VP of Engineering (Wealth-Tech)

Determining compensation for this role (and others) at Vaco/Highspring depends upon a wide array of factors including but not limited to the individual’s skill sets, experience and training, licensure and certifications, office location and other geographic considerations, as well as other business and organizational needs. With that said, as required by local law in geographies that require salary range disclosure, Vaco/Highspring notes the salary range for the role is noted in this job posting. The individual may also be eligible for discretionary bonuses, and can participate in medical, dental, and vision benefits as well as the company’s 401(k) retirement plan.

Role Overview

Our client partner is seeking a seasoned engineering executive to lead and grow our software engineering function as we scale our platform and expand our market reach. As VP of Software Engineering, you will oversee end-to-end engineering delivery, build high-performing teams, refine our technology roadmap, and drive the evolution of our platform architecture. You’ll partner cross-functionally with product, operations, compliance, and business leadership to ensure our technology remains robust, innovative, and aligned with strategic priorities.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and execute the engineering strategy and roadmap in alignment with business objectives.
• Lead, mentor and scale a distributed engineering team (software developers, QA/automation, DevOps/SRE).
• Architect scalable, resilient, cloud-native systems (SaaS) to support growth and new product initiatives.
• Establish engineering processes, metrics, best practices, and a culture of quality and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with product leadership to translate business requirements into technical solutions.
• Partner with security, compliance, and operations stakeholders to ensure regulatory, performance, and reliability standards.
• Drive innovation: evaluate emerging technologies, lead proof‑of‑concepts, and incorporate appropriate tools and frameworks.
• Manage vendor/third‑party relationships and technology partnerships as needed.
• Represent engineering in senior leadership forums, providing transparent metrics, risk assessments, and strategic input.

Required Skills & Experience

• Minimum 10+ years of software engineering experience, with at least 5 years in a senior leadership role (Director, VP or equivalent).
• Proven track record managing large engineering teams (20+ engineers) developing SaaS or enterprise‑scale platforms.
• Strong understanding of modern cloud architectures (e.g., microservices, APIs, serverless, containerization) and the trade‑offs involved. AWS Preferred
• Demonstrated ability to build engineering organizations, define process/talent strategies and scale operations.
• Excellent communicator: able to engage technical teams and non‑technical stakeholders alike; strong leadership presence.
• Strategic mindset with strong execution orientation — comfortable operating in a fast‑paced, growth‑oriented company.
• Experience in regulated industries (financial services, fintech, Wealth tech) is a MUST
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering or related field; advanced degree preferred.

What You’ll Bring

• A passion for building technology that matters and creating transformative impact.
• A hands‑on mindset: while you’ll be in a leadership role, you should understand what it takes to deliver software excellence.
• A culture‑builder: someone who fosters psychological safety, collaboration, innovation and high standards.
• The ability to think big and act pragmatically — bridging strategic vision with tactical delivery.
• Comfort with ambiguity and the willingness to lead through change and complexity.