Director of Software Engineering, Blue River Technology

• Systems Thinking: 12+ years in software engineering, with at least 5 years of experience in technical team management and a proven track record of managing large-scale, complex distributed systems (ideally involving hardware/robotics)
• Developer Experience: A passion for building software that engineers love to work on. You understand how to pay down technical debt strategically
• Validation Expertise: Experience building sophisticated simulation environments to reduce reliance on physical prototyping
• The Stack: Deep familiarity with C, C++, Python, Linux-based computing, CAN & Ethernet-based networks, as well as GPU, CPU and AI/ML architecture fundamentals and low-level performance optimizations
• The “Technical Translator”: You can distill complex architectural challenges (such as latency, technical debt, or sensor fusion) into clear, actionable narratives for non-technical stakeholders and executive leadership
• Radical Candor: You provide direct, empathetic feedback to your team and aren’t afraid to “disagree and commit” or challenge the status quo to protect engineering integrity
• Cross-Functional Diplomacy: You excel at building bridges among hardware, software, and operational teams, ensuring everyone speaks the same language for the See & Spray mission
• Public Advocacy: You can represent See & Spray’s technical vision at conferences, recruiting events, and internal town halls with a compelling, authentic voice
• The “Multiplier” Effect: You have a history of scaling products while increasing (not decreasing) delivery speed
• Mission-Driven: A drive to use your technical expertise to drive positive environmental impact through large-Ag systems

Desirable

• The traditional approach to farming, “broadcast spraying,” treats an entire field to solve a problem that exists only in pockets. By identifying weeds in real-time and treating only what is necessary, our See & Spray technology reduces herbicide use by up to 67%, keeping millions of gallons of chemicals out of our ecosystem
• However, a solution only changes the world if it reaches the whole world. Your mission as Director of Software Engineering is twofold: drive additional value for our customers and scale the reach of our technology. You will lead the transition from a specialized high-tech feature to a global standard, ensuring our software architecture can support tens of thousands of machines operating simultaneously across diverse crops, continents, and climates
• Architectural Ownership: Ensure our software architecture scales to enhance maintainability and developer velocity. You will ensure the codebase is modular, intuitive, and effective for hundreds of engineers to contribute to simultaneously
• Virtualization & Simulation: Drastically reduce the cost and cycle time of on-machine testing. You will champion robust simulation environments and Hardware/Software-in-the-loop (HIL and SIL) testing to ensure code is field-ready before it ever touches a sprayer
• Strategic Product Partnership: Work hand-in-hand with Product Management to deliver high-impact customer value while maintaining a healthy balance of engineering excellence. You will navigate the trade-offs between rapid feature delivery and long-term architectural health
• Team Leadership & Growth: Recruit, mentor, and scale a world-class software engineering organization. You aren’t just managing tasks; you are building a culture of empowerment, technical curiosity, and continuous improvement
• Systems Thinking: 12+ years in software engineering, with at least 5 years of experience in technical team management and a proven track record of managing large-scale, complex distributed systems (ideally involving hardware/robotics)
• Developer Experience: A passion for building software that engineers love to work on. You understand how to pay down technical debt strategically
• Validation Expertise: Experience building sophisticated simulation environments to reduce reliance on physical prototyping