Engineering Manager, Back End

About the role

This role leads backend and platform initiatives for Generative AI at Agoda.

Software engineers turn product ideas into working code. Engineers work in small teams, review each other's work, and ship in small batches. Most teams follow agile practices such as sprints and daily standups. Engineers also write tests, fix bugs, and improve performance. The field values clear communication as much as technical skill. Engineers spend part of every week on planning, code review, and debugging, not just writing new code. The ability to explain a technical decision in plain words separates strong engineers from the rest.

Key facts

What you'll do

Defining and evolving scalable, reliable, and secure backend systems to meet evolving technical demands for AI-enabled experiences.

Hiring, coaching, mentoring, and developing engineers and emerging leaders to build a strong technical foundation.

Requirements

Extensive experience building and operating backend systems, platforms, or large-scale services is required to ensure robustness and scalability.

Systems architecture expertise is required for complex, scalable, and fault-tolerant distributed systems that meet business demands.

Proficiency in at least one programming language such as Java, Scala, C#, or an equivalent backend language is required for implementation and review.

System owner experience with operational responsibility is required to manage service lifecycle and performance.

Understanding of backend engineering fundamentals, including concurrency, threading, memory management, garbage collection, and performance optimization is required.

DevOps practices, automation, CI/CD, and modern software delivery methodologies are required to maintain velocity and quality.

Application security and secure system design are required to protect data and services.

Experience working in a successful agile engineering environment is required to collaborate effectively.

Proven experience leading engineering teams with at least five direct reports is required to guide organizational growth.

People leadership, coaching, hiring, and performance management skills are required to develop high-performing teams.

Ability to operate autonomously, make decisions, set KPIs, and demonstrate ownership is required to drive initiatives forward.

A data-driven approach to decision-making and continuous improvement is required to optimize outcomes over time.

Interest in technology, software engineering, and Generative AI opportunities is required to engage with the roadmap actively.

Nice to have

Experience building AI-enabled products, platforms, developer tools, or productivity solutions is beneficial for accelerating delivery.

Experience working with Generative AI or integrating AI capabilities into production systems is beneficial for exploring innovative workflows.

Experience with cloud platforms, microservices, APIs, containers, Kubernetes, or infrastructure as code is beneficial for managing infrastructure complexity.

Proficiency in more than one programming language is beneficial to address diverse technical challenges.

Experience leading globally distributed engineering teams is beneficial to coordinate cross-functional collaboration.

Knowledge of observability, platform engineering, reliability engineering, or developer experience practices is beneficial to improve service quality.

Practical notes

Open to all eligible candidates regardless of nationality.

Employment is based solely on merit and qualifications as an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Typical interview steps

Hiring for engineering roles usually starts with a recruiter screen, followed by one or two technical rounds. Candidates often solve a coding problem, discuss past projects, and answer system design questions. Some loops include a take-home task. Final rounds typically cover team fit and give candidates a chance to ask questions. Interviewers look for how you break down an unfamiliar problem, not just whether you reach the answer. Practicing a few problems aloud and reviewing your own past projects are the best preparation.

Good to know

Engineers work with modern languages and cloud-native technologies.

The position contributes to both product innovation and internal platform capabilities.

This is a hands-on leadership role that combines technical contribution with team development.