Director of Software Engineering, Navan
Security
$191.7-426k
4+ days a week in office
Travel management company
Open for applications
Travel management company
1001+ employees
Open for applications
$191.7-426k
4+ days a week in office
1001+ employees
Company mission
To reinvent the legacy category of travel and expense with one of the first enterprise technologies utilising the cloud, mobile, and AI to balance business needs with today's modern standards.
Role
Who you are
- BS/MS in Computer Science or a related engineering/technical field
- 12+ years of progressive experience in technical engineering roles, with at least 4 years in a leadership capacity managing high-performing software teams
- Engineering Depth: Deep expertise in the full stack, specifically with Java / Spring Framework, distributed systems, and Cloud Infrastructure (AWS or GCP)
- Comfortable writing and fixing Java code - while you are a team leader, you will be expected to contribute code when needed
- Bonus points: Identity & Access Specialist: In-depth knowledge of modern authentication (SAML, JWT, OIDC, Passkeys) and complex multi-tenant authorization frameworks
- Bonus points: Proven experience operating within an Agile/CI/CD lifecycle, integrating "Security as Code" (SAST, DAST, SCA) directly into the developer workflow
- Executive Presence: Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to translate complex technical risks into business impact for executive stakeholders
What the job involves
- Navan is looking for a visionary Director of Software Engineering to lead the development of our core security infrastructure and product-wide protection strategies
- As we pivot toward a future defined by AI-driven natural language interfaces, you will be the primary architect of a platform that balances rapid innovation with world-class defense-in-depth
- You will lead a high-impact team of 3 product security engineers focused on application security and 5 software engineers focused on building the foundational services (AuthN/AuthZ, Encryption, and fraud prevention that power the Navan ecosystem
- You aren't just an advisor; you are an owner. You will drive a culture of execution and quality, ensuring security is not a bottleneck, but a built-in feature of everything we build
- Leading and Scaling: Manage a specialized team of 8–10 software and security engineers, driving a culture of high-velocity execution and technical excellence
- Hands-on Technical Leadership: Act as a player-coach who maintains deep technical credibility. You are a hands-on leader who isn't afraid to get into the code or perform deep architectural reviews when the team is tackling its toughest challenges
- Architect Core Services: Oversee the design and implementation of highly scalable security frameworks for authentication, authorization, and encryption, including cutting-edge transitions to Passkeys and AI identities
- Product Partnership: Collaborate closely with Product Management to define, prioritize, and deliver on the strategic security roadmap, balancing service stability with high-impact feature innovation
- AI & Emerging Tech: Secure the next generation of Navan products, specifically focusing on the security implications of LLM-integrated natural language interfaces and AI-driven workflows
- Operational Excellence: Partner with customer-facing organizations (Support, Customer Success) to improve service delivery, address vulnerabilities, and ensure "Security by Design" results in better customer outcomes
- Lead security incidents, investigate and identify root cause, drive technical choices and remediation when needed. Work closely with teams across the company including engineering, product, Sales, customer success, finance and legal
Our take
Navan (formerly known as TripActions) is operating in a crowded marketplace, betting against rivals with similar offerings of user interface personalisation technology. Even so, the company's growth has skyrocketed and it has attracted significant investor interest. Competitors cannot match Navan's cutting-edge, AI-driven services, as well as 24-hour customer support.
Since its founding in 2015 the company has seen significant growth in transactions and in active users. Having expanded from its core travel expense management product, it now offers a corporate card and general expenses management, underwriting its customers' short term business expenses with its own Liquid financial offering. Navan has a list of impressive clients, including Glassdoor, Zoom, and Shopify.
Moving forwards, the company is focused on gaining more reach, especially in Europe. As part of the expanded go-to-market strategy, it rebranded to Navan with a more people-centric design approach. It also combined its travel, corporate card and expense services into a single app which is now available to individual users rather than only through a corporate account. This will be key in bridging the gap between business travel and consumer apps, especially in the lead-up to its reported IPO in the near future.
Freddie
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Funding (last 2 of 10 rounds)
Oct 2025
$150m
SERIES G
Oct 2022
$154m
SERIES G
Total funding: $1.2bn
Company benefits
- Flexible Vacation
- Healthcare
- Commuter benefits
- Parental leave
- Health and Wellness
- Fuel for Connection
- Pet Friendly
- 401k (retirement plan)
- IATAN (travel-related discounts)
- Connectivity Allowance
- Learning & Development
Company HQ
Ventura, Palo Alto, CA
Leadership
Ariel Cohen
(Co-Founder & CEO)Research and Development director in Mercury Interactive (and HP after acquisition of Mercury). Product Management director, then VP, at Jive Software. Previously co-founded StreamOnce with Ilan.
Ilan Twig
(Co-Founder & CTO)Studied Computer Science, managing positions in software engineering including VP and EVP of engineering at Jive Software. Previously co-founded StreamOnce with Ariel.
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