Director, Technology (US)

The Machine team at Code and Theory operates as a forward-thinking enterprise AI startup within the larger agency. We are always striving to balance the demanding nature of working on new technologies with the real-world demands of high performance, high security, and accessibility. Working in collaboration with our multi-disciplinary engineering, design, and quality assurance teams, you will build an AI-native software ecosystem that powers marketing workflows for both internal and external users. 

React is our most frequently implemented frontend framework and we have built up substantial skill in implementing React and its ecosystem of technologies. Our frontends interact with a BFF (Backend For Frontend) where we host the APIs and services that enable the FE capabilities. You should be well versed in the Full stack needs required to support the BFF as well as the FE. 

You are a passionate advocate for software quality, its role in our society, and its relationship to technology. You deeply understand nuances of how to achieve experiences which are high performance while being innovative, immersive and impressive for the end user.

 WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Be a hands-on leader and coach to engineering teams in successfully delivering scalable, maintainable, and secure features to our users; serving as a role model for code quality, process, and improvements
• Leverage advanced TypeScript implementations of React primarily in Next.js but also Astro, Remix, and Gatsby as well as modern styling frameworks (Tailwind, MUI, CSS Modules, etc) on modern content, commerce, or custom applications
• Conduct technical audits to present software architecture recommendations in the format of a Technical Approach Document that outlines the software and hosting architecture, software “bill of materials,” development strategy, and technical best practices
• Work on all aspects of the stack, including implementation of the design wireframes, high-fidelity designs, animation/motion, business logic, interfaces to the backend APIs, incorporating analytics, performance and security
• Collaborate with Design, Engineering, and Product teams; to define, design and ship new features
• Experience with creating plugins for commercial tools 
• Translate functional requirements into technical work to be tackled by the dev team
• Work with the quality assurance department to set up the right testing activities (manual, automation, security, load/performance, accessibility, etc)
• Collaborate with DevOps team to setup and deliver necessary infrastructure (environments, build systems, CI/CD, etc) for the development and productionization of the project
• Develop, and maintain reusable web software components/libraries for internal use to maximize development efficiency
• Build and manage a diverse and geographically dispersed team, while fostering a collaborative and inclusive environment
• Ensure team completes assigned tasks in a timely manner within project constraints
• Cultivate a collaborative working environment and a culture of technical ownership

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• Extensive experience in software programming, specializing in UI engineering and the full stack of web application development
• SQL, GraphQL, API data access experience 
• A world-class portfolio of distinctive digital web products or websites, and a love for clean & efficient code
• Extensive experience with React in TypeScript and JavaScript as Next.js, Astro, Remix or Gatsby to runtimes and servers (Express, Hapi, Node.js, deno, bun GraphQL), to CSS-in-JS styling and component frameworks (Tailwind, MUI, CSS Modules, etc)
• Deep experience thinking and building flexible and scalable Design Systems that follow the Atomic Design or equivalent principles. Using tools like Storybook as a robust delivery for well-documented, living design systems.
• Experience implementing robust testing plans for UI systems which ensure that regressions are minimized and the team can have high confidence making substantial changes at high velocity.
• Proven understanding of application architecture, with the ability to design and develop applications that leverage modern technologies and frameworks that are compatible with one another
• Experience managing the full SDLC in version control systems (Git, GitHub) and modern development workflows (Agile, SCRUM)
• Experience with various React state management libraries (Redux, Zustand, Recoil, XState, etc)
• Experience working with backend service in REST and GraphQL
• Experience with and ability to troubleshoot CI/CD platforms, CDNs, and hosting services
• Passionate for web accessibility and security, as well as knowledge of the latest guidelines and standards of WCAG 2.1 AA+
• Compelling and clear communication skills; be able to explain the full possibilities of the tech stack/architecture and represent your team to internal and external audiences with differing levels of technical fluency
• Proven experience leading a geographically dispersed technical team
• Desire to act as product evangelist with deep curiosity on technology trends and being able to go deep into technology and related technical enhancements to build a product vision
• Strong foundation in building scalable, reliable, and high-performance systems
• Self-motivation and focus on achieving excellence as a team

ABOUT US

Born in 2001, Code and Theory is a digital-first creative agency that sits at the center of creativity and technology. We pride ourselves on not only solving consumer and business problems, but also helping to establish new capabilities for our clients. With a global client roster of Fortune 100s and start-ups alike, we crave the hardest problems to solve. We have teams distributed across North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. The Code and Theory global network of agencies is growing and includes Kettle, Instrument, Left Field Labs, Create Group, Current, and TrueLogic.

Striving never to be pigeonholed, we work across every major category: from tech to CPG, financial services to travel & hospitality, government and education to media and publishing. We value the collaboration with our client partners, including but not limited to Adidas, Amazon, Con Edison, Diageo, EY, J.P. Morgan Chase, Lenovo, Marriott, Mars, Microsoft, Thomson Reuters, and TikTok.

The Code and Theory network is comprised of nearly 2,000 people with 50% engineers and 50% creative talent. We’re always on the lookout for smart, driven, and forward-thinking people to join our team.

The target range of base compensation for this role is $175,000 - $225,000. Actual compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, and location.