Software Engineering Manager

About us:

At Cadmus, we believe every student should have equal opportunity to achieve academic excellence, that's why we're changing how the world learns Cadmus is a global EdTech company purposefully built for the higher education sector to break down global learning barriers by providing educators and diverse student cohorts with access to high-quality learning and assessment through one powerful platform. Built on rich, student-centric values, Cadmus empowers students to achieve their highest potential and graduate with the critical skills and knowledge to profoundly impact our workforces, communities, and evolving world.

We are looking for a Software Engineering Manager, with at least 8 years of hands-on experience as a software engineer or technical lead prior to entering management, with verifiable success in the following areas:

I. High-Accountability People & Talent Development

Track Record & Performance Management: You have personally managed 10 or more direct reports simultaneously and successfully elevated the overall performance of that large team through rigorous, continuous coaching, and direct feedback.

Training and Mentorship: You have designed and implemented structured technical and professional development programs (training, mentorship, brown bags) that measurably improved the skill set and growth trajectory of your team.

People System Builder: You have designed and implemented a clear career progression and role clarity system that addressed ambiguity and drove accountability within a large team, creating a strong, positively motivated culture.

II. Technical Scoping and Quality Assurance

Scoping Ownership: Experience owning the scope definition phase for engineering projects, working directly with Product and Design to ascertain the exact requirements and clearly define acceptance criteria.

Technical Integrity Gatekeeper: Proven history of pushing back on unclear, ambiguous, or technically challenging scopes, providing sound alternative technical suggestions that are "kinder to code" (more sustainable, faster to implement, and less disruptive).

Active Code Quality Enforcement: Must possess the technical depth to actively participate in and lead code reviews (PRs), distinguishing between low and high-quality work, ensuring architectural compliance, system health, and rigorous testing standards.

III. Execution Leadership & Project Management Mastery

Project Ownership: Proven ability to single-handedly drive and manage the execution of multiple complex engineering projects from scoped requirements through deployment, consistently meeting established timelines.

Project Hygiene & Stakeholder Communication: Track record of maintaining impeccable project collateral, including building, updating, and maintaining trackers, project documentation, and providing timely, accurate status updates to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Bottleneck Resolution & Rescoping: Expertise in proactively removing technical and process bottlenecks and leading necessary rescoping discussions with stakeholders to ensure realistic timeline delivery.

Startup Experience: A proven track record of thriving in a fast-paced startup environment. You should be comfortable with ambiguity and demonstrate an ability to deliver practical solutions under tight deadlines.

IV. Process Engineering & Operational Discipline

System Builder & Enforcer: Track record of successfully taking high-level, strategic principles (e.g., from a technical leader/HoE/CTO) and converting them into clear, documented, repeatable processes and systems (e.g., release process, planning cadence, documentation standards).

Adoption Driver (The "Whip"): Proven experience acting as the primary accountability partner, driving the adoption and iteration of new processes, ensuring that training or instruction is enforced.

The team:

We're a globally distributed engineering team led by an experienced Head of Engineering and Principal Engineer, supported by a strong mix of senior and junior developers. The team includes five senior engineers and three junior developers, collaborating across multiple time zones to build and maintain high-quality, scalable products. With team members based in Melbourne, Tokyo, Thailand, and India, we embrace a remote-first culture that values clear communication, ownership, and continuous improvement. Despite the distance, we work closely together with a shared focus on delivering impactful solutions and continuously evolving our engineering practices.

• A flexible working culture where you have the option to work from Melbourne HQ or remotely if located outside of Melbourne
• A diverse and inclusive workplace where there are no barriers to anyone succeeding
• A surrounding team of mission-driven individuals who genuinely love what they do

At Cadmus, we hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds because it makes our company stronger. We never discriminate on the basis of race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, or marital, or disability status. If you share our values and our enthusiasm for education, you will find a home at Cadmus.

If you need assistance or accommodations made due to a disability, please let us know.