Senior Manager Engineering

Twenty is seeking an exceptional Senior Engineering Manager for an in-office position in its Arlington, VA office to lead our core engineering teams building revolutionary cyber technologies that protect democracies worldwide. We're looking for a proven technical leader with 8-10 years of software engineering experience including 4+ years in engineering management, with deep expertise across frontend, backend, full-stack, AI/ML, and data engineering disciplines. In this role, you'll directly manage and mentor engineering teams spanning React/TypeScript frontend engineers, Golang backend engineers, full-stack engineers, AI/ML engineers, and data engineers who build our graph database-powered cyber operations platforms. You'll drive technical excellence, establish engineering best practices, coordinate cross-team initiatives, and ensure on-time delivery of mission-critical capabilities that support U.S. national security operations. You'll partner closely with product managers, cyber operations experts, and senior leadership to translate operational requirements into technical roadmaps while building a world-class engineering culture. If you're passionate about leading technical teams, solving complex engineering challenges, and making a direct impact on national security, we want to talk to you.

About the Company

At Twenty, we're taking on one of the most critical challenges of our time: defending democracies in the digital age. We develop revolutionary technologies that operate at the intersection of cyber and electromagnetic domains, where the speed and complexity of operations exceeds human cognition. Our team doesn't just solve problems – we deliver game-changing outcomes that directly improve national security. We're pragmatic optimists who understand that while our mission of defending America and its allies is challenging, we can succeed.

Role Details

Team Leadership & Management

• Directly manage and mentor a team of 10-15 engineers across multiple disciplines including frontend (React/TypeScript), backend (Golang), full-stack, AI/ML, and data engineering

• Conduct regular 1-on-1s, provide continuous feedback, and support professional development for all direct reports

• Manage performance evaluations, career development plans, and compensation recommendations

• Recruit, interview, and hire exceptional engineering talent across all disciplines

• Build and maintain a high-performance engineering culture focused on collaboration, innovation, and operational excellence

• Handle conflict resolution, team dynamics, and organizational challenges as they arise

• Establish clear goals and success metrics for individuals and teams aligned with company objectives

Technical Leadership & Execution

• Drive technical decision-making across frontend, backend, data, and AI/ML workstreams to ensure architectural coherence

• Review and guide technical designs for complex features spanning multiple engineering disciplines

• Ensure engineering best practices including code reviews, testing, documentation, and security standards

• Lead sprint planning, backlog refinement, and agile ceremonies to maintain development velocity

• Remove technical blockers and facilitate cross-team collaboration on integrated features

• Balance technical debt management with feature delivery to maintain system health and developer productivity

• Oversee the integration of graph databases (Neo4j), AI/ML models, and real-time data pipelines into cohesive systems

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with product managers to translate requirements into technical specifications and development plans

• Collaborate with cyber operations experts and Forward Deployed Analysts to understand operational needs and validate solutions

• Coordinate with the Offensive Cyber Research organization on integrations between offensive capabilities and platform features

• Work with infrastructure and site reliability teams to ensure deployed systems meet performance and reliability requirements

• Communicate technical progress, risks, and trade-offs to senior leadership and stakeholders

• Support business development efforts by providing technical expertise during customer engagements and proposals

Process & Operations

• Establish and refine engineering processes that enable rapid, secure delivery of capabilities

• Implement metrics and KPIs to measure team health, velocity, and quality

• Manage project timelines, resource allocation, and dependency tracking across multiple concurrent initiatives

• Lead incident response coordination when engineering issues impact operations

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives to enhance team effectiveness and engineering practices

• Ensure proper documentation of systems, architectures, and operational procedures

Strategic Planning

• Contribute to technical roadmap planning and strategic technology decisions

• Evaluate new technologies, frameworks, and tools that could enhance engineering capabilities

• Identify technical risks and develop mitigation strategies

• Support capacity planning and resource forecasting for engineering teams

• Participate in architectural review boards and technical strategy sessions

Qualifications

Experience & Leadership

• 8-10 years of professional software engineering experience with proven expertise across multiple disciplines (frontend, backend, data engineering, or AI/ML)

• 4+ years of engineering management experience leading teams of 5+ engineers

• Demonstrated success building and scaling high-performing engineering teams

• Track record of delivering complex, multi-team projects on time and with high quality

• Experience managing engineers across different specializations and seniority levels (Associate through Senior)

• Proven ability to hire and retain top engineering talent in competitive markets

• Strong background in performance management, career development, and team building

Technical Skills & Knowledge

• Deep understanding of modern web application architectures including React/TypeScript frontends and microservices backends

• Strong knowledge of backend engineering with languages like Golang, Python, or similar

• Experience with graph databases (Neo4j or similar) and understanding of graph-based data modeling

• Familiarity with AI/ML workflows, model deployment, and integration into production systems

• Understanding of data engineering concepts including ETL pipelines, data lakes, and schema design

• Proficiency with cloud platforms (preferably AWS) and containerization (Docker, Kubernetes)

• Knowledge of API design (REST, GraphQL), event-driven architectures, and message queues

• Strong understanding of security best practices, secure coding, and compliance requirements

Management & Communication Skills

• Exceptional communication skills with ability to explain complex technical concepts to diverse audiences

• Proven ability to provide constructive feedback, conduct difficult conversations, and manage underperformance

• Experience facilitating technical discussions and driving consensus among engineers with differing opinions

• Strong organizational and project management skills with attention to detail

• Ability to balance competing priorities and make effective trade-off decisions

• Experience working in agile/scrum environments and leading agile ceremonies

Education

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field; Master's degree preferred, or equivalent practical experience

Security Requirements

• Must be eligible to obtain a U.S. Government security clearance

Distinguishing Qualifications

• Previous experience in defense, intelligence, or national security technology companies

• Background managing engineering teams building mission-critical or real-time operational systems

• Experience with graph database technologies and their application to complex analytical problems

• Track record managing teams building AI/ML-powered applications in production environments

• Experience with secure development practices for government or classified systems

• Technical background that includes hands-on coding experience at senior+ engineering levels

• Previous experience scaling engineering organizations through growth phases

• Contributions to engineering community through open source, technical writing, or conference speaking

Additional Skills

• Deep knowledge of software development lifecycle and DevSecOps practices

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure as code, and deployment automation

• Understanding of system observability, monitoring, and performance optimization

• Familiarity with data visualization frameworks and user experience principles

• Knowledge of engineering metrics and data-driven team management

• Experience with remote/distributed team management or hybrid work models

• Understanding of government contracting and compliance requirements