Assistant Director - Engineering Management

GovTech is the lead agency driving Singapore’s Smart Nation initiatives and public sector digital transformation. As the Centre of Excellence for Infocomm Technology and Smart Systems (ICT & SS), GovTech develops the Singapore Government’s capabilities in Data Science & Artificial Intelligence, Application Development, Smart City Technology, Digital Infrastructure, and Cybersecurity.  
 
At GovTech, we offer you a purposeful career to make lives better where we empower our people to master their craft through robust learning and development opportunities all year round. 
 
Play a part in Singapore’s vision to build a Smart Nation and embark on your meaningful journey to build tech for public good. Join us to advance our mission and shape your future with us today!  
 
Learn more about GovTech at tech.gov.sg.

GovTech is looking for an Engineering Manager to lead a forward- deployed full-stack engineering team embedded within a defence- sector digital transformation initiative. You’ll own the technical delivery and day-to-day leadership of a single engineering team operating inside a defence environment — balancing hands-on technical direction, people management, and close collaboration with military and public-sector stakeholders. This is a high-trust role: you’ll need to navigate the operational realities of a defence-adjacent setting (security requirements, cross-agency coordination, mission-driven priorities) while building a strong, sustainable engineering team.

[What you will be working on]

• Own end-to-end technical delivery for your team’s full-stack systems, setting technical direction in collaboration with product and stakeholder counterparts.
• Ensure engineering output meets the security , reliability , and compliance bar required in a defence environment, across frontend, backend, and data layers.
• Balance new feature delivery with operational stability — including tech-debt reduction, incident response, and maintaining systems already in production.
• Participate in architecture and design reviews to ensure decisions align with delivery timelines, business priorities, and quality standards — partnering with your team’s Lead Software Engineer(s), who hold technical design authority , and stepping in hands-on only when the team needs unblocking.
• Manage the full people-management cycle for your team: regular 1:1s, performance feedback, growth planning, and identifying future leaders.
• Lead or contribute to hiring: screening, interviewing, and building a lean, high-performing team suited to the demands of a forward-deployed setting.
• Act as the primary point of contact between your engineering team and defence-sector stakeholders, translating operational and mission requirements into engineering priorities, and communicating technical trade-offs clearly to non-technical counterparts.
• Identify and remove delivery blockers — unresolved dependencies, unclear requirements, or organisational friction between GovTech and defence stakeholders.
• Represent your team in cross-functional planning and governance forums specific to the engagement.
• Establish and uphold engineering quality standards (code review , testing, on-call/incident practices) appropriate to a mission-critical, security-conscious environment.

[What we are looking for]

• Typically 8+ years of engineering experience, including priorexperience managing a team end-to-end, or equivalent experience as a senior full-stack engineer ready to step into full team ownership.
• Comfortable operating in a structured, security-conscious, or regulated environment; prior exposure to public sector , defence, or similarly high-trust settings is a plus.
• Strong stakeholder management skills — able to work effectively with non-technical or operationally-focused counterparts (e.g. military personnel, government officers) and translate between technical and mission language.
• Demonstrated people-management fundamentals: coaching, feedback, performance management, and growing a team’s capability .
• Sound technical judgment across full-stack architecture, delivery , and quality practices, with the ability to stay hands-on when the team or situation requires it.
• Track record of hiring and building lean, effective teams.
• Minimum Singapore Permanent Resident status required; Singapore Citizenship may be required for specific engagements depending on security classification.

Please note that this will be a 2-year fixed term contract.

What we offer you:

GovTech is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering an inclusive workplace that values diverse voices and perspectives, as we believe that diversity is the foundation to innovation.   

Our employee benefits are based on a total rewards approach, offering a holistic and market-competitive suite of perks. These include leave benefits to meet your work-life needs and employee wellness programs. 

We champion flexible work arrangements (subject to your job role) and trust that you will manage your own time to deliver your best, wherever you are, and whatever works best for you.  

Learn more about life inside GovTech at go.gov.sg/GovTechCareers. 
Stay connected with us on social media at go.gov.sg/ConnectWithGovTech

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