quality and Context. You will guide engineers, shape technical strategy, and help drive product direction across AI features powering billions of users.

You will manage multi-site teams, oversee budget and schedules, and collaborate with DeepMind and other groups to deliver scalable AI-enabled products. Expectations include strong leadership and a hands-on engineering approach.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 3 years of experience in a technical leadership role.
• 2 years of experience in a people management or team leadership role.
• Experience with GenAI techniques (LLMs, multimodal, large vision models).

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of software engineers to deliver scalable, high-quality products.
• Provide technical leadership and uphold high engineering excellence.
• Collaborate with Engineering, Product, and cross-functional leaders to meet deadlines.
• Demonstrate strong product instincts to align engineering with customer value.
• Recruit top talent and grow your team, fostering an environment for peak performance.

Skills

Technical leadership

People management

GenAI experience

Cross-functional / matrixed experience

ML design & deployment

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience

Master's degree or PhD in Engineering/CS/related field

Job description

Software Engineering Manager, Drive Gen AI Quality and Context

Google Boulder, CO, USA

X In most instances, this position requires in-person interviews as part of the hiring process. The application window will be open until at least November 17th, 2026. This opportunity will remain online based on business needs which may be before or after the specified date.

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 3 years of experience in a technical leadership role.
• 2 years of experience in a people management or team leadership role.

Experience with GenAI techniques (e.g., LLMs, Multi-Modal, Large Vision Models) or with GenAI-related concepts (language modeling, computer vision).

Preferred qualifications:

• Master’s degree or PhD in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field.
• 3 years of experience working in a complex, matrixed organization involving cross-functional, or cross-business projects.
• 5 years of experience leading ML design and optimizing end-to-end Machine Learning (e.g., model deployment, model evaluation, data processing, debugging, fine tuning).

About the job

Like Google's own ambitions, the work of a Software Engineer goes way beyond just Search. Software Engineering Managers have not only the technical expertise to take on and provide technical leadership to major projects, but also manage a team of engineers. You not only optimize your own code but make sure engineers are able to optimize theirs. As a Software Engineering Manager you manage your project goals, contribute to product strategy and help develop your team. Teams work all across the company, in areas such as information retrieval, artificial intelligence, natural language processing, distributed computing, large-scale system design, networking, security, data compression, user interface design; the list goes on and is growing every day. Operating with scale and speed, our exceptional software engineers are just getting started -- and as a manager, you guide the way.

With technical and leadership expertise, you manage engineers across multiple teams and locations, a large product budget and oversee the deployment of large-scale projects across multiple sites internationally.

Google Drive is committed to creating a secure, intelligent, and universally accessible means of storing, sharing, organizing, and finding information. The immediate top focus is leveraging Generative AI to fundamentally revolutionize how users interact with their content, unlocking unprecedented value from their personal and enterprise knowledge.

In this role, you will leverage state-of-the-art AI to transform the vast knowledge stored in drive into features that supercharge user productivity. While your primary mandate is delivering user-facing features, you will also architect and maintain the critical backend infrastructure responsible for processing and serving derived data to power these AI experiences at scale.

AI will change the future of work in profound ways, and our products— Gmail, Docs, Drive, Calendar, Sheets, Vids and Meet are at the forefront. From pre-computed summaries for email threads, summaries for meetings, and videos created from a document using lifelike AI avatars, our AI opportunity is huge. Our mission is to meaningfully connect people so they can create, build, and grow together and as part of the team you can build how productivity tools should work 5-10 years into the future. You will work with model builders (Google DeepMind), work with exceptional leaders, and have the ability to impact billions of users across the world.

Individual pay is determined by factors including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

US: $207000 - $300000 (USD) + 20% bonus target + equity + benefits

Learn more about benefits at Google.

• Lead a team of software engineers to deliver excellent, scalable, efficient, and sustainable products.
• Provide technical leadership and hold high technical excellence. Contribute thought leadership and system design opinions.
• Collaborate with other Engineering teams, Product Managers, and cross‑functional leaders, and manage important deadlines.
• Exhibit strong product instincts, understand how the team's technical work meets the business needs for the customers. Negotiate with cross‑functional partners to arrive at the best balance between engineering effort, system complexity, and customer value.
• Recruit top talent, develop and support your team. Provide an environment where everyone can do their very best work.

Google is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. We are committed to building a workforce that is representative of the users we serve, creating a culture of belonging, and providing an equal employment opportunity regardless of race, creed, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related condition (including breastfeeding), expecting or parents-to-be, criminal histories consistent with legal requirements, or any other basis protected by law. See also Google's EEO Policy , Know your rights: workplace discrimination is illegal , Belonging at Google , and How we hire .

Google is a global company and, in order to facilitate efficient collaboration and communication globally, English proficiency is a requirement for all roles unless stated otherwise in the job posting.