Sr Dir, Software Engineering

Senior Director of Software Engineering 

Hybrid - Phoenix, Arizona

About the Role

We are looking for a Senior Director of Software Engineering to lead and support our product development teams in the next evolution of Blackboard. 

This is not a role for maintaining an existing product estate. Over the coming months, this leader will support a new operating system for the company, optimize tools and processes, and use artificial intelligence to level up software engineering to deliver more value for our customers. 

The measure of success will be that the company runs better and teams move faster. 

Responsibilities:

• The estate. The premium and point solutions including our market leading Ally solution. 
• The transformation. The operating system of our work needs to be refreshed to suit a 2026 company: to drive productivity and leverage AI. Beyond individual productivity, this role is responsible for efficiency and automation across software engineering. Your experience will help inform and implement that transformation. 
• The partnership. Close working relationships with Product Management and Design, Security, and Cloud Operations. Product Development systems decisions are business decisions, and you will make them collaboratively with the leaders who depend on them.  
• The team. Building, developing, and in places restructuring a global organization. Some of this work will change what roles exist. You will lead that honestly and with care. 
• Audit and compliance. ISO 27001, SOC 2, FedRAMP, and GovRAMP are requirements of doing business. You know what those obligations require of corporate systems, and your team is in the room with Security and the auditors, producing evidence as needed.  
• Occasional travel

Required Skills and Experience

• 10+ years of related experience with a bachelor's degree or equivalent relevant experience 

• Has run a large software engineering team at scale and transformed its effectiveness

• Leveraged artificial intelligence and automation to build and deploy software on a global scale

• Fluent in cost. Driven cost out of cloud spend by frugal architect principles and/or reduced cost by finding opportunities for savings. 

• Led through structural change and treated the people involved as adults. Delivered difficult news, kept your best people, and left a team that trusted you. 

• Comfortable being measured. Published your service levels and look for continuous feedback to drive improvement. 

• Operated globally in practice, not in theory. Managed across time zones, navigated works councils and regional employment norms, and handled data residency requirements without treating them as an obstacle. 

• Deep experience in EdTech, SaaS, or technology-enabled services. A track record of leading organizations through complex transformation initiatives and driving AI and automation programs is highly valued. 

About Blackboard

Blackboard advances teaching excellence and unlocks the full potential of technology to deliver meaningful outcomes. We empower institutions to deepen connections between educators and learners, inspire engagement, and drive long-term academic success across the full learner journey.  For more information, please visit www.blackboard.com. 

The expected salary range for this position is ($186,300 - $232,900). The range reflects base salary only and does not include additional compensation such as company bonus, sales incentives, or benefits. Placement within the pay range will depend on a variety of factors, such as experience, skills, internal parity, and location.

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the country where the role is based at the time of hire and must maintain that authorization for the duration of employment. The company does not provide visa sponsorship or immigration support for this position.

This job description is not designed to contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required. Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities at any time.    

Blackboard is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, gender, age, color, religion, national origin, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, protected military/veteran status, or any other legally protected factor.