Head of Software Engineering Teams

Lead and scale 2-3 software engineering teams developing critical technical products. Requires 8+ years in Software Engineering and 3+ years in leadership roles (Head of Engineering, Engineering Manager, Director) managing research teams and multiple engineering squads. You must have mentored leadership layers, built and scaled engineering processes (SDLC, release management, incident management), implemented technical standards and best practices, and worked with high-reliability/mission-critical systems and complex technical products. Core responsibilities include designing and optimizing engineering processes (planning, development, testing, releases), controlling technical debt and long-term stability, ensuring stable and predictable software delivery, people management and team development, hiring and performance management, building strong engineering culture and succession planning, balancing speed vs. quality per field realities, close collaboration with CTO and Product Owner on technical decisions, regular CEO communication on engineering status, and ensuring transparency on risks, resources, timelines, and capabilities. Military/defense/dual-use background, embedded/real-time systems experience, experience in fast-growing 50-150 person companies, and understanding of military user/field condition specifics are advantageous.