Director of Software Development - Controls Technology

Description and Requirements
Department:
The MetLife Corporate Systems Technology (CST) organization is evolving to enable MetLife's New Frontier strategy. With a strong vision in place, we are a global function focused on driving digital technology strategies for key corporate functions within MetLife including, Finance, Actuarial, Legal, Human Resources, Employee Experience, Risk, Treasury, Audit and Compliance. In partnership with our business leaders, we develop and deliver seamless technology experiences to our employees across the entire employee lifecycle. Our vision and mission is to create innovative, transformative and contemporary technology solutions to empower our leaders and employees so they can focus on what matters most, our customers. We are technologists with strong business acumen focused on developing our talent to continually transform and innovate.
About the Role:
We are seeking an experienced IT Director/Principal Engineer with strong hands-on technical expertise to lead our technology initiatives as part of our Frontier strategy. The ideal candidate will possess a robust technical background, proven leadership abilities, and a passion for delivering scalable, high-quality software solutions.
Primary Responsibilities:

• Lead the architecture and development of enterprise applications to deliver secure, scalable, reliable, and cost-effective technology solutions, including both on-premises and cloud-based deployments.
• Collaborate with and influence business stakeholders by leveraging emerging technology trends to drive innovation and digital transformation aligned with the firm's technology strategy.
• Develop and execute technology roadmaps aligned with business objectives, evaluate implementation options, and recommend the best fit-for-purpose solutions.
• Establish and oversee secure software development and deployment practices using DevSecOps principles.
• Oversee and deliver complex software projects, ensuring effective environment management, CI/CD pipeline, integrations/APIs, release management, and test data management.
• Implement and maintain data management strategies, including database design, data integration, and data security.
• Prepare and maintain software architecture documentation and obtain approval for new capabilities, solutions, tools, and technologies from the Global Architecture Review Board.
• Maintain relationships with strategic software vendors and service providers, working on vendor SOWs with service and license costs.
• Enhance solution capabilities by identifying high-impact AI/ML use cases, building robust data infrastructure, and driving the continuous evolution and expansion of AI-powered capabilities.
• Establish technical standards, best practices, and quality metrics; implement comprehensive technology controls in the managed portfolio to proactively manage technology risks.
• Lead and mentor a team of technology professionals, including developers, DevOps engineers, and architects, fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Required Technical Skills

• Bachelor's, or master's degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Overall 15+ years of IT software development experience, including leadership positions.
• Expert knowledge of Java/J2EE or .Net technologies and frameworks (Spring Boot, Spring Cloud).
• Strong background in DevOps practices and tools (Azure DevOps, Jenkins, Git).
• Proven experience in API design and management.
• Experience with microservices architecture, containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and CI/CD pipelines.
• Extensive knowledge of cloud infrastructure, particularly in the Microsoft Azure ecosystem, including IaC, containerization, and serverless computing.

Preferred Skills:

• Proven track record of leading successful technology transformations in the insurance or financial services industry.
• Good understanding of data modeling techniques, database design, and data integration patterns.
• Extensive experience with Azure cloud services and Azure Databricks.

The salary range for applicants for this position is $150,000 - $200,000.
Benefits We Offer
Our U.S. benefits address holistic well-being with programs for physical and mental health, financial wellness, and support for families. We offer a comprehensive health plan that includes medical/prescription drug and vision, dental insurance, and no-cost short- and long-term disability. We also provide company-paid life insurance and legal services, a retirement pension funded entirely by MetLife and 401(k) with employer matching, group discounts on voluntary insurance products including auto and home, pet, critical illness, hospital indemnity, and accident insurance, as well as Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and digital mental health programs, parental leave, volunteer time off, tuition assistance and much more!
About MetLife
Recognized on Fortune magazine's list of the 2024 "World's Most Admired Companies", Fortune World's 25 Best Workplaces™ for 2024, as well as the 2024 Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For ®, MetLife , through its subsidiaries and affiliates, is one of the world's leading financial services companies; providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to individual and institutional customers. With operations in more than 40 markets, we hold leading positions in the United States, Latin America, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
Our purpose is simple - to help our colleagues, customers, communities, and the world at large create a more confident future. United by purpose and guided by empathy, we're inspired to transform the next century in financial services. At MetLife, it's #AllTogetherPossible . Join us!
Equal Employment Opportunity/Disability/Veterans
If you need an accommodation due to a disability, please email us at [email protected]. This information will be held in confidence and used only to determine an appropriate accommodation for the application process.
MetLife maintains a drug-free workplace.
$150,000 - $200,000
#BI-Hybrid