Position Overview
We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Director of IT Engineering to build and lead Small Business IT team at Hartford India Center. This leadership role will mentor and set long-term technical direction for a growing team of 100+ IT professionals in India supporting all Business Value Steams in development and maintenance of IT applications tied to Product, Underwriting, Acquisition, Digital Services.
The role requires a strong blend of technical acumen, people leadership, AI innovation mindset and execution excellence. The ideal candidate will drive end-to-end software development across diverse technologies, application maintenance, and platform support; while establishing a strong partnership with US-based Small Business leadership and creating robust, scalable team structure to support future growth.
Key Responsibilities:
Strategic Leadership and Technology Delivery
- Partner closely with U.S.-based value-stream leaders and portfolio manager to align offshore delivery outcomes with Small Business and Shared Commercial technology strategy and roadmaps.
- Provide strategic and day-to-day technical and functional leadership in delivering high-quality enhancements and AI-driven solutions aligned with technology strategy.
- Design, implement and optimize on a scalable, sustainable team structure in India to support skills/capability development aligned to business growth.
- Promote innovation, technical excellence, data and process optimization across the IT delivery life-cycle with strong focus on developer productivity
- Champion a culture of collaboration, transparency, and customer-centric delivery
- Accountable for offshore application development and maintenance teams, guiding teams through design, build and release of enhancements to Small Business and Shared Commercial applications
- Ensure business requirements are clearly articulated into technical specifications. Oversee full software development lifecycle (SDLC) and application support for systems supporting Product, Underwriting, Acquisition, Digital Services, Shared Commercial and Reliability engineering functions.
- Ensure effective execution across Agile delivery, DevOps practices, and secure coding standards.
- Collaborate with IT Application owners, architecture, technology risk and security teams to drive IT resiliency, platform modernization and continuous improvement initiatives.
Operational Excellence
- Build and mentor high-performance engineering and delivery teams, fostering innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement
- Lead incident management and problem resolution across the application portfolio, ensuring minimal business disruption.
- Ensure adherence to governance models and Agile standards; track and report key metrics including budgets, delivery timelines, risks, and business value.
- Actively contribute toward Monthly operating reports, scorecards and productivity metrics to drive iterative improvements and transparency.
Stakeholder Engagement & Collaboration
- Foster transparent and collaborative partnerships with onshore stakeholders, including business and IT leadership.
- Act as a liaison between India-based teams and global technology leaders to ensure clarity in expectations, priorities, and deliverables.
Required Skills & Experience
- 14-16 years of progressive IT leadership experience, preferably in a matrixed global environment.| Please specify the years of experience.
- Proven experience in leading multi-disciplinary development and support teams, ideally within Small Business (Product, Underwriting, Acquisition, Digital Services, Shared Commercial and Reliability engineering functions)
- Expert level experience with following technologies: Full stack development, Angular, React, .NET, Java, Python, AWS Cloud Services, Docker, Kubernetes, EKS/ECS, Microsoft SQL Server (SSIS, SSRS) and Oracle database technologies, API technologies, UiPath, Tableau, Copilot and AI models for Developer productivity.
- Knowledge of Guidewire PolicyCenter (on-Prem or SaaS) would be preferred.
- Expert level experience with Agile methodologies, Rally, ServiceNow, cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, GCP), DevOps, multi-region HA and DR operations, modern software and reliability engineering practices.
- Demonstrated ability to lead change, coach talent, and establish a culture of accountability and innovation.
- Experience building or scaling high-performing teams in a Global Capability Center or Shared Services model.
- Exceptional interpersonal and stakeholder management skills.
Career Growth
This role offers the opportunity to play a pivotal part in shaping the India technology footprint of a growing, globally respected enterprise. High-performing candidates will be considered for expanded leadership responsibilities as the team and portfolio evolve.
What We Offer
- Collaborative and innovative work environment.
- Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits.
- Continuous learning and professional development opportunities
