Frontend Team Lead

HavocAI

10d • $150,000 - $185,000

About The Position

HavocAI is seeking a Frontend Team Lead to lead the development of the user interfaces that power our platform. This role combines hands-on frontend engineering with technical leadership, team mentorship, architecture ownership, and cross-functional execution. In this role, you will lead a frontend team focused on building high-performance, data-driven web applications, including map-based and visualization-heavy interfaces. You will work closely with backend, platform, product, design, and autonomy teams to deliver reliable, scalable frontend systems that support real-time data, complex workflows, and mission-critical operations. The ideal candidate is deeply technical, performance-focused, and excited to lead a team building interfaces that operate in real-world environments. You should be comfortable setting technical direction, mentoring engineers, making architectural decisions, and still contributing directly to the codebase.

Requirements

• 7+ years of frontend engineering experience, including experience leading frontend projects or teams
• Strong expertise in React and modern JavaScript or TypeScript
• Experience building data-driven, high-performance web applications
• Strong understanding of frontend architecture, state management, data flow, and performance optimization
• Experience working with APIs, asynchronous data flows, and real-time or frequently updating data
• Experience building reusable component libraries, design systems, or shared UI frameworks
• Ability to mentor engineers, lead technical discussions, and drive frontend best practices
• Strong communication skills and ability to collaborate across engineering, product, and design
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, mission-driven, highly collaborative environment
• Strong ownership, technical judgment, and willingness to remain hands-on

Nice To Haves

• Experience building map-based or geospatial applications using Mapbox, Leaflet, Deck.gl, or similar tools
• Familiarity with WebGL or advanced visualization frameworks
• Experience with automated testing frameworks such as Jest, Cypress, Playwright, or similar tools
• Understanding of design systems, accessibility, and reusable component architecture
• Experience with real-time systems, data streaming applications, or operational dashboards
• Experience supporting defense, autonomy, robotics, maritime, aviation, or mission-critical software environments
• Experience leading frontend teams in a high-growth startup environment

Responsibilities

• Lead the design and development of scalable, performant user interfaces using React and modern frontend technologies
• Set technical direction for frontend architecture, state management, data flow, and component design
• Build complex workflows and UI components for data-rich, operational applications
• Develop interfaces that support real-time data, situational awareness, and operator decision-making
• Contribute directly to implementation while guiding the team through technical tradeoffs and execution
• Mentor frontend engineers and help raise the technical bar across the team
• Lead code reviews, design discussions, sprint planning, and technical planning for frontend work
• Help break down ambiguous product and technical requirements into clear execution plans
• Promote engineering best practices around performance, testing, maintainability, accessibility, and reliability
• Partner with engineering leadership to support team growth, hiring, onboarding, and development
• Integrate frontend systems with backend services via REST, GraphQL, and real-time data interfaces
• Optimize rendering performance for large datasets, map-based views, streaming data, and real-time updates
• Ensure responsive, reliable performance across devices, browsers, and operating environments
• Identify and resolve frontend performance bottlenecks across the platform
• Build systems that remain usable and dependable in mission-critical workflows
• Own and evolve frontend architecture, including state management, data flow, build tooling, testing strategy, and component organization
• Build and maintain reusable component libraries, design systems, and shared UI patterns
• Ensure frontend systems are scalable, maintainable, testable, and easy for other engineers to extend
• Establish patterns that support multiple products, mission workflows, and customer-facing applications
• Drive technical consistency across frontend codebases and applications
• Partner with backend, platform, autonomy, product, and design teams to deliver end-to-end features
• Collaborate with UX/design to ensure high-quality implementation and operator-focused user experiences
• Translate complex operational requirements into intuitive, reliable frontend workflows
• Work with stakeholders to balance speed, usability, performance, and technical quality
• Represent frontend engineering in product planning, architecture reviews, and roadmap discussions

Benefits

• 100% Employer paid Health, Dental and Vision Insurance for you and your families
• Life Insurance (Employer Paid)
• Ability to participate in the companies 401k program (Matching)
• Unlimited PTO policy with an enforced 2 week minimum
• Equity Package
• Work / Home Office Stipend
• Global Entry
• 16 Week Paid Parental Leave
• Monthly Health and Wellness Stipend

What This Job Offers

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