Director of Engineering

Role Summary

The Engineering Director will lead SiFi's technical architecture and engineering excellence across all development disciplines, driving the delivery of secure, scalable, and innovative financial technology solutions. This role is responsible for building and scaling high-performing engineering teams in backend, frontend, mobile, and quality assurance, while ensuring all engineering practices meet the stringent requirements of financial services regulations and SiFi's commitment to product excellence.

The Engineering Director will partner closely with the Infrastructure Manager to create a unified technology organization that delivers reliable, secure, and cost-effective solutions. They must establish robust engineering processes, implement comprehensive quality assurance frameworks, and ensure all development teams can deliver features that meet SAMA regulatory standards and customer expectations.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead technical architecture strategy and engineering standards across backend, frontend, mobile, and QA disciplines.

• Build, develop, and scale high-performing engineering teams with clear career progression paths and performance expectations.

• Establish and enforce engineering best practices including secure coding standards, testing frameworks, and deployment processes that meet financial services requirements.

• Partner with Product teams to translate business requirements into robust technical solutions that drive customer value and business growth.

• Collaborate with the Infrastructure Manager to ensure seamless integration between development and operations, implementing effective DevOps and SRE practices.

• Ensure all engineering deliverables comply with SAMA regulations and financial services security standards through secure development lifecycle practices.

• Drive technical innovation while maintaining focus on system reliability, performance, and maintainability of financial platforms.

• Oversee comprehensive QA strategies including automated testing, performance testing, and security testing to ensure product quality.

• Manage technology vendor relationships, development tools, and engineering infrastructure costs to optimize ROI and operational efficiency.

• Implement engineering metrics and KPIs to drive data-driven decision making and continuous improvement across all development teams.

• Serve as technical escalation point for complex engineering challenges and ensure timely resolution of production issues.

• Uphold and actively champion SiFi's values:

  • Customer Centricity (building solutions that truly serve customer needs and reduce friction).

  • Product-First Mindset (engineering excellence that enables fewer features done right, with laser focus on business impact).

  • Data-Driven Execution (implementing observability and metrics to guide technical decisions and performance optimization).

  • Continuous Innovation (leveraging automation and modern development practices to accelerate delivery).

  • Open Communication & Collaboration (fostering transparent cross-functional teamwork between engineering, product, and operations).

  • High Pace, High Standards (delivering features rapidly while maintaining the precision and reliability required in fintech operations).

Qualifications & Skills

• 12+ years of engineering experience with at least 5 years in senior leadership roles building and scaling engineering teams (15+ engineers).

• Proven experience in fintech, financial services, or payment systems (mandatory requirement).

• Strong technical background in C#/.NET and Python development (highly preferred).

• Demonstrated expertise in microservices architecture, cloud-native development, and distributed systems design.

• Experience with mobile application development (iOS/Android), modern frontend frameworks, and comprehensive QA processes.

• Deep understanding of regulatory compliance requirements including SAMA, PCI DSS, and financial services security frameworks.

• Proven track record managing technology budgets, vendor relationships, and engineering infrastructure investments.

• Strong knowledge of DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, cloud platforms, and infrastructure as code.

• Experience working with financial services regulators and implementing secure development practices for compliance audits.

Personal Attributes

• Technical leader with proven ability to transition complex business requirements into scalable engineering solutions.

• Customer-focused with deep understanding of how engineering decisions impact user experience and business outcomes.

• Data-driven approach to engineering management, using metrics and analytics to guide team performance and technical decisions.

• Collaborative and transparent communicator who can influence and align cross-functional teams at all organizational levels.

• Committed to building inclusive, high-performing teams while maintaining the high pace and high standards required in fintech.

• Resilient and adaptable leader who thrives in fast-scaling environments and can balance innovation with regulatory compliance.

• Mentoring-oriented manager who develops engineering talent and fosters a culture of continuous learning and improvement.

• Comfortable operating in ambiguous situations with changing priorities, able to pivot quickly while maintaining team focus and morale.