Engineering Manager
Overview
Tern Software Inc., a venture-backed travel industry startup, is looking for an experienced and versatile Engineering Manager to help us scale our team, systems, and operations. At Tern, we’re passionate about the power of travel and its ability to broaden worldviews. We’re committed to supporting travel advisors and the small businesses they run, helping them make the world more approachable for their clients.
Job Description
As an Engineering Manager at Tern, you’ll play a pivotal role in shaping the engineering function. You’ll partner closely with the CTO and the rest of the leadership team to build a high-performing, joyful, and resilient engineering organization. You’ll be part player-coach, part ops guru, and part team builder—responsible for everything from onboarding and hiring to compliance and security processes. This is a foundational, early-stage role that will blend aspects of manager-, director-, & VP-level responsibilities as the organization scales. If you’re excited about growing teams, building systems, and supporting people—while maintaining a deep connection to product impact—we’d love to hear from you.
Responsibilities
- - Partner with the CTO to manage and evolve the engineering organization through strategic planning and operational support
- - Design and scale the org structure, anticipating future needs and team growth
- - Lead recruiting and hiring, collaborating with recruiters, maintaining a healthy pipeline, and overseeing interview processes
- - Own onboarding and knowledge sharing, ensuring new engineers ramp quickly and institutional knowledge is well-documented and accessible
- - Support team happiness and engagement by coordinating recognition programs, travel and development opportunities, and morale-boosting moments
- - Manage vendors, contracts, and budgets for engineering tools, contractors, and external services
- - Oversee engineering processes and logistics, including support/on-call rotations, security and compliance policies, and maintaining internal playbooks
Required Skills
- - Prior experience managing engineering teams and operational processes
- - Exceptional communication and collaboration skills, especially in a remote environment
- - A deep sense of ownership and comfort wearing many hats
- - A background in software engineering (even if not currently coding day-to-day)
- - A track record of leading high-trust, high-performance teams
- - Strong organizational, planning, and project management capabilities
- - A warm, human-first approach to leadership that balances empathy with accountability
Benefits
- - We cover 100% of employee premiums for health, vision, and dental insurance
- - We cover 75% of dependent premiums
- - Tern offers flexible time off and provides all the hardware you need to be effective at the job
About the company
At Tern, we’re redefining how travel advisors work. Our mission is to empower these small and medium-sized businesses with technology that’s long overdue. We’re a fast-growing startup with a vibrant community and a passion for building something extraordinary. If you’re driven, curious, and ready to work hard, we want you on our team. Join us in shaping the future of travel.
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