Software Development Director

SAIF Corporation•Salem, OR

5d•$168,110 - $280,180•Onsite

About The Position

Our product team is seeking a software development director to champion transformation of our internal insurance software solutions and our customer digital experience. As our new software development director, you’ll set the strategy and direction for software development teams, ensuring that it aligns with product, technology, and corporate goals and objectives. You will standardize engineering, quality assurance, and delivery, while enhancing planning, prioritization, estimation, dependency management, and delivery predictability. To do this job well, you’ll need at least 10 years of experience in software development, much of that in a management role. You’ll need business acumen, strong technical skills, the ability to build relationships and manage a team of diverse talents and perspectives. As the product team is in its early days, you’ll be able to help us adjust from a project to product mindset. If you’re a continuous learner, a dot connector, outcomes driver, and someone who is never satisfied by the way things are, we invite you to learn more about the role and apply today. Join us for a career exploration to learn more about this exciting opportunity on Thursday, October 1, 2026, at 4:00pm. Register here. This recruitment will close on Tuesday, October 6, 2026. If a sufficient number of qualified applications are received this recruitment may close early.

Requirements

Ten or more years of progressively responsible experience in software engineering, application development, software delivery, or related technology leadership, including eight or more years of supervisory or people leadership experience.
Experience leading multiple software development teams, implementing engineering standards, managing complex delivery portfolios, partnering with product and technology leaders, and leading or enabling Agile transformation across teams or organizations.
A bachelor's degree in computer science, information technology, software engineering, computer engineering, systems analysis, or a related field is preferred; equivalent relevant professional experience will be considered.
Other combinations of skills and experience may be considered.

Nice To Haves

Business acumen
Strong technical skills
Ability to build relationships
Ability to manage a team of diverse talents and perspectives
Continuous learner
Dot connector
Outcomes driver
Someone who is never satisfied by the way things are

Responsibilities

Set clear direction and objectives that are aligned with SAIF’s vision and mission. Drive employee engagement and team effectiveness through effective communication and by creating and maintaining an environment where individuals are empowered, motivated, and where the importance of collaboration within and across divisions / teams is fully understood and encouraged. Recognize individual differences while focusing on team cohesion. Develop and sustain an inclusive collaborative team environment to support diverse team members throughout the division.
Own the development and ongoing adoption of standard software development practices, engineering and quality assurance standards, and technical execution and delivery methods across product-aligned teams.
Provide leadership and oversee the development of software engineering management and technical level professionals, including performance management, workforce planning, succession planning, recruitment, onboarding, coaching, and talent development.
Partner with Product, Platform & Infrastructure Technology, Architecture, Information Security, and business leaders to align development capacity, technical roadmaps, product roadmaps, and delivery commitments.
Drive consistent planning, prioritization, estimation, dependency management, and delivery practices to improve predictability, transparency, and value realization across software delivery teams.
Oversee resource and capacity planning for software development teams, including workforce needs, contractor planning, succession planning, and skill development strategies.
Promote modern software engineering practices, production reliability, and operational readiness, including secure coding, test automation, CI/CD, code quality, maintainability, observability, and effective use of development tools and platforms.
Ensure software development activities comply with enterprise architecture direction, information security expectations, regulatory requirements, IT standards, and applicable SAIF policies.
Collaborate with product leaders and delivery teams to drive agile and product-oriented ways of working, clarifying roles, responsibilities, decision rights, and team operating models.
Champion Agile transformation across software development teams by promoting Agile principles, improving team maturity, strengthening iterative delivery practices, and fostering a culture of adaptability, experimentation, and continuous learning.
Monitor team performance, delivery health, operational metrics, and engineering effectiveness; identify systemic barriers and lead continuous improvement efforts across teams.
Support operational budgeting and vendor or contractor spend management related to software development capacity, tools, services, and delivery priorities.
Deliver technical leadership in the evaluation, selection, implementation, and ongoing management of vendor solutions to ensure they align with enterprise architecture, security requirements, product needs, performance expectations (SLA), and delivery goals.
Build an inclusive, collaborative team culture in which differences are respected, diverse perspectives are valued, and employees are empowered to contribute, learn, and improve.
Model adaptability and consistently seek to understand other world views, perspectives and approaches to work.
Demonstrate curiosity, diplomacy and empathy when working across groups. Cultivate and maintain trusting, collaborative relationships across the organization.
Contribute business insights and expertise to the strategic development and implementation of DEI initiatives and the development of progressive, business-focused inclusive strategies that meet the current and future needs of the organization.
On-call support may be required on an as-needed basis or as part of a rotating schedule, including availability outside business hours to support urgent IT issues or system implementations.
Perform other duties as assigned by management to support team objectives and organizational goals, demonstrating flexibility and adaptability in responding to evolving priorities and needs.