Vice President, Application Development

Merrick Bank; South Jordan (UT); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive Pay

Medical, Dental, and Vision

401(k) Match

Disability Insurance

Wellness Programs

Paid Vacation

Employee Engagement Activities

Job summary

Merrick Bank in South Jordan, Utah, seeks a Vice President level Engineering Manager to lead senior engineers and deliver high-impact financial systems, with emphasis on AI integration and reliability. You will scale platforms for real money movement and collaborate with Product, Data, Cyber, and Business leaders.

We value fast thinkers who can balance speed with production integrity, build high-performing teams, and drive innovation while maintaining robust operations across cloud-based

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience leading engineering teams in financial services, fintech, or complex transactional systems.
• Strong technical depth across architecture, systems design, performance, and reliability.
• Proven track record of shipping and operating production-grade systems at scale.
• Experience building or delivering alongside AI/ML or AI-enabled systems, ideally within financial workflows (risk, fraud, automation, analytics).
• Solid understanding of high-throughput, low-latency systems and modern cloud architectures and data platforms.
• Deep commitment to operational excellence and production reliability.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity, move quickly, and make sound engineering decisions.
• Strong communicator who can align engineers, executives, and cross-functional partners.

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow a high-performing engineering team building mission-critical financial systems.
• Drive delivery of scalable, resilient, and secure platforms that power real money movement.
• Strategically embed AI into our products and processes, from smarter automation to next-gen financial insights.
• Partner closely with Product, Data, Cyber and Business leaders to turn ideas into shipped solutions.
• Balance speed and stability, innovate aggressively without compromising production integrity.
• Own engineering rigor: architecture, code quality, observability, and operational excellence.
• Create a culture where engineers thrive: high trust, high ownership, and having fun.
• Coach and mentor engineers into technical leaders and problem-solvers.
• Continuously improve how we build: CI/CD, testing, deployment, and AI-assisted development workflows.

Skills

Engineering leadership

Architecture & design

AI/ML exposure

Reliability focus

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

Cloud platforms

Job description

Who we are

Founded in 1997, Merrick Bank is an FDIC®-insured financial institution headquartered in South Jordan, Utah, with over $10 billion in assets. A wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks Financial Group, Merrick Bank serves roughly five million cardmembers and more than 100,000 merchant customers nationwide.

What we do

We provide credit cards, recreational loans, deposit accounts, merchant services and bank sponsorships to consumers and businesses. As a leader in non-prime lending and merchant acquiring, we combine innovative technology with data-driven insights to help underserved consumers build and strengthen credit while delivering integrated, scalable payment solutions for businesses. Merrick Bank ranks among the top 20 FDIC®-insured credit card issuers in the U.S. and among the top 15 merchant acquirers by transaction volume.

Role Overview & Impact

We’re looking for a Vice President level Engineering Manager who can lead strong engineers, ship high-impact systems, and help shape the future of financial technology—with AI at the core. This is not a “keep the lights on” role. It’s for someone who thrives at the intersection of engineering excellence, financial complexity, and emerging AI capabilities. We want someone who moves fast, thinks big, and keeps production systems stable and reliable for customers. We’re looking for a builder—someone who doesn’t just manage systems, but continuously evolves and improves them. Someone with a passion for innovation, experimentation, and pushing what’s possible, while bringing energy, curiosity, and a genuine love of solving hard problems. If you’re excited to build high-performing teams and drive innovation without sacrificing reliability, this role is for you.

What you’ll own

• Lead and grow a high-performing engineering team building mission-critical financial systems
• Drive delivery of scalable, resilient, and secure platforms that power real money movement
• Strategically embed AI into our products and processes, from smarter automation to next-gen financial insights
• Partner closely with Product, Data, Cyber and Business leaders to turn ideas into shipped solutions
• Balance speed and stability, innovate aggressively without compromising production integrity
• Own engineering rigor: architecture, code quality, observability, and operational excellence
• Create a culture where engineers thrive: high trust, high ownership, and having fun
• Coach and mentor engineers into technical leaders and problem-solvers
• Continuously improve how we build: CI/CD, testing, deployment, and AI-assisted development workflows

What you’ll bring

• 7+ years of experience leading engineering teams in financial services, fintech, or complex transactional systems
• Strong technical depth across architecture, systems design, performance, and reliability
• Proven track record of shipping and operating production-grade systems at scale
• Experience building or delivering alongside AI/ML or AI-enabled systems, ideally within financial workflows (risk, fraud, automation, analytics)
• Solid understanding of high-throughput, low-latency systems and modern cloud architectures and data platforms
• Deep commitment to operational excellence and production reliability
• Ability to navigate ambiguity, move quickly, and make sound engineering decisions
• Strong communicator who can align engineers, executives, and cross-functional partners

Why join us

We believe in putting people first by supporting our customers, employees and our partners while creating opportunities for everyone to reach their potential. From fostering work-life balance to rewarding good work and innovative ideas, we invest in what matters most, our people. At Merrick Bank, you’ll be part of a collaborative, customer-focused team where you can grow your career while making a meaningful impact.

Employee Value Proposition

• Competitive Pay, including a Bonus Target or Variable Pay Incentive Program
• Benefits Package - Medical, Dental, and Vision (plus much more)
• 401(k) Plan with Company Match
• Short- & Long-Term Disability
• Wellness Programs
• Group Life and AD&D Insurance
• Paid Vacation, Sick Days and bank Holidays
• Employee Engagement Activities including Employee Appreciation Day, DEI Employee Resource Groups, Corporate Social Responsibility, Service Recognition

Equal Opportunity Statement

We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to age, race, color, sex, and gender identity/expression (including pregnancy, childbirth, transgender status, or sexual orientation), religion or creed, ancestry, citizenship, national origin, disability, military or veteran status, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or retaliation. Employment decisions are based solely on qualifications, merit, and business needs. Everyone is welcome here, and we hire based on your ability to do the job, not any protected characteristics.

Accommodation Statement

If you need help or reasonable accommodation during the application or hiring process, please let your TA Partner know.

About CardWorks Financial Group

CardWorks Financial Group is the engine driving financial progress, a diversified consumer finance provider building ethical solutions across credit, lending, and the full customer lifecycle. Advancing finance with purpose, we put people—clients, customers, and colleagues—at the center of everything we do, guided by our CRITICAL values and united as one enterprise across Merrick Bank, CardWorks Servicing, and Carson Smithfield. As your everyday champion, our vertically integrated platform fuels financial progress through access to credit, high yield deposits, flexible merchant payments, and end to end servicing performance—powered by a culture of relentless curiosity, belonging, and growth.