Sr. Manager, Software Engineering

El Pollo Loco•Costa Mesa, CA

6d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Senior Manager of Software Engineering is a senior technical leader responsible for setting the vision, standards, and execution strategy for the company’s software engineering function. This role leads and develops software engineering organization while also maintaining strong technical oversight of architecture, integrations, and application platforms that support restaurant operations and Support Center functions. Serving as both a strategic leader and hands-on technical advisor, this role oversees internal application development, enterprise integrations, API services, and modernization initiatives across multiple platforms. Our current stack includes Java-based systems, JavaScript web applications, SQL databases, and enterprise data and integration platforms. The Senior Manager ensures the engineering organization delivers secure, scalable, high-quality software aligned with business priorities and long-term technology strategy. This leader establishes technical stack, engineering best practices, quality assurance, and delivery processes. The Senior Manager partners with cross-functional technology and business leaders—including Restaurant Technologies, Data & Analytics, Infrastructure, HR, Finance, Marketing, and Operations—to deliver resilient, scalable solutions that support enterprise growth and operational efficiency.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree preferred in Computer Science, Information Systems, Engineering, or related field.
8–12 years of progressive software development experience.
At least 5 years in a technical leadership role (Engineering Manager, Lead Developer, or similar).
Strong experience with Java, JavaScript, and SQL-based application development.
Deep technical expertise with Java, JavaScript frameworks, SQL databases, and modern API architecture.
Experience integrating enterprise platforms such as Simphony POS, DayForce HRIS, Oracle Fusion, Olo, Snowflake, and SSO platforms such as OneLogin.
Familiarity with ETL platforms such as CloverDX and cloud data platforms such as Snowflake.
Strong understanding of source control (Git), CI/CD pipelines, automated deployments, and branching strategies.
Experience designing scalable enterprise integrations and distributed systems.
Strong leadership and organizational management skills for building and developing engineering teams.
Ability to manage multiple concurrent initiatives, priorities, and delivery timelines.
Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to guide teams through complex technical challenges.
Strong communication and collaboration skills across both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
Ability to enforce engineering standards, documentation practices, and release governance in partnership with QA & Documentation leadership.
Ability to work onsite at the Support Center consistent with the hybrid work policy.

Nice To Haves

Java, AWS, or Microsoft development certifications preferred.
Scrum/Agile certifications (ScrumMaster, PMI-ACP) preferred.
Secure coding or compliance-related certifications (e.g., PCI/SOX) preferred.

Responsibilities

Leads and manages the software engineering organization, including application developers and quality assurance engineers.
Establishes the technical direction, engineering standards, and development practices for the organization.
Provides architectural oversight and technical leadership across application development, integrations, APIs, and data workflows.
Guides modernization initiatives including platform upgrades, cloud adoption, system refactoring, and technical debt reduction.
Oversees the full software development lifecycle including requirements, design, development, testing, documentation, and deployment.
Brings AI capabilities into SDLC.
Establishes and enforces coding standards, secure development practices, version control strategies, CI/CD pipelines, and documentation requirements.
Maintains architectural ownership for applications and near real-time integrations of core systems that include Oracle Simphony POS, Oracle Fusion, DayForce HRIS, Olo, Snowflake.
Leads the Technical QA & Documentation Manager to ensure testing strategies, release documentation, and acceptance criteria are completed prior to deployment.
Serves as the senior technical authority and final approver for production releases, ensuring compliance with PCI/SOX controls, security standards, and rollback procedures.
Collaborates with Restaurant Systems, Infrastructure, Data & Analytics, Finance, HR, Marketing, and Operations leadership to align engineering initiatives with business priorities.
Oversees the design and performance of APIs, integrations, and data pipelines with emphasis on scalability, reliability, logging, and monitoring.
Leads troubleshooting and root-cause analysis of complex system issues while driving long-term stability improvements.
Evaluates emerging technologies, vendor platforms, and engineering tools to improve efficiency, security, and system capabilities.
Manages engineering capacity planning, sprint planning, backlog prioritization, and delivery timelines across multiple initiatives.
Provides leadership, coaching, mentorship, and career development for engineers, analysts, and technical leads.
Ensures the creation and maintenance of technical documentation including architecture diagrams, integration specifications, release notes, and operational runbooks.
Other duties as assigned by supervisor.