Senior Engineering Manager, Growth Engineering

Edtech.com's Summary

Handshake is hiring a Senior Engineering Manager, Growth Engineering. This role leads the growth engineering platform that drives user acquisition, activation, and retention across the entire Handshake ecosystem. The manager will build and scale the engineering team, develop growth infrastructure, and collaborate closely with Product, Data, and Marketing to execute the company’s growth strategy.

Highlights

Lead and grow a high-performing Growth Engineering team, including hiring and leadership development.
Own the full post-acquisition growth funnel focusing on activation, engagement, and retention metrics.
Build scalable, modular growth platform enabling experimentation, personalization, and lifecycle targeting.
Drive architecture and technical strategy to ensure system reliability, performance, and rapid delivery.
Collaborate closely with Product, Data Science, Marketing, and Acquisition teams to align growth efforts.
Champion engineering best practices: observability, experimentation rigor, data integrity, and quality at scale.
Require 3+ years managing engineering teams and 5+ years hands-on engineering experience.
Prefer candidates with experience in growth systems, platform infrastructure, or lifecycle marketing technologies.
Strong people leadership skills with proven ability to develop senior engineers; experience managing engineering managers is a plus.
Offer comprehensive benefits including equity, 401(k) match, parental leave, wellness support, learning stipends, and flexible time off for full-time US employees.

Senior Engineering Manager, Growth Engineering Full Description

About Handshake

Handshake is the career network for the AI economy. 20 million knowledge workers, 1,600 educational institutions, 1 million employers (including 100% of the Fortune 50), and every foundational AI lab trust Handshake to power career discovery, hiring, and upskilling, from freelance AI training gigs to first internships to full-time careers and beyond. This unique value is leading to unparalleled growth; in 2025, we tripled our ARR at scale.

Why join Handshake now:

Shape how every career evolves in the AI economy, at global scale, with impact your friends, family and peers can see and feel
Work hand-in-hand with world-class AI labs, Fortune 500 partners and the worldâs top educational institutions
Join a team with leadership from Scale AI, Meta, xAI, Notion, Coinbase, and Palantir, among others
Build a massive, fast-growing business with billions in revenue

About the Role

The Senior Engineering Manager of Growth Engineering at Handshake owns one of the most strategically important growth levers and platforms in the company â the systems that power how we acquire, activate, and retain users across the entire Handshake ecosystem.

This isn't a single-product role. You'll lead a platform that cuts across every surface of Handshake, serving as a foundational lever for company growth. You'll partner closely with Product, Data, and Marketing to define what the growth loop looks like at scale â and then build the infrastructure and product capabilities to make it real. You'll lead a growing team of engineers and are expected to build leadership capacity (including an EM layer) as the team scales.

Location: San Francisco, CA. This is an in-office role, 5 days/week (no remote/hybrid).

What You'll Do

Lead and grow a high-performing Growth Engineering team â hire, develop, and retain strong engineers; build the leadership layer needed to scale
Own the full growth funnel (post-acquisition) â activation, engagement, and retention systems that move the needle on Handshake's core growth metrics
Build a scalable, extensible growth platform â modular infrastructure that enables rapid experimentation, personalization, and lifecycle targeting across the product
Drive architecture and technical strategy â design systems for reliability, performance, and speed-to-ship, balancing platform investments with high-impact product bets
Partner cross-functionally â work shoulder-to-shoulder with Product, Data Science, Marketing, and the Acquisition team to align on growth strategy and execution
Raise the engineering bar â champion strong fundamentals: observability, experimentation rigor, data integrity, and engineering quality at scale
Operate with ownership and velocity â set the standard for a team culture that moves fast, takes accountability, and delivers in ambiguous, high-stakes environments

What We're Looking For

Engineering leader + builder: 3+ years managing engineering teams, 5+ years of hands-on engineering experience
Growth or platform background: Experience owning systems that drive user acquisition, activation, or retention â or platform infrastructure that powers growth at scale
Strong people leadership: Track record of developing senior engineers; experience managing an EM or equivalent scope is a strong plus
Execution in ambiguity: Able to align cross-functionally, build clarity from ambiguity, and deliver iteratively in fast-moving environments
Balanced product + systems mindset: Can translate business and growth goals into technical roadmaps, ship with urgency, and measure outcomes rigorously

Nice to Have

Experience building experimentation platforms, A/B testing infrastructure, or personalization systems
Background in lifecycle marketing infrastructure (notifications, email, push, in-app messaging)
Familiarity with growth analytics, funnel instrumentation, or event tracking at scale
Experience in two-sided marketplace or consumer/prosumer products

Perks

Handshake delivers benefits that help you feel supportedâand thrive at work and in life.

The below benefits are for full-time US employees.

ð¯ Ownership: Equity in a fast-growing company

ð° Financial Wellness: 401(k) match, competitive compensation, financial coaching

ð¼ Family Support: Paid parental leave, fertility benefits, parental coaching

ð Wellbeing: Medical, dental, and vision, mental health support, $500 wellness stipend

ð Growth: $2,000 learning stipend, ongoing development

ð» Remote & Office: Internet, commuting, and free lunch/gym in our SF office

ð Time Off: Flexible PTO, 15 holidays + 2 flex days

ð¤ Connection: Team outings & referral bonuses

Explore our mission, values, and comprehensive US benefits at joinhandshake.com/careers.

Original Job Description