Senior Manager of Data Engineering

Employment Type: Full-Time Location Type: Remote (U.S. only, excluding CA, NJ, MA, NY)

Position Overview

The Zebra, recognized as a Best Place to Work in Austin for four consecutive years, is transforming the insurance research and shopping experience for connected consumers. We are committed to building diverse and inclusive teams, embodying our motto "All Stripes Welcome" by valuing a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives. Our team members, known as Zeebs, are driven by a passion for learning, growth, and collaborative problem-solving.

We are seeking a strategic Senior Manager of Data Engineering to lead and scale our data engineering organization. This role involves managing senior engineers, mentoring junior managers, and shaping the long-term vision and roadmap for our data infrastructure, pipelines, and platforms. The ideal candidate will ensure our data systems are reliable, performant, and aligned with the company's evolving business and product needs.

Location Options

Employees have the flexibility to work remotely within the U.S. (excluding California, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and New York). Alternatively, you can join us in our Austin, Texas office or opt for a hybrid arrangement. We support the work setup that best suits your needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead large-scale strategic initiatives across multiple data and engineering teams, with direct and indirect managerial responsibilities.
• Mentor other managers on achieving delivery excellence within a domain-oriented organizational structure.
• Oversee the execution of priorities from multiple executive stakeholders, balancing strategic advancement with tactical delivery.
• Define and execute the long-term data engineering strategy in alignment with business objectives.
• Drive roadmap planning and foster cross-functional collaboration with Product, Analytics, and Engineering partners.
• Provide technical oversight on data architecture, platform scalability, and engineering best practices.
• Establish and lead the implementation of architectural best practices for the creation and delivery of data products.
• Champion operational excellence in data quality, security, observability, and governance.

Requirements

We seek individuals with a strong sense of ownership, excellent communication and collaboration skills, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

• Experience:
  • 8+ years in data engineering or software engineering roles.
  • 4+ years in people management, including at least 1 year managing managers or multiple teams.
  • Proven success leading large-scale data engineering efforts (e.g., data platforms, ingestion pipelines, data lake/warehouse implementations).
  • Strong experience with cloud-based modern data stacks (e.g., Snowflake, DBT, Airflow, Spark, Kafka).
  • Experience aligning technical strategy with business objectives in a fast-paced environment.
• Skills:
  • Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and project leadership skills.

Experience That Will Impress the Heck Out of Us

• Experience in a high-growth tech, fintech, or e-commerce environment.
• Experience defining, exposing, and supporting call data operational metrics.
• Familiarity with BI platforms such as Snowflake, Looker, or Tableau.
• Exposure to data privacy frameworks (GDPR, CCPA) and security best practices.
• Experience working in a cross-functional agile team environment.

Interview Process

1. Recruiter Screen (30 mins): An introductory conversation to discuss your background in people management and data initiatives, your interest in the role, and your alignment with our culture and goals.
2. Hiring Manager Interview (30 mins): A focused discussion on your leadership experience in data engineering, technical direction, and team-building approach.
3. Final Panel (2.5 hours): A series of interviews covering:
   • Technical & Team Leadership: Architecture, tooling, mentoring.
   • Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partnering with product and engineering.