Senior Manager Software Engineering

Career Area:

Job Description:

Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.

When you join Caterpillar, you're joining a global team who cares not just about the work we do – but also about each other.  We are the makers, problem solvers, and future world builders who are creating stronger, more sustainable communities. We don't just talk about progress and innovation here – we make it happen, with our customers, where we work and live. Together, we are building a better world, so we can all enjoy living in it.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide strategic direction and coaching to direct reports (senior engineering managers), fostering a high-performance culture focused on innovation, delivery excellence, and cross-functional collaboration.
• Architect and deliver cloud-native digital platforms for real-time ingestion, processing, and analytics of industrial data.
• Data Quality Oversight: Establish and enforce multi-level data quality standards (e.g., completeness, conformity, consistency, accuracy) across platform components.
• Oversee the design and deployment of digital twins, 2D/3D simulations, and real-time visualization platforms (Unity, Unreal Engine, Omniverse).
• Drive Industrial IoT (IIoT) initiatives – connecting machines, sensors, and edge devices with scalable software solutions.
• Champion adoption of AI/ML, computer vision, robotics, and predictive analytics for manufacturing efficiency and automation.
• Partner with manufacturing experts to bridge OT (Operational Technology) and Enterprise Systems –ERP etc.
• Ensure solutions meet enterprise standards for cybersecurity, scalability, and interoperability.
• Collaborate with leadership on product strategy, technical roadmaps, and vendor/partner ecosystems (NVIDIA, Siemens, Dassault, PTC).
• Partner with product owners, data scientists, architects, and business leaders to translate strategic goals into technical deliverables. Ensure platform capabilities support predictive supply, dynamic scheduling, and digital twin use cases
• Drive engineering excellence with best practices in Agile, DevOps, CI/CD, clean code, and system design.
• Platform Governance: Define ownership models, support structures, and prioritization frameworks to ensure long-term sustainability and scalability of the platform.
• Ensure Talent Development and Organizational Scalability
  Lead hiring, onboarding, and development of engineering talent. Design organizational structures that support agility, scalability, and future transitions across global teams

Required Qualifications

• 20+ years of experience in software engineering, with 10+ years in engineering leadership roles.
• Proven track record of delivering enterprise-scale digital platforms, preferably in manufacturing, supply chain, or industrial domains.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams across engineering, analytics, product, and business domains.
• Proven expertise in cloud-native architectures (AWS/Azure/GCP), microservices, and data engineering (Kafka, Spark, Flink, time-series databases).
• Hands-on experience with IIOT, digital twins, AI Agents, simulations, or CAD/CAE integrations in a manufacturing context.
• Composable Architecture: Design reusable data objects and services that support modularity, abstraction, and rapid feature evolution.
• Deep understanding of Industry 4.0 technologies – IIoT protocols (MQTT, OPC UA), MES/ERP integration, robotics, automation systems.
• Experience with NVIDIA Omniverse, Unity, Unreal Engine, or similar simulation/visualization platforms.
• Strong background in AI/ML and analytics for predictive maintenance, quality control, or optimization.
• Data Integration Across Manufacturing Systems - Experience integrating ERP, MES, PLM, and IoT systems into a unified digital ecosystem. Ability to normalize and contextualize data from diverse sources support real-time decision-making and analytics
• Excellent leadership, stakeholder management, and communication skills with ability to drive cross-functional collaboration.
• Demonstrated ability to define platform strategy, lead architectural decisions, and align engineering execution with business goals.
• Strong organizational design and talent development skills, including hiring, mentoring, and performance management.

Nice-to-Have Skills

• Experience in high-performance computing (HPC), GPU programming (CUDA), or real-time rendering.
• Knowledge of cybersecurity for OT/IT systems.
• Exposure to AR/VR/XR applications for training or industrial collaboration.
• Prior work with autonomous robotics, AGVs/AMRs, or cyber-physical systems.
• Published work, patents, or contributions in digital manufacturing/Industry 4.0 technologies.
• Platform-as-a-Product Mindset --   Experience evolving platform capabilities based on user feedback and business needs, with a focus on composability and abstraction over siloed systems.

Posting Dates:

Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer.  Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply

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