Manager, Software Engineering - Data Platform

Figma is a collaborative design and product development platform that helps teams create, prototype, translate designs into code, and work together in real time. The Manager, Software Engineering - Data Platform will lead and grow engineering teams responsible for Figma’s data platform, set technical direction and strategy, and drive reliability and scalability. The role also partners with cross-functional teams, manages priorities and vendors, and develops a high-performing engineering organization.

Responsibilities:

• Lead and grow a team of engineers building and operating Figma's data platform, owning delivery, technical direction, and team health
• Set the roadmap and technical strategy for your sub area, and provide hands on technical leadership where the team needs it
• Drive the reliability, scalability, and forward strategy of the platform as adoption grows across the engineering and product organization
• Hire, grow, and coach engineers and tech leads, raising the bar and building a healthy, inclusive, high-performing team
• Partner with Data Science, Product, Finance, and Engineering to identify the highest-leverage priorities and drive alignment
• Make sound build versus buy decisions, including evaluating and managing platform vendors where it makes sense
• Keep delivery predictable while balancing near-term execution with long-term platform investment

Requirements:

• 3+ years managing engineers, including senior ICs or tech leads, with a track record of building and scaling high-performing teams
• Demonstrated experience building and scaling data platform or data infrastructure systems in a production, online environment
• A strong software engineering background with senior or staff-level technical depth before moving into management, and enough current depth to set direct technical direction
• Strong partnership mentality and the ability to manage multiple cross-functional stakeholder groups such as Data Science, Product, Finance, and Engineering
• Ability to set technical direction, drive alignment, and prioritize clearly under ambiguity, paired with strong written communication
• Expertise in large-scale data processing systems, including batch, streaming, or applied AI and ML workloads
• Familiarity with experimentation or feature flagging platforms
• A track record of evaluating and managing vendor relationships
• A demonstrated ability to develop tech leads and scale hiring at pace