Engineering Manager

Akuity

12d • Remote

About The Position

Akuity is a company founded by the creators of Argo CD, a popular CNCF project used for GitOps with Kubernetes. Argo CD helps streamline Kubernetes adoption and is used by many major companies. Akuity offers a platform that enables enterprises to manage development and deployment across numerous Kubernetes clusters. Their mission is to simplify software delivery for DevOps and Platform Engineering teams, allowing them to deploy code effortlessly and reliably. The Engineering Manager role focuses on the day-to-day operations of the engineering organization, ensuring smooth execution of cycles, unblocking engineers, and addressing issues promptly. This is an execution-focused role with opportunities for growth into broader operational responsibilities such as hiring, compliance, and infrastructure management. The company is 55 people and growing fast, offering a dynamic environment where scope expands with the individual. The role also allows for staying technically involved by picking up engineering work when management duties are handled.

Requirements

• 8+ years in software engineering
• 2+ years managing an engineering team
• Solid Kubernetes experience
• Naturally organized with a systematic approach to work and strong follow-through.
• Fluent in GitHub operations (issues, PRs, project boards, labels, milestones).
• Solid communication skills, building trust with engineers and providing clear answers to stakeholders.
• Sufficient technical depth to understand engineering work, provide feedback on PRs, and identify potential issues.
• Comfortable running software development cycles (e.g., Shape Up, Scrum, Kanban).
• Self-directed and comfortable with ambiguity in a startup environment.

Nice To Haves

• Hands-on experience with GitOps workflows or the CNCF ecosystem (Argo CD, Kargo, Flux, etc.).
• Familiarity with the Shape Up development methodology.
• Open source project or CNCF ecosystem exposure (Argo CD, Kargo, Flux, etc.).
• Experience with tools in the stack: GitHub Actions, AWS, Auth0, Stripe.
• Exposure to security and compliance frameworks (SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, PCI-DSS, ISO 45001).

Responsibilities

• Plan and track development cycles end-to-end, ensuring clarity and visibility.
• Run cycle kickoffs and retrospectives to ensure clear outcomes and smooth transitions.
• Maintain GitHub project boards, issues, and milestones, keeping them current and useful.
• Identify and flag blockers and capacity issues early.
• Own the inbound queue for bugs and customer requests, ensuring tasks are triaged, assigned, and progressing.
• Collaborate with the Head of Engineering to balance incoming requests with cycle commitments.
• Ensure urgent issues are addressed promptly and routine tasks are not forgotten.
• Proactively follow up with engineers to close open loops and prevent problems.
• Maintain a clear overview of work in progress, blocked items, and at-risk tasks.
• Run regular 1:1s with engineers, assessing their technical and professional progress.
• Provide coaching and mentorship to support engineer growth.
• Support the hiring process, including phone screens and interviews.
• Onboard new engineers with structured 30-60-90 day plans.
• Handle difficult conversations professionally and with care.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation, commensurate with experience
• Equity participation in a well-funded, growing company
• Fully remote: work from anywhere within US time zones (Pacific through Eastern), including Canada and other regions
• Home office stipend and equipment budget
• Flexible time off and a culture that respects it
• Opportunity to learn from engineers who built Argo CD and Kargo

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Manager
• Education Level: No Education Listed