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Engineering Manager

We seek an experienced Engineering Manager to help set technical vision for our teams and manage Engineers, Senior Engineers, Principal Engineers, and Accessibility Testers against that vision. Engineering managers will meaningfully contribute to the team’s success by supporting the development of up to 12 direct reports, providing technical and strategic guidance to engineers on their projects, and helping the team design and implement a framework for embedding justice principles in every aspect of our work.

About Bocoup

Bocoup is a justice-focused consulting firm that partners with tech companies and nonprofits to increase inclusion on the web. We started in 2009 with a focus on JavaScript and open source ethics. Over the past four years, we have shifted to focus more explicitly on increasing access and equity with web technology by working with partners on engineering, design, and product and organizational strategy. Our recent projects include design and engineering for the Algorithmic Justice League and Stop LAPD Spying Coalition, product support and engineering for Scratch (the beginner-friendly programming language), and web standards for assistive technologies like screen-readers.

We are looking for a diverse pool of applicants who are committed to justice and equity, including those from historically marginalized groups — women, people of color, people with disabilities, formerly incarcerated people, people who identify as LGBTQIA+, first and second generation immigrants, and people from low-income backgrounds.

You’ll love this role if

  • You care about inclusion in tech, accessible technology, and centering the priorities of marginalized communities in designing the future of the web.
  • You are excited about helping develop and drive an inclusive, accessible and justice-oriented technical vision for the company.
  • You are passionate about people management, and enjoy coaching and mentoring team members.
  • You enjoy the complexity of working across a broad technology ecosystem.
  • You value long-term strategic platform development and maintenance over short-term or “rapid” innovation.
  • You are curious. You value the expertise of and enjoy learning from people with a broad range of backgrounds and experiences beyond engineering, including product strategy, accessibility, and community organizing.
  • You are comfortable working with a distributed team, remote customers, and communicating with both via text- and video-based channels—across multiple timezones. Despite these timezone differences, we ensure all team members maintain a locally-based schedule that works for them.
  • You love to write, and know how to produce excellent documentation, product narratives, and partner communications in a collaborative way.
  • You enjoy either talking or writing about the work you and your team are doing for public and partner-facing communications.
  • You have a team mindset, value mentorship, and are committed to the success of others.

Location

Remote. U.S.-based preferred, for timezone alignment. We will consider other locations case-by-case. For reference, roughly half of our team is in US EST.

Reporting and Team Structure

This role reports to the Principal and currently has 9 engineers and an accessibility tester reporting to it. Our small team cares about individual mentorship, close collaboration, and opportunities to pursue stretch projects. We are committed to maintaining a safe and inclusive work environment, and expect all team members to uphold our company values and adhere to our Code of Conduct.

Day to Day Responsibilities

  • Managing and mentoring entry-level to Principal-level engineers on both their technical and interpersonal professional development goals.
  • Identifying areas of growth in how the team collaborates and supporting engineers in their project work.
  • Partnering with Principal Engineers to set technical vision and identify goals that align with Bocoup’s mission and values.
  • Partnering with Principal Engineers and Product Managers to scope and estimate new projects.
  • Ensuring that projects deliver accessible software.
  • Advocating for Bocoup’s code of conduct and values, including social justice.

Skills & Expectations

The ideal candidate will have:

  • Commitment to our mission and values, including Transparency, Quality, Service, Learning, Inclusion, Respect, and Social Justice. You developed this commitment through your own lived experience, education and/or activism.
  • Experience centering the user through inclusive design or co-design, and an interest in implementing design justice principles in your work.
  • 4-6+ years of people management experience, including experience managing professional growth of engineers across levels.
  • 7-9+ years of engineering experience working with designers, product managers, and external partners, including experience in a collaborative consulting capacity.
  • Experience estimating and scoping projects, architecting systems, and partnering with others to set technical direction.
  • Solid understanding of:
    • Web application architecture, security, privacy, and accessibility
    • JavaScript, including the core language, Web Browser APIs, and the Node.js global.
    • Building web applications with Node and at least one front end framework such as React, Ember, Angular, or Vue. Experience with, or willingness to learn, TypeScript.
  • Strong risk assessment, strategic sequencing, empathetic and persuasive communication skills.
  • Nice to have: Familiarity with web standards and standards bodies.

Compensation, Benefits and Culture

  • The base salary range for this position is $150K-$165K. This is determined based on experience and is negotiable within this band. In addition, we offer bonuses whenever sustainably possible, based on company financial performance, and also routinely adjust compensation based on cost of living needs.
  • Flexible PTO, including vacation, personal and sick time. Company-wide closures on Federal holidays. Regular closures during the 2020-22 pandemic and uprising to prioritize team health.
  • 4 day billable week (Fridays reserved for professional development, internal projects, and rest)
  • Competitive health plans (medical, dental, vision), with Bocoup covering deductible costs through HRA reimbursement.
  • 401k (including an up to 4% match on contributions) and life insurance.
  • Paid parental leave (16 weeks).
  • Computer and equipment budget.
  • $2,500 annual professional development budget and support from leadership on setting and completing annual professional development goals
  • Quarterly All Hands meetings and paid team days of action in solidarity with social justice movements like Black Lives Matter.
  • We reserve a portion of our profit to contribute to anti-racist organizations, with selection input from team members. (For reference, in 2020 and 2021, we committed 50% of our profit to charity.)

Workload and Schedule Expectations

We maintain localized schedules that work for our team members. We consult for clients 80% of our time, and reserve the other 20% for maintenance and internal projects. We fund annual full time internal projects inline with our values, strategic goals, and team member interests and professional development goals.

Interview process for this role

  • After you submit your application, it will be reviewed by the hiring manager and select members of the team.
  • If it seems like we’re a good fit for each other, we will follow up and schedule a 30 minute phone call with one of our leaders to get to know you.
  • If we jointly decide to move forward, you can plan to (virtually) attend a 60 minute video interview with two team members with questions geared to understand how you approach people management.
  • The final stage would be to meet (2-4) other members of the team via video conference for additional conversations about your approach to collaboration, your relevant technical experience, and alignment with our values, totaling 2 hours of synchronous interaction, scheduled to fit your needs.
  • If you complete these interviews, we will provide a decision or clear next step within five business days.
  • We are hiring on a rolling basis. We are ready to hire as soon as we find the right candidate. We can’t wait to meet you!

Where can I learn more about working at Bocoup?

Check out our Careers page at https://bocoup.com/careers for FAQs and a bit more about our culture and approach to work.