Director of Engineering - Infrastructure

About the role

Rippling Infrastructure operates as a scaled engineering organization responsible for the mission-critical systems that power every product and platform across the company. We support nearly 1,000 engineers globally and deliver the foundational infrastructure that enables Rippling's products to scale reliably and efficiently.

This leader will define the strategy, roadmap, and execution model for the platforms that underpin Rippling's next generation of products, workflows, and AI-powered experiences. You will lead multiple teams responsible for databases, orchestration platforms, and AI infrastructure while partnering closely with engineering, product, and executive leadership to ensure our platform can support the company's ambitious growth.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of software engineering experience, including 5+ years leading engineering managers and large infrastructure-focused organizations.
• Proven experience building and scaling data infrastructure, database platforms, distributed systems, or foundational platform services.
• Experience leading organizations responsible for mission-critical infrastructure with demanding reliability, performance, and scalability requirements.
• Strong understanding of database technologies, storage systems, distributed architectures, and infrastructure operations.
• Experience building or operating workflow orchestration platforms, data platforms, or large-scale backend infrastructure.
• Experience driving cross-functional technical strategy across multiple engineering organizations.
• Demonstrated success hiring, developing, and retaining high-performing engineering leaders and senior engineers.
• Strong technical judgment with the ability to balance long-term architectural investments against near-term business priorities.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence executive, product, and engineering stakeholders.
• Ability to thrive in ambiguous, fast-moving environments and create clarity where none exists.