Senior Engineering Manager - AI

Meet DeepL

DeepL is a global communications platform powered by Language AI. Since 2017, we've been on a mission to break down language barriers. Our human-sounding translations and intelligent writing suggestions are designed with enterprise security in mind. Today, they enable over 100,000 businesses to transform communications, reach new markets, and improve productivity. And, empower millions of individuals worldwide to make sense of the world and express their ideas.

Our goal is to become the global leader in Language AI, building products that drive better communication, foster connections, and make a real-life impact. To achieve this, we need talented individuals like you to join our exciting journey. If you're ready to work with a dynamic team and build your career in the fast-moving AI space, DeepL is your next destination.

Your Responsibilities

The core purpose of the Engineering Manager role is to develop a product engineering team to an autonomous, high performing stage:

• Delivery & Excellence: Collaborating with key stakeholders, representing the team's engineering perspective on the feasibility, cost-effectiveness, scalability, and time-to-market aspects of new or existing services and products. Ensure roadmaps are aligned with priorities, new features are appropriately broken down to enable regular and timely delivery, maintain existing ones, and establish high engineering excellence metrics. Provide strong technical oversight by actively contributing to resolving technical issues and challenges, participating in code reviews, system design discussions, and occasionally engaging in hands-on coding to support team members. Drive continuous improvement of the team's processes, practices and technology in order to sustain delivery at high pace and quality.

• People Leadership: Inspire, develop, recruit, and motivate a cross-functional engineering team. Conduct regular 1:1s with team members, set individual development or improvement plans, and foster a healthy, non-retaliatory feedback culture within the team.

• Team Management: As a collaborative partner with a member of the Product Management team, jointly oversee the team's strategy, quarterly goals, and business-technical metrics. Ensure the team's development process methodology is optimal, actively participate in building and maintaining the technical roadmap, and take ownership of technical incident management. Dedicate time and resources to quality efforts, maintain a current knowledge base and documentation for the team's services and artifacts, and coordinate resource planning in collaboration with the Senior Engineering Manager and Craft Leads as needed.

• Manage Growth: You derive satisfaction from navigating change and collaboratively discovering innovative solutions with your team and various stakeholders within a dynamic and evolving environment.

• Strategic Leadership: Responsibility includes guiding the strategic direction of the team's engagements and collaborating with stakeholders. Not directly hands-on in delivering, the role necessitates a profound understanding of technical architecture, potential challenges, and aligning the team's work with broader organizational goals.

Qualities We Look For

We need a seasoned, product-focused engineering leader with a passion for applied AI. This is a role for a builder who is excited by the challenge of turning novel research into products that delight customers.

• Proven Scale-Up Experience: You have a proven track record of scaling an engineering organization, ideally one focused on machine learning or AI products, through a high-growth phase.

• Product and Research Acumen: You have owned the delivery of a business-critical, AI-powered product. You are adept at partnering with both product managers and researchers to navigate the path from prototype to production.

• Deep Technical Credibility: You possess the technical depth to lead and guide senior engineers working on complex AI systems. You understand the nuances of the machine learning development lifecycle.

• Leadership, Not Just Management: This role requires immediate, experienced leadership to navigate the unique challenges of applied research and development. It is not suitable for first-time managers.

• AI Domain Expertise: Demonstrable experience in Natural Language Processing, Machine Learning, LLMs, or any other major AI field.

• Excellent communication skills in English with a strong sense of empathy and a solutions-oriented mindset

What We Offer

• Diverse and Internationally Distributed Team: Joining our team means becoming part of a large, global community with people of more than 90 nationalities. We're more than just colleagues; we're a group of professionals with a shared mission to connect diverse cultures. Our global presence is growing–we've doubled in size nearly every year, with our employees based in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, the US, and Japan, and we continue to expand our network.

• Open Communication, Regular Feedback: As a language-focused company, we value the importance of clear, honest communication. We value smooth collaboration, direct and actionable feedback, and believe that leading with empathy and growth mindset makes us better together.

• Hybrid Work, Flexible Hours: We offer a hybrid work schedule, with team members coming into the office twice a week. This allows you to engage directly with your team and experience the unique energy of our workspace, while still enjoying the flexibility and comfort of working from home. With flexible working hours and trust in your productivity, we are in sync with your team's general locations and time zones to foster effective and seamless collaboration.

• Regular In-Person Team Events: We bond over vibrant events that are as unique as our team, from local team and business unit gatherings, to new-joiner onboardings, to company-wide events that bring us all together–literally.

• Monthly Full-Day Hacking Sessions: Every month, we have Hack Fridays, where you can spend your time diving into a project you're passionate about and get the opportunity to work with other teams–we value your initiatives, impact, and creativity.

• 30 Days of Annual Leave: We value your peace of mind. With 30 days off (excluding public holidays) and access to mental health resources, we make sure you're as strong mentally as you are professionally.

• Competitive Benefits: Just as our team spans the globe, so does our benefits package. We've crafted it to reflect the diversity of our team and tailored it to align with your unique location, to ensure you feel supported every step of the way.

If this role and our mission resonate with you, but you're hesitant because you don't check all the boxes, don't let that hold you back. At DeepL, it's all about the value you bring and the growth we can foster together. Go ahead, apply—let's discover your potential together. We can't wait to meet you!

We Are An Equal Opportunity Employer

You are welcome at DeepL for who you are—we appreciate authenticity here. Our product is for everyone, and so is our workplace. The more voices we have represented and amplified in our business, the more we will all succeed, contribute, and think forward! So bring us your personal experience, your perspectives, and your background. It's in our diversity that we will find the power to break down language barriers in the world.