What Success Looks Like (12–24 Months)
A successful Director of Engineering will:
- Deliver measurable progress on NXT adoption (customer migrations, production usage, ARR contribution).
- Establish a clear, scalable NXT reference architecture that teams consistently follow.
- Improve engineering execution metrics (predictability, cycle time, quality, reliability).
- Reduce operational noise (support tickets, manual processes, regressions).
- Build a strong bench of leaders (Managers, Directors, Architects) who operate with ownership.
- Be viewed by Product, Architecture, CloudOps, InfoSec, and GTM as a trusted execution partner, not a bottleneck.
Core Responsibilities
- NXT Architecture & Platform Execution
- Own the end-to-end delivery of the NXT engineering roadmap in partnership with Architecture and Product.
- Translate architectural vision into clear, executable engineering plans with milestones, dependencies, and measurable outcomes.
- Ensure consistent adoption of:
- Cloud-native patterns (Azure-first, microservices where appropriate)
- API-first and integration standards
- Data platform strategy (Databricks, analytics, reporting)
- Security-by-design and compliance-ready architectures
- Balance modernization speed with operational safety for regulated utility customers.
Expectation: Architecture does not remain theoretical, teams ship production ready, supportable systems.
- Engineering Delivery & Operational Excellence
- Own engineering delivery across:
- New feature development
- Legacy modernization
- SaaS migration
- Platform reliability and scalability
- Establish clear ownership models for services, domains, and systems.
- Improve SDLC discipline:
- Predictable planning and delivery
- Strong definition of “done”
- Reduced rework and technical debt
- Partner with CloudOps and InfoSec to ensure:
- ≥99% uptime
- Secure, compliant releases
- Operational readiness before customer adoption
Expectation: Engineering delivers with confidence, not heroics.
- Talent, Leadership & Team Health
- Lead and develop Engineering Managers, Directors, and senior ICs.
- Set clear expectations for:
- Accountability
- Technical rigor
- Collaboration
- Decision ownership
- Actively coach leaders on:
- Translating strategy into execution
- Managing trade-offs
- Giving clear feedback
- Build a culture where:
- Problems are surfaced early
- Decisions are documented
- Teams feel ownership, not fear
Expectation: Strong leaders create strong teams; weak ownership is addressed directly.
- Cross-Functional Partnership
- Work tightly with:
- Product – aligning engineering execution to customer and market priorities
- Architecture – ensuring designs are implementable and scalable
- CloudOps / SaaSOps – operational excellence and cost efficiency
- InfoSec – audit-ready, compliant engineering practices
- Professional Services & Support – smooth customer onboarding and reduced friction
- Provide clear trade-off recommendations when priorities compete.
- Represent Engineering in executive-level discussions with data, clarity, and confidence.
Expectation: Engineering is seen as a business enabler, not a constraint.
- Metrics, Transparency & Continuous Improvement
- Own and report on engineering KPIs, including:
- Delivery predictability
- SaaS adoption enablement
- Quality and defect trends
- Cloud cost efficiency per customer
- Support ticket reduction
- Use metrics to drive action, not just reporting.
- Continuously improve processes, tooling, and developer experience.
Expectation: Decisions are data-informed, not anecdotal.
Cultural Expectations at PowerPlan
At PowerPlan, how results are achieved matters as much as the results themselves.
This role is expected to model:
- Ownership: Problems are owned until resolved.
- Clarity: Direct communication, clear decisions, minimal ambiguity.
- Trust & Accountability: High standards with respect and fairness.
- Customer Empathy: Understanding the operational realities of regulated utilities.
- Continuous Learning: Willingness to evolve architectures, tools, and leadership approaches.
- Low Ego, High Impact: Focus on outcomes over titles or turf.
What This Role Is Not
- Not a hands-off people manager disconnected from delivery.
- Not a pure architect without execution accountability.
- Not a short-term “firefighter” role.
- Not a culture-neutral role, leadership behavior matters.
Why Join PowerPlan
- Lead a once-in-a-generation platform transformation.
- Work on mission-critical software trusted by the world’s largest utilities.
- Partner with an experienced executive team focused on long-term value.
- Shape the future of a growing SaaS business within a strong Roper portfolio.