Senior Director, Software Engineering (SDLC, GenAI)

Who Are We?

Taking care of our customers, our communities and each other. That’s the Travelers Promise. By honoring this commitment, we have maintained our reputation as one of the best property casualty insurers in the industry for over 160 years. Join us to discover a culture that is rooted in innovation and thrives on collaboration. Imagine loving what you do and where you do it.

Job Category

Technology

Compensation Overview

The annual base salary range provided for this position is a nationwide market range and represents a broad range of salaries for this role across the country. The actual salary for this position will be determined by a number of factors, including the scope, complexity and location of the role; the skills, education, training, credentials and experience of the candidate; and other conditions of employment. As part of our comprehensive compensation and benefits program, employees are also eligible for performance-based cash incentive awards.

Salary Range

$149,600.00 - $246,800.00

Target Openings

1

What Is the Opportunity?

The Personal Insurance Technology organization is seeking an exceptional Senior Director of Software Engineering to lead the SDLC+ initiative. This visionary leader will drive transformative change in how the organization builds, delivers, and scales software through strategic application of cutting-edge tools, including Generative AI, while fundamentally reimagining how teams work and collaborate.

Beyond traditional engineering leadership, this role demands a thought leader and change agent who will identify opportunities across the entire software development lifecycle - from ideation through deployment. You'll drive organizational transformation through tooling and process innovation while empowering every role in the SDLC ecosystem via comprehensive education programs.

What Will You Do?

Strategic Leadership & Innovation

• Partner with AVP and VP of Software Engineering to develop and own the SDLC+ roadmap
• Champion engineering productivity initiatives that naturally expand to improve collaboration with product owners, designers, and other SDLC stakeholders
• Research and implement emerging technologies, with particular focus on Generative AI applications that benefit all personas of a product team
• Drive iterative transformation, using incremental improvements to reimagine possibilities
• Build the business case for SDLC+ adoption with measurable improvements in outcome delivery

Organizational Transformation

• Foster a high-performance culture within product teams through SDLC+ principles of autonomy, ownership, and continuous learning
• Drive SDLC+ adoption across digital product teams through persona-specific enablement programs
• Develop comprehensive education strategies including "train the trainer" programs
• Build partnerships across disciplines to ensure alignment and drive adoption
• Manage vendor relationships and integrate third-party solutions where appropriate
• Create and track SDLC+ maturity metrics to measure transformation progress across product teams

Team Development

• Build and lead a team of SDLC+ transformation experts who will embed with product teams
• Create robust talent pipeline with individual development plans aligned to organizational objectives
• Foster a culture of experimentation, learning, and continuous improvement
• Provide mentorship and unique growth opportunities to accelerate professional development
• Perform other duties as assigned.

What Will Our Ideal Candidate Have?

Experience Requirements

• 7+ years software engineering experience with 3+ years in senior technical leadership
• Proven track record leading transformation initiatives across diverse SDLC teams
• Experience with Agile methodologies working closely with scrum masters, product owners, agile coaches, and their leadership
• Vendor management experience evaluating and integrating external solutions
• Demonstrated success improving collaboration across all SDLC personas

Delivery & Problem Solving

• Ability to assess software development strategies across the organization and develop metrics for improvement
• Creates robust solutions serving all SDLC personas while maintaining 6 to 12-month forward vision
• Drives transformation through iteration, seeing opportunities where others see obstacles

Technical & Domain Expertise

• Deep understanding of modern SDLC practices and diverse persona needs
• Expertise in Generative AI applications across different roles
• Ability to tran