Director of Software Engineering

First Canadian Financial Group•Sherwood Park, AB

4d•Onsite

About The Position

First Canadian is experiencing unprecedented growth and is seeking bright, hard-working individuals who are committed to learning, career growth, and opportunity. The organization prides itself on being a long-term employer that values employee opinions and feedback. This role is responsible for leading the organization's software engineering function across web and digital development, enterprise applications, core business systems, quality assurance, and the future DevOps and Platform Engineering capability. The position is based in Sherwood Park, Alberta, and focuses on driving engineering excellence, modernizing technology platforms, improving software delivery, and building a scalable engineering organization.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related field is required.
Minimum of 10 years of experience in software engineering, application delivery, or technology leadership.
Minimum of 5 years of experience leading software engineering teams.
Demonstrated experience leading engineering organizations across digital platforms, enterprise applications, APIs, and legacy/core systems.
Proven experience modernizing engineering practices, including AI-assisted development, automation, DevOps, CI/CD, QA automation, and software delivery governance.
Strong understanding of software development lifecycle (SDLC), engineering governance, release management, and operational support models.
Experience balancing modernization initiatives with operational stability in complex enterprise environments.
Experience managing external software delivery partners and vendors.
Proven people leadership, organizational development, and change management experience.
Intermediate to advanced Microsoft Office skills.
Fluent in English with excellent verbal and written communication skills.
Successful completion of employment, criminal background, education verification, and reference checks is required prior to employment.

Nice To Haves

Experience with technologies such as React, Node.js, GitHub, CI/CD pipelines, API-first development, cloud-native architectures, and IBMi/RPG environments is considered an asset.
Experience within insurance, financial services, or another regulated industry is considered an asset.
If you are bilingual there will be a French and English assessment as a part of the recruitment process.

Responsibilities

Lead and develop a high-performing Software Engineering organization.
Drive modernization initiatives across digital platforms, APIs, integrations, and core business systems.
Establish engineering standards, governance, delivery metrics, and continuous improvement practices.
Lead engineering delivery across web applications, enterprise applications, and customer-facing platforms.
Modernize development practices through AI-assisted development, cloud-native technologies, and API-first architecture.
Build and mature DevOps, Platform Engineering, CI/CD, release management, and engineering automation capabilities.
Lead the modernization of Quality Assurance by transitioning from manual to automated testing.
Ensure operational stability, reliability, security, scalability, and software quality across engineering platforms.
Establish engineering accountability across internal teams and external software vendors.
Partner closely with Architecture, Infrastructure, Security, Enterprise Delivery, and business leaders to align technology initiatives with organizational priorities.
Build engineering capability through hiring, coaching, mentoring, and succession planning.
Foster a culture of accountability, innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Other duties as assigned.