SVP, Engineering

Sotheby's • New York, NY

1d

About The Position

Sotheby's is a renowned institution established in 1744, dedicated to promoting access and ownership of exceptional art and luxury objects. With expertise across 70 selling categories, a leading technology platform, and a global network, Sotheby's offers a wide range of services including auctions, private sales, and retail. The company's new global headquarters is located at the iconic Breuer building at 945 Madison Avenue in New York City.

The SVP of Engineering is a senior leadership role responsible for the health, direction, and output of Sotheby's engineering organization. Reporting into the Head of Product & Technology, this role owns the technical strategy underpinning Sotheby's platforms, encompassing both client-facing digital experiences and the core transactional and operational systems that drive the business. The ideal candidate will lead a team of engineers, engineering managers, and technical leads, setting a high standard for talent, culture, and delivery. This individual should be adept at both strategic direction-setting and ensuring its successful implementation, comfortable discussing architectural trade-offs with engineers and presenting investment cases to executive leadership. The role is suited for someone who thrives on complex challenges, including legacy system integration, rapid growth, and meeting the high expectations of a discerning client base.

Requirements

• 15+ years of experience in software development and architecture
• Experience with one or more general purpose programming languages including but not limited to: JavaScript, Python, Go, or Java
• Experience with front end technologies and/or front-end frameworks (React preferred)
• Great communicator capable of translating complex technical topics for business stakeholders
• Experience building extremely high volume and highly scalable web services
• Experience building highly available systems and operating 24x7 services
• Extensive Agile Development experience (leading Scrums, iteration planning, managing multiple work streams)
• Experience with continuous deployment and developing CI/CD pipelines
• Familiarity and prior experience with Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, or Azure technologies
• General experience with API design and enterprise integration patterns
• Experience with HTML5 and CSS3 web standards
• Experience with relational and non-relational databases
• Excellent communicator capable of translating complex technical topics for business stakeholders & experience consistently influencing teams to successful outcomes
• Ability to think creatively and critically and thrive in a fast-paced dynamic, and often ambiguous work environment
• Strong problem resolution and analytical skills; detail-oriented strategic thinker; solution-oriented mindset and work approach
• Charisma and a natural ability to connect with others; strong leadership and mentorship skills
• Agile and organized working style to manage and consistently prioritize key initiatives
• Intelligence, Leadership, & Humility

Nice To Haves

• Experience with large scale data warehouses for analytics preferred

Responsibilities

• Own the engineering organization's technology vision, strategy, and multi-year roadmap -- translating business priorities into a coherent technical direction that enables scalable, client-centric products and platforms
• Build and lead a high-performing engineering organization: hire, develop, and retain senior talent; establish clear career paths; and foster a culture of accountability, craft, and continuous improvement
• Drive delivery of complex, cross-functional programs spanning client-facing platforms, internal operational systems, and core transactional infrastructure -- with a bias toward shipping and measurable outcomes
• Serve as the senior technical decision-maker for architecture, platform, and build-vs-buy choices, balancing long-term scalability with pragmatic near-term execution
• Partner with Product, Data, Design, Infosec and IT leadership to ensure engineering operates as a unified force -- not a downstream order-taker -- in shaping product and technology decisions
• Establish and uphold engineering standards across code quality, automated testing, security, and operational reliability, including 24x7 availability of production systems
• Champion Agile practices and modern delivery disciplines (CI/CD, iterative planning, trunk-based development) to maximize team throughput and reduce cycle time
• Represent engineering credibly with executive leadership, the board, and external partners -- communicating tradeoffs clearly and advocating for sustainable investment in the technical foundation

What This Job Offers

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