Lead Software Engineer

What You’ll Do

• Lead Technical Strategy & Architecture on GCP: Drive the end-to-end technical strategy and architectural vision for new platform capabilities, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives across various Ford business units. This includes defining and implementing best practices for scalable, resilient, and performant solutions leveraging Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
• Architect & Implement Cloud-Native Solutions: Collaborate with cross-functional teams and stakeholders to design, advocate for, and implement advanced platform features and capabilities, with a strong focus on GCP Microservices architectures (e.g., Cloud Run, Cloud Functions, GKE) and their related tools.
• Optimize Performance with Google Cloud Spanner: Drive operational excellence by architecting and optimizing for exceptional performance, high availability, and real-time responsiveness of critical APIs and data services, particularly leveraging the global consistency and scalability of Google Cloud Spanner for mission-critical data.
• Advance Cloud Automation & DevOps: Implement sophisticated automation, CI/CD pipelines, and lifecycle management initiatives on GCP, fostering a culture of continuous delivery, reuse, and efficient resource management.
• Data Platform Innovation: Analyze existing products and complex datasets to identify business value, drive data quality improvements, and discover technical opportunity areas for leveraging advanced GCP data services (e.g., BigQuery, Dataflow).
• Data-Driven Product Development: Utilize data-driven approaches, including product experiments, user interviews, and metrics analysis, to gather customer feedback, validate assumptions, and continuously improve the product experience, ensuring our GCP-based solutions meet evolving user needs.
• Hands-on Technical Leadership: Work hands-on with development teams, providing deep technical guidance and mentorship, to prioritize, plan, and deliver features that meet stringent product requirements and architectural standards on GCP.
• Executive Communication: Conduct technical product reviews and effectively communicate program status, complex technical issues, risks, and strategic plans to executive leadership.

Responsibilities

As a Lead Software Engineering Anchor, you will be an integral part of a Balanced Product Team, collaborating closely with the Product Manager, Product Designer, and other Software Engineers to deliver high-impact analytic solutions. You will be responsible for the full lifecycle, from architecture to ongoing support and maintenance, of these advanced cloud-native solutions.

• Product & Requirements Management: Lead and/or participate in the development of detailed technical requirements, features, user stories, use cases, and test cases, ensuring alignment with GCP architectural principles.
• Technical Documentation: Author comprehensive process and design documents, including architectural decision records for GCP services.
• End-to-End GCP Solution Delivery: Work collaboratively with Business Customers, Product Owners, Architects, Product Designers, Software Engineers, and Security Controls Champions on solution design, development, and deployment, with a deep focus on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) services, including Cloud Run, GCP Microservices, and crucially, Google Cloud Spanner.
• Cloud Operations & SRE: Generate performance metrics, manage user access authorization, perform password maintenance, and build robust, automated deployment pipelines within a GCP environment, adhering to SRE best practices.
• Incident & Problem Management: Lead incident, problem, and change/service request-related activities, including root cause analysis (RCA) for complex distributed systems on GCP, and drive proactive problem management/defect prevention.

What You’ll Have

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Business, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
• 8+ years of experience in IT application/product development and delivery, preferably in customer analytics, big data, or related technology domains.
• Proven experience in establishing and coordinating multi-disciplinary teams, products, and services.
• Strong technology know-how related to customer analytics and big data projects.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver on project commitments through leadership, strategic planning, rigorous execution, teamwork, and problem resolution.
• Excellent communication skills capable of translating complex technical ideas to stakeholders at all levels.
• Working knowledge of IT tools and onboarding/offboarding processes.
• Ability to effectively prioritize work across product teams and manage competing demands.
• Excellent people skills with the ability to motivate, mentor, and coach team members.
• Strong soft skills including active listening, availability, mission-focus, transparency, delegation, accountability, and a servant leadership approach.