Director, Software Engineering

Our Purpose Mastercard powers economies and empowers people in 200+ countries and territories worldwide. Together with our customers, we’re helping build a sustainable economy where everyone can prosper. We support a wide range of digital payments choices, making transactions secure, simple, smart and accessible. Our technology and innovation, partnerships and networks combine to deliver a unique set of products and services that help people, businesses and governments realize their greatest potential. Title and Summary Director, Software Engineering Job Overview Leads teams to identify and solve complex engineering challenges across technology, process, and ways of working. Drives improvements in software delivery, quality, and reliability by applying strong engineering fundamentals across teams, tools, and domains. Major Accountabilities • Lead the definition and delivery of cross-team initiatives that address systemic engineering challenges and improve productivity, quality, and operational performance. • Partner with engineering leaders to identify gaps and opportunities across the software development lifecycle, and drive effective, pragmatic solutions. • Define and evolve engineering practices, standards, and ways of working, ensuring strong application of core software engineering principles. • Work across teams, technologies, and domains to guide solution design and delivery, balancing immediate needs with long-term maintainability and scalability. • Build targeted tooling, environments, and capabilities where needed to enable teams, while leveraging and extending enterprise frameworks. • Lead a team of specialist engineers and leaders, ensuring strong technical depth, clear ownership, and continued capability growth. • Drive adoption of effective engineering practices using data and metrics to improve delivery outcomes and system performance. • Manage resources and priorities across multiple initiatives, ensuring focus on highest-impact outcomes. • Influence senior stakeholders and align teams to deliver consistent engineering approaches and continuous improvement. Education • Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience. Knowledge / Experience • Experience leading engineering teams or specialised functions in complex environments. • Proven ability to solve cross-cutting engineering problems spanning technology, process, and organisation. • Experience working across multiple technologies, systems, and domains. • Strong grounding in software engineering principles, system design, and modern development practices. • Experience contributing to technology direction and adoption of modern capabilities, including AI-supported development. Skills/Abilities • Strong problem-solving and critical thinking skills applied to complex engineering challenges. • Deep understanding of software engineering fundamentals and delivery practices. • Working knowledge of AI tools supporting software development and engineering productivity. • Data-driven decision making using engineering and operational metrics. • Ability to work effectively across teams without direct ownership, influencing outcomes through expertise and collaboration. • Strong technical judgement across a broad range of technologies and domains. • Ability to coach and develop senior engineers and technical specialists. • Excellent communication skills, including engagement with senior stakeholders. Corporate Security Responsibility All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must: Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices; Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed; Report any suspected information security violation or breach, and Complete all periodic