Scale Engineer

Engineering Manager

Manager · Full Time

US: San Mateo (1875 South Grant Street)USD 218k – 273k2d ago
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Role

What you'll do.

As an Engineering Manager at Xero, you'll lead high-performing software engineering teams to deliver innovative accounting and payroll solutions for small businesses globally. You'll serve as a technical anchor balancing rapid delivery with long-term system health, while mentoring engineers through complex technical challenges including microservices architecture and AI-native development workflows. This role requires strong technical leadership, cross-functional collaboration skills, and experience managing platform health and operational excellence in a fast-paced, inclusive engineering culture.

Responsibilities

  • Lead High-Performing Engineering Teams: Guide inclusive, cross-functional software engineering teams to predictably deliver product roadmap commitments while maintaining operational excellence. Foster psychological safety and create an environment where engineers can do their best work through clear communication, decentralized decision-making, and high-touch support.
  • Drive Microservices Architecture Transformation: Lead technical initiatives to decouple legacy monolithic systems into modern, scalable API-first microservices architectures. Guide your team through complex system redesigns while maintaining service reliability and minimizing disruption to customer-facing products.
  • Embed AI-Native Development Workflows: Integrate AI tooling and practices across the complete software development lifecycle, including documentation generation, automated testing, and code quality improvements. Drive adoption of AI engineering practices to increase team throughput and reduce technical toil.
  • Elevate Developer Experience and Reduce Technical Friction: Identify and remove blockers that prevent deep work, including environment setup complexity, deployment friction, and infrastructure limitations. Continuously improve developer tools, processes, and documentation to enable engineers to ship features faster.
  • Manage Platform Health and Operational Excellence: Own technical health metrics, incident response processes, and service reliability standards. Participate in on-call rotations to ensure 24/7 product support while building a sustainable incident management culture that enables learning and continuous improvement.
  • Coach and Mentor Engineering Talent: Develop engineering talent through one-on-one coaching, technical mentorship, and growth opportunities. Create pathways for career progression while building an inclusive team that embraces diverse perspectives and encourages experimentation.
  • Translate Business Goals into Technical Execution Plans: Collaborate with Product and Design partners to understand customer problems and business objectives. Develop clear technical strategies and roadmaps that align engineering priorities with broader business goals and deliver measurable customer value.
  • Manage Technical Debt and System Architecture Decisions: Balance rapid feature delivery with long-term system health by making strategic decisions about technical debt, architectural patterns, and refactoring priorities. Establish standards for code quality and system design that scale with team growth.

Qualifications

What we look for.

Technical

  • Software Architecture and System Design

    Demonstrated expertise in designing and evolving software architecture, including microservices patterns, API design, and distributed systems. Experience leading architecture decisions and guiding teams through system decoupling initiatives from monolithic to microservices-based approaches.

  • Code Quality and Technical Standards

    Strong background establishing and maintaining code quality standards, code review processes, and technical excellence practices. Ability to mentor teams on best practices in testing, documentation, and maintainability while balancing speed and quality.

  • Platform Operations and Incident Management

    Experience managing platform health, monitoring systems, and incident response protocols. Familiarity with observability tools, log aggregation, alerting systems, and practices for maintaining high service availability and reliability.

  • AI Engineering Practices

    Practical knowledge of integrating AI tooling and workflows into software development lifecycle including code generation, testing automation, documentation tools, and productivity improvements. Stay current with emerging AI engineering best practices and adoption strategies.

  • DevOps and Infrastructure Collaboration

    Understanding of deployment pipelines, infrastructure as code, containerization, and cloud platforms. Ability to collaborate effectively with DevOps and infrastructure teams to optimize developer experience and eliminate deployment friction.

Education

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or Related Field

    Formal education in computer science, software engineering, mathematics, or equivalent technical discipline. Advanced degrees (Master's) in computer science or business administration (MBA) are a plus but not required.

  • Continuous Learning and Technical Growth

    Demonstrated commitment to ongoing professional development, staying current with emerging technologies (including AI/ML trends), software architecture patterns, and engineering leadership best practices through courses, conferences, or certifications.

Experience

  • Engineering Leadership and Team Management

    Minimum 3-5 years of experience in engineering management roles, leading software engineering teams of varying sizes. Track record of building high-performing, inclusive teams and developing engineering talent through mentorship and career growth opportunities.

  • Cross-Functional Collaboration

    Proven success collaborating with Product Management, Design, and other business functions to align technical execution with business goals. Experience translating customer needs and business objectives into clear technical strategies and roadmaps.

  • Technical Debt Management and Refactoring

    Hands-on experience managing technical debt accumulation, prioritizing refactoring initiatives, and making strategic decisions about when to invest in system health versus feature velocity. Success in improving legacy system architecture and code quality.

  • Distributed Systems and Scalability

    Background working with distributed systems, scaling challenges, and building systems that handle millions of transactions. Understanding of performance optimization, caching strategies, and architectural patterns for high-scale systems.

  • Accounting Software or Financial Systems Domain

    Preferred experience building accounting, payroll, invoicing, or other financial software systems. Familiarity with compliance requirements, regulatory considerations, and domain-specific challenges in fintech or accounting software development.

Skills

Required

  • Engineering Leadership

    Proven ability to lead software engineering teams, set technical vision, and create psychological safety. Strong communication skills for articulating technical decisions to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

  • Microservices Architecture

    Hands-on experience designing and implementing microservices-based systems. Understanding of API design, service boundaries, inter-service communication patterns, and the challenges of decoupling monolithic systems.

  • Software Design and Code Quality

    Deep expertise in software design principles, design patterns, and code quality practices. Ability to review code critically, mentor engineers on best practices, and establish technical standards that scale.

  • Incident Response and Platform Reliability

    Experience managing incidents, establishing SLOs/SLAs, and building reliability-focused cultures. Knowledge of observability, monitoring, logging, and practices for maintaining high availability systems.

  • Team Coaching and Mentorship

    Demonstrated ability to develop engineering talent through coaching, clear feedback, and growth opportunities. Experience building inclusive teams and fostering psychological safety where engineers can experiment and learn.

  • Cross-Functional Collaboration

    Strong skills in collaborating with Product, Design, and other business functions. Ability to translate customer needs into technical requirements and communicate engineering trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders.

  • Technical Debt Management

    Strategic thinking about technical debt, prioritization frameworks for balancing feature velocity with system health. Experience in refactoring initiatives and managing long-term architectural evolution.

  • AI-Native Development Adoption

    Familiarity with modern AI tools and workflows for software development. Ability to evaluate and integrate AI tooling across the development lifecycle including documentation, testing, and code generation.

Preferred

  • Accounting and Financial Software Domain Knowledge

    Nice to have

    Experience building accounting software, payment systems, invoicing platforms, or other financial technology products. Understanding of accounting principles, regulatory compliance, and domain-specific challenges in fintech.

  • Distributed Systems at Scale

    Nice to have

    Background working with large-scale distributed systems, handling millions of concurrent users or transactions. Experience with performance optimization, caching strategies, and architectural patterns for high-scale platforms.

  • Product and Business Acumen

    Nice to have

    Strong understanding of product development methodology, business metrics, and how engineering decisions impact customer value and company strategy. Experience in data-driven decision making.

  • Cloud Platform Experience

    Nice to have

    Hands-on experience with major cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and containerization technologies (Docker, Kubernetes). Familiarity with infrastructure as code and modern deployment practices.

  • Open Source Contributions and Community Engagement

    Nice to have

    Active participation in open source projects, technical communities, or developer communities. Ability to represent the engineering organization externally and build reputation in the broader tech community.

  • Agile and Lean Methodologies

    Nice to have

    Deep experience with Agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban), Lean principles, and continuous improvement methodologies. Proven success in implementing efficient engineering processes and workflow optimization.

Compensation

Pay and benefits.

Base·USD 218,000 – 273,000

Equity·Stock options

Benefits

  • Equity Compensation

    Eligible for annual equity grants in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) as part of total compensation package, providing long-term wealth building opportunities.

  • Performance Incentives

    Eligible to participate in annual bonus programs and performance-based cash or equity incentives depending on role level and company performance metrics.

  • Comprehensive Healthcare Coverage

    Medical, dental, and vision insurance coverage for employees and families, ensuring access to comprehensive healthcare services.

  • Retirement Benefits

    401(k) retirement plan with employer matching contributions, supporting long-term retirement savings and financial security.

  • Generous Time Off

    21 days of paid time off (PTO), 10 days of Wellbeing leave for mental and physical health, and 5 days of Xtra Leave for additional flexibility in time management.

  • Paid Holidays and Special Leave

    12 paid holidays, 1 volunteer day to support community engagement, and comprehensive paid parental leave for new parents.

  • Flexible Work Arrangements

    Flexible working arrangements supporting both home and office collaboration, with dedicated boost days designed for in-person team connection and strategic alignment.

  • Wellbeing and Work-Life Balance Support

    Dedicated focus on employee wellbeing with leave programs, mental health support, and a culture emphasizing sustainable work practices and preventing burnout.

Process

Interview steps.

  1. 01

    Application Review and Initial Screening

    Applications are screened using AI-assisted tools to identify candidates with relevant qualifications and experience. However, human recruiters review all candidates before any hiring action is taken, ensuring fair and comprehensive evaluation of all applicants.

  2. 02

    Recruiter Phone Screen

    Initial conversation with Xero recruiter to discuss your background, interest in the Engineering Manager role, and alignment with Xero's culture and values. This is an opportunity to ask questions about the role, team, and company.

  3. 03

    Hiring Manager Technical Conversation

    In-depth discussion with the Engineering Manager's hiring manager covering technical background, engineering leadership experience, approach to team development, and specific experience with microservices architecture and platform reliability.

  4. 04

    Technical Leadership Deep Dive

    Conversation with senior engineers or architects from your potential team to evaluate technical depth, experience with system design decisions, and ability to guide teams through complex technical challenges. May include case study discussions or architecture review scenarios.

  5. 05

    Cross-Functional Collaboration Interview

    Discussion with Product Management and Design partners to evaluate collaborative skills, ability to translate business goals into technical execution, and experience working across functions to solve customer problems.

  6. 06

    Executive or Leadership Interview

    Conversation with senior leadership to discuss strategic thinking, vision for engineering culture, experience building inclusive teams, and alignment with Xero's broader business objectives and company values.

Full posting

Original listing.

The role / impact

As an Engineering Manager, you will lead inclusive, high-performing software engineering teams to predictably deliver our product roadmap while upholding operational excellence. Serving as a technical anchor, you will guide your team in balancing rapid delivery speed with long-term system health, ensuring small businesses around the world receive simple, high-quality software that helps them thrive.

You will foster a sustainable environment where engineers do their best work, integrating AI-native workflows across the software development lifecycle and tackling complex technical challenges. By aligning team outcomes with broader business goals, your leadership directly contributes to building a stronger economy.

The team / how they connect

Our cross-functional teams work in close partnership with Product and Design to solve real customer problems and deliver seamless software experiences. We emphasise decentralized decision-making, clear communication, and high support to remove friction and resolve dependencies early. Together, we cultivate psychological safety, enabling everyone to learn, experiment, and grow.

Initially, you will focus on

  • Decoupling legacy monolithic systems into modern, scalable API-first microservices.

  • Embedding AI tooling across the entire software development lifecycle, from documentation to automated testing, to drive throughput gains.

  • Elevating developer experience by removing technical toil and environment friction to support deep work.

  • Managing technical health, operational excellence, and incident response to maintain high service availability.

Where and how you can work

We offer flexible working arrangements that support both home and office collaboration, with dedicated boost days designed for team connection and strategy. This role includes participating in an on-call roster to help ensure 24/7 support for our products, managed in partnership with your leader.

Here are some of the things we are looking for

  • Strong technical background with software architecture, code quality, and experience guiding teams through system decoupling.

  • Demonstrated capability in coaching and mentoring engineers, building an inclusive environment anchored in psychological safety.

  • Proven skills in cross-functional collaboration, with a track record of translating business goals into clear engineering execution plans.

  • Experience maintaining platform health, managing technical debt, and supporting reliable operational standards.

  • A practical mindset for adopting new workflows, including AI engineering practices to drive efficiency across the team.

**This position is not eligible for employment visa sponsorship.

Apply even if your experience isn't a perfect match! At Xero, we hire based on your skills, passion, and the unique perspective you can bring to enhance our culture and team.

Compensation & Total Rewards

At Xero, we value the impact and skills you bring to the team. We don’t just hire for a role; we invest in people. We believe in a Total Package philosophy - which means your value isn't just a single number on a paycheck. While base salary is a core component, we look at your compensation through a holistic lens that includes equity, performance incentives, and world-class benefits.

 

The expected base salary range for this role in:

  • California: $218K - $273K USD

Individual pay is determined by various factors, including geography, level of experience, and the specific skills you bring to the role.

In addition to base pay, Xero’s roles are eligible for the following forms of variable compensation:

  • Variable Pay: Permanent employees are eligible to participate in our annual bonus and equity (RSU) programs. You may also be eligible for performance-based cash or equity (RSUs) incentives depending on your role level, and company performance.

  • Comprehensive Benefits: Medical, dental, vision, 401(k) match, and 21 days PTO, 10 days of Wellbeing leave, 5 days of Xtra Leave, 1 volunteer day, 12 paid holidays, paid parental leave. Further information included on our Xero Perks page.

Xero uses AI to help screen applications based on job-related qualifications. These tools assist our recruiters but do not make automated hiring decisions. A human recruiter reviews all candidates before any hiring action is taken.

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