US Based Salary: $110,000 - $140,000 DOE + 10% annual bonus
About the RoleWho You Are: Are you a hands-on engineering leader who loves building reliable, secure platform services that other teams depend on? Do you thrive at the intersection of deep technical craft and people leadership? Are you ready to lead the team that powers authentication, API, and MCP infrastructure across Bonterra's products?
At Bonterra, we're looking for an Engineering Manager to lead our Platform Engineering team, with responsibility for Authentication, API, and MCP (Model Context Protocol) services. These systems are foundational-every product domain at Bonterra depends on them for secure identity, reliable API access, and emerging AI-agent integration patterns. You'll manage and grow the team, own the technical direction for these platform services, and stay hands-on in the codebase while ensuring the reliability, security, and scalability the rest of the engineering org counts on.
This is a working manager role. You'll balance day-to-day team leadership with real technical ownership-architecture decisions, design reviews, and direct contribution to the platform.
What You Will Do:People & Organization- Lead and grow the platform engineering team responsible for Authentication, API, and MCP services
- Hire, coach, and develop engineers; support career growth and run performance management for the team
- Coach engineers on spec-driven development and AI-assisted delivery practices; hold the team accountable for applying them consistently
- Foster a culture of ownership, quality, and continuous improvement
- Contribute directly to technical work-architecture reviews, design decisions, and hands-on engagement with the codebase-at a minimum of 25% of your time
Technical Direction- Own the technical direction for the platform's Authentication, API, and MCP services
- Ensure authentication and identity systems are secure, reliable, and meet compliance requirements (e.g., SOC 2)
- Guide the design and evolution of internal and external-facing APIs used across Bonterra's product domains
- Set the technical strategy for MCP integration, positioning Bonterra's platform for AI-agent and tool-based access patterns
- Maintain the technical depth needed to evaluate architectural decisions, set credible non-functional requirements, and earn the confidence of senior engineers
Delivery & Operations- Own delivery outcomes for the team: set clear goals, establish metrics, and ensure commitments are met
- Coordinate dependencies with product domain teams that rely on Authentication, API, and MCP services
- Identify and remove process friction-technical debt, dependency issues, and workflow inefficiencies that constrain delivery
- Maintain high standards for reliability, observability, and incident response for platform services
Cross-Functional Collaboration- Partner with product domain engineering teams to understand their platform needs and prioritize accordingly
- Work with InfoSec on access controls, authentication security, and compliance requirements
- Collaborate with peer Engineering Managers and Directors on org-wide engineering standards and delivery practices
Requirements- 7+ years of professional software engineering experience, including 2+ years in engineering leadership or management
- Experience managing an engineering team through delivery, hiring, and performance management
- Deep technical credibility in one or more of: authentication/identity systems, API design and platforms, or MCP (Model Context Protocol) and AI-agent integration patterns
- Familiarity with TypeScript/Node.js and AWS serverless infrastructure; comfortable evaluating modern cloud-native architectures
- Experience with security and compliance considerations for authentication systems (e.g., SOC 2, OAuth/OIDC, or equivalent)
- AI-first mindset: actively uses AI coding tools, champions spec-driven development, and coaches engineers to work effectively with AI-generated output
- Strong communication skills, with the ability to engage confidently with senior leadership, peer teams, and ICs
- Passion for empowering the social good sector through technology
Nice to Have- Experience building or operating MCP servers or AI-agent tooling integrations
- Experience with identity and access management platforms (e.g., Auth0, Okta, AWS Cognito, or custom OAuth/OIDC implementations)
- Background in mission-driven, nonprofit, or social impact technology
What You Can ExpectYou can expect growth and innovation and to have fun along the way. You will not only be rewarded for your personal achievements, but you will also have the opportunity to be part of an organization that lives by its motto every day: Powering those who power social impact!
Our team is made up of industry experts and advocates who are 100% committed to supporting the doers of social good. We are currently undergoing an effort to create the vision and values that embody our collective organization and embrace the individuals who make up our community.
At Bonterra, we're building AI-powered tools to solve real human challenges-and we want teammates who share that enthusiasm. We value people who will champion AI and bring diverse perspectives from different industries, backgrounds, and cultures. Together, we create AI that breaks down barriers, empowers communities, and delivers better outcomes
At this time, we are unable to consider candidates who require current or future sponsorship for employment authorization.
Compensation & BenefitsWe offer a comprehensive benefits package that supports your health, well-being and growth - explore full details here.
Compensation and benefits for this role apply to full-time employees in the United States and may vary based on local standards, laws and norms. Pay is determined by location, skills, experience, and education, and is one part of Bonterra's total rewards package, which may also include bonuses, incentives, equity, and a comprehensive benefits program.
