Tech Lead Manager: Build and Release

About Us

Saildrone builds autonomous systems that dominate the world’s oceans

With more than 2 million nautical miles sailed and 50,000 days at sea, Saildrone has earned the trust of governments worldwide. Our unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) deliver continuous, real-time intelligence in the toughest oceans on Earth—giving our partners faster awareness, stronger security, and a decisive edge at sea.

Our USVs are long-range, extreme-endurance platforms powered by advanced sensors and proprietary AI – they have been designed to operate where no crewed vessel can. They collect critical insights above and below the surface to support border security, law enforcement, naval operations, and undersea infrastructure protection.

Headquartered in Alameda, CA, with offices in Washington, DC, and global deployment hubs, Saildrone operates missions worldwide. Join a fast-moving, mission-driven team at the intersection of AI, autonomy, and defense technology—where data turns into intelligence, and intelligence drives action.

We’re seeking a highly skilled and experienced Software Build Systems Engineer with expertise in Bazel who will lead our Build and Release team! The ideal candidate will be responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining our software build systems using Bazel, ensuring efficient and reliable build processes for our software projects.

As a Software Build Systems Engineer, you will collaborate closely with development teams, Dev Ops engineers, and other stakeholders to optimize and streamline our build systems, enabling faster and more efficient software development and release cycles. You will split your time between hands‑on development and leading a small engineering team (1‑2 ICs) to ensure successful execution of a roadmap in alignment with other software teams and business objectives.

This role is required to be onsite in Alameda, CA in the Bay Area 3 days per week – this is our hybrid model. This is not a remote position.

The first few months in this role will be 100 % as an IC, to allow you to get familiar with the stack and how we work. You'll then transition to a 50/50 split between managing a small team and individual contributor work.

• Design, develop, and maintain software build systems using Bazel to support our software development lifecycle.
• Collaborate with development teams to understand their build requirements and provide technical guidance and support.
• Configure and customize Bazel to meet specific project needs, optimizing build performance and resource utilization.
• Troubleshoot and resolve build issues, including dependency management, compilation errors, and test failures.
• Implement and manage build pipelines and continuous integration (CI) processes using Bazel.
• Collaborate with Dev Ops engineers to integrate the build systems with deployment and release processes.
• Monitor and improve build system efficiency, identifying bottlenecks and implementing optimizations.
• Stay updated with industry best practices, tools, and trends related to software build systems and continuous integration.
• Document build processes, configurations, and procedures for reference and knowledge sharing.
• Utilize your engineering management skills to plan and execute along a roadmap defined by business objectives and informed by rigorous engineering design.
• Work with our technical program management team to align work to schedules and ensure delivery.
• Communicate in a friendly, supportive manner with engineers or other stakeholders, ensuring alignment and advocating for effective solutions.
• Mentor and facilitate career development for individual contributors.

• 5+ years of experience in software engineering
• 1+ years people management experience, including technical team leadership, scheduling, and resource planning
• Proven experience as a Software Build Systems Engineer or similar role, with expertise in configuring and managing build systems using Bazel.
• Strong knowledge of software build processes, dependency management, and source control systems.
• Proficiency in scripting languages such as Bash, Python, or Groovy for automation and customization of…