SVP, Engineering

AppFolio•Santa Barbara, CA

3d•$324,000 - $405,000

About The Position

AppFolio is more than a company. We’re a community of dreamers, big thinkers, problem solvers, active listeners, and multipliers. At every opportunity, we set the pace while delivering innovation built to carry real estate into the future. One in which every experience feels effortless, yet meaningful. Where customers are empowered to take on any opportunity. We show up as one team, connected by our values to be a force for good. Because together, we have the power to create extraordinary outcomes for our customers, our communities, and ourselves. Join AppFolio as our next SVP of Engineering and become a pivotal leader in shaping the future of our technology organization. This is a unique opportunity for a seasoned engineering executive to drive strategic clarity, operational rigor, and cultural leadership within a world-class 500 person engineering team. You will oversee the full engineering function across product lines and platforms, partnering closely with the CTO to define and execute our long-term technical strategy. You'll be the connective tissue between strategy and execution, translating our vision into impactful architectural decisions, optimized team structures, and outstanding delivery outcomes for our large, distributed SaaS engineering organization. If you thrive at the intersection of technical leadership, organizational development, and customer-centricity, and possess the maturity, empathy, and ambition to help shape AppFolio's next chapter, we invite you to make a significant impact with us.

Requirements

A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
15+ years of progressive experience in software engineering, with at least 8+ years in senior leadership roles managing large engineering organizations.
Proven success in leading and scaling engineering teams in building and evolving complex, cloud-native platforms with a focus on resilience and simplicity.
Deep technical and architectural judgment; comfort making strategic tradeoffs.
Track record of delivering customer-centric products in partnership with Product and Design.
Familiarity with modern development practices, continuous delivery, DevOps, and agile.
A strategic mindset with the ability to translate business objectives into technical strategies and operational execution.
Must have Significant experience leading large-scale engineering organizations in SaaS environments.
Demonstrated ability to drive transformation, foster high-performing culture, and lead through growth and complexity.
Exceptional leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills with the ability to influence and inspire at all levels.
Strong cross-functional influence and communication skills; low-ego, high-trust leadership style.

Responsibilities

Engineering Execution & Operational Excellence: Lead engineering execution across product and platform teams, owning the health & scalability of our cloud-native multi-tenant architecture. Drive and continuously evolve engineering best practices and KPIs through a disciplined, outcomes-driven approach. Drive strategic allocation of engineering resources to maximize ROI.
Leadership & Organizational Design at Scale: Attract, grow, and retain world-class engineering talent, building a culture of high performance, inclusion, and continuous learning. Lead through trust, transparency and accountability. Scale a high-performing, distributed engineering organization through leadership, structure and process at an exciting company inflection point.
Strategic Technology Leadership: We’re a product-led company with a strong engineering and design culture. You’ll define and execute long-term technical strategy in close partnership with the CTO and product leadership, aligning engineering investments with business goals, and evolving our SaaS platform for reliability, scale, and speed. Support technical diligence, planning, and integration for M&A, ensuring new technologies and teams align with engineering culture and standards.
Customer-Centric Product Development: We’re solving real problems for real customers, with empathy, speed, and craft. You’ll champion a connection between engineering and customer needs, driving a culture of feedback and iteration, and balancing short-term delivery with long-term outcomes. Collaborate deeply with Product, Design, Data, and Customer Experience to align priorities and foster a unified team culture.
Security & Scalability: Architect and oversee the development of highly scalable, resilient, and performant systems that can support our rapid growth and demanding customer needs. Partner with security, privacy, and compliance teams to uphold company standards and proactively manage risk across systems & processes. Act as the bridge between teams to ensure great outcomes for our customers and the company as a whole.