What are the responsibilities and job description for the Head of Platform Engineering position at Descript?
Our vision at Descript is to build the next-generation platform for fast and easy creation of audio and video content. We are trusted by some of the world's top podcasters and influencers, as well as businesses like BBC, ESPN, HubSpot, Shopify, and The Washington Post for communicating via video. We've raised $100M from leading investors such as the OpenAI Startup fund, Andreessen Horowitz, Redpoint Ventures, and Spark Capital.
About The Team
We are seeking a Head of Platform Engineering to lead and scale our Platform organization. This organization at Descript is central to empowering our engineering teams to build and deliver products efficiently and effectively. Operating as an internal product team, the Platform group focuses on providing tools, infrastructure, and services that enable our engineers to deliver exceptional products to our users.
You will be leading three teams (~15 engineers) across the three Platform teams, with expectations for continued growth in the next 6-12 months. The Platform organization encompasses three key teams :
- Server Platform Team
Builds and maintains our core backend and development infrastructure, ensuring scalability, reliability, and performance.
Focuses on the foundations of our client applications, optimizing for a seamless user experience across desktop and web platforms.
Develops and scales our AI / ML infrastructure to support cutting-edge research and integration of AI features into our products.
Key Challenges Ahead :
Building a scalable, reliable, and performant infrastructure to support the growth of our engineering, data, and research teams.
Leading the transition of our features and infrastructure from a desktop app-heavy product to a web-first and cloud-based user experience.
Establishing the foundations for a world-class developer experience, enhancing productivity and satisfaction across a fast-growing, full-stack engineering organization.
Scaling our AI / ML platform to support innovative research rapid productization of AI features, and a product feedback cycle for model improvements.
This position reports directly to the VP of Engineering.
What You'll Do :
Develop and execute a strategic vision and roadmap for the Platform organization, aligning with company goals and ensuring cross-team collaboration.
Recruit, mentor, and grow engineering managers and engineers, fostering a culture of continuous learning and development.
Ensure execution across the Platform teams is predictable, reliable, and sustainable, implementing best practices in project management and engineering processes.
Work closely with Product, Design, and other Engineering teams to ensure platform initiatives meet the needs of internal stakeholders.
Drive innovation within the Platform organization, continually seeking ways to improve our infrastructure, tools, and processes.
Help scale and evolve our company culture as we grow, promoting values of collaboration, inclusivity, and excellence.
What You Bring :
Has 5 years of engineering management experience, including leading multiple teams or an engineering organization, preferably in platform or developer experience domain.
Demonstrates a strong technical background with experience in cloud platforms (GCP preferably), scalable infrastructure, and AI / ML technologies.
Can develop and communicate a clear vision, aligning teams and resources to achieve strategic objectives.
Excels at creating collaborative, empowering, and high-performing team environments.
Communicates clearly and effectively, both in writing and verbally, across technical and non-technical audiences.
Thrives in fast-paced, rapidly changing environments, with the ability to navigate ambiguity and drive results.
Holds a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or has equivalent professional experience.
Nice to Haves :
Experience managing engineering teams at a startup or high-growth company where the rate of change is extremely high.
Familiarity with AI / ML platforms, tools, and practices.
Background in building developer tools and enhancing developer experience.
Salary Information :
The base salary range for this role is $224,000- $296,000 / year. Final offer amounts will carefully consider multiple factors, including prior experience, expertise, location, and may vary from the amount above.
About Descript :
Descript is building a simple, intuitive, fully-powered editing tool for video and audio — an editing tool built for the age of AI. We are a team of 150 — with a proven CEO and the backing of some of the world's greatest investors (OpenAI, Andreessen Horowitz, Redpoint Ventures, Spark Capital).
Descript is the special company that's in possession of both product market fit and the raw materials (passionate user community, great product, large market) for growth, but is still early enough that each new employee has a measurable influence on the direction of the company.
Descript is an equal opportunity workplace—we are dedicated to equal employment opportunities regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity, or Veteran status. We believe in actively building a team rich in diverse backgrounds, experiences, and opinions to better allow our employees, products, and community to thrive.
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Salary : $224,000 - $296,000
