Full-Time
Assistant Director Software Engineering
Real Estate
Northwestern Mutual
10,001+ employees
Mutual insurance and financial planning
Compensation Overview
$176k - $264k/yr
Company Historically Provides H1B Sponsorship
Milwaukee, WI, USA
Hybrid
Hybrid work arrangement indicated.
 Engineering Management (1) |
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- At least 8 years of software and data engineering experience, with strong full-stack and data platform expertise.
- Prior experience leading engineers directly or demonstrated readiness to step into people leadership.
- Proven technical leadership across multiple teams or complex cross-functional initiatives.
- Strong experience building modern web applications with React.
- Strong experience building backend services and designing REST APIs.
- Strong experience with data warehousing best practices.
- Experience with database performance tuning, cost-aware design, and data governance controls.
- Experience designing secure, scalable, and observable systems in enterprise environments.
- Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and elevate engineering maturity.
- Strong communication skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Experience in investment services domains.
- Experience modernizing legacy applications and data pipelines.
- Experience with platform migration programs and phased cutover strategies.
- Experience defining shared engineering standards across multiple teams.
- Define and communicate technical direction for the Real Estate team, ensuring alignment with enterprise architecture, security, and delivery standards.
- Translate product and business outcomes into pragmatic technical designs and implementation plans.
- Lead solution design across front-end using React, backend services using Node.js and REST APIs, and data platforms using dbt and Snowflake, with clear interface contracts and data lineage.
- Drive technical decomposition and sequencing for initiatives spanning applications, APIs, pipelines, and warehouse models.
- Establish and enforce engineering standards for code quality, testing, continuous integration and continuous delivery, observability, reliability, and operational readiness.
- Own technical risk management, including early identification of architecture, integration, performance, and security risks.
- Ensure API and data integrations are resilient, well-documented, and reusable across teams.
- Improve data reliability and trust by guiding data warehouse model quality, transformation design, and warehouse performance optimization.
- Support production stability by guiding incident response, root-cause analysis, and preventive engineering improvements.
- Serve as direct people leader for engineers, responsible for coaching, growth, performance management, and career development.
- Build an engineering culture centered on ownership, quality, learning, and constructive feedback.
- Lead regular technical and delivery reviews, fostering a review and mentorship culture.
- Develop team capability through coaching, pairing, and intentional skills development.
- Partner with Engineering Management on hiring, onboarding, and succession planning.
- Set clear expectations and accountability for technical excellence, delivery outcomes, and operational readiness.
- Partner closely with Product Managers to balance delivery speed, quality, and long-term maintainability.
- Coordinate cross-team dependencies and release readiness for shared components, platforms, and data pipelines.
- Collaborate with Enterprise Architecture and other investment delivery teams’ Technical Leads to align standards, patterns, and roadmaps.
- Communicate with technical and non-technical stakeholders, providing clarity under ambiguity.
Northwestern Mutual provides financial planning, insurance, and investment services as a mutual company owned by policyholders. It offers life, disability, and long-term care insurance plus investment products and wealth management, with financial advisors crafting personalized plans for retirement, estate, and wealth goals. The company differentiates itself through policyholder ownership that aligns interests with clients and a focus on long-term advisory relationships beyond insurance. Its goal is to help clients achieve financial security and growth through a long-term financial partnership.
Company Size
10,001+
Company Stage
N/A
Total Funding
N/A
Headquarters
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Founded
1856
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- April 2026, Northwestern Mutual committed $150 million to fintech and insurtech startups.
- February 2026 revenue hit a record $40 billion, with operating gain above $10 billion.
- Wealth sales rose more than 18% in 2025, and investment assets topped $400 billion.
What critics are saying
- A July 29, 2026 Connecticut lawsuit alleges harassment, disability bias, and retaliation.
- The EEOC's August 2026 DEI case forces Northwestern Mutual to expose internal employment practices.
- If advisors defect to larger platforms, Northwestern Mutual's relationship model collapses.
What makes Northwestern Mutual unique
- Northwestern Mutual's mutual structure fueled a record $9.2 billion 2026 dividend, reinforcing policyholder alignment.
- Its 2025 results crossed $40 billion revenue and $42 billion surplus, signaling balance-sheet strength.
- More than 8,000 advisors and 11,500 team members give it unmatched distribution depth.
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Benefits
Growing your Career
Compensation & Time Off
Insurance plans
Health Savings Account
Wellness programs & resources
401(k) plan and cash balance contributions
Company News
Northwestern Mutual's chief executive officer Tim Gerend has been named the seventh highest-rated CEO in America by Glassdoor. The recognition is based entirely on anonymous feedback from employees and financial advisors who rated their approval of how Gerend leads the company. Gerend became chairman, president and CEO in 2025. Under his leadership, Northwestern Mutual recently announced record business performance, including new highs for revenue, surplus position and annual dividends paid to policyowners. The company serves more than five million clients and holds $2.5 trillion worth of life insurance protection in force. It manages more than $450 billion in client assets through its retail investments business, ranking among the top five independent broker-dealers in the US.
Financial pressures are forcing many young Americans to postpone or abandon major life milestones, according to Northwestern Mutual's 2026 Planning & Progress Study. Nearly three in four Gen Z adults and more than half of Millennials have delayed at least one significant milestone due to financial challenges. The impact is particularly acute for homeownership and family planning. Thirty-one per cent of Gen Z respondents have postponed buying a house, whilst 24% have delayed having children. Among those who have become parents, over 70% spend as much or more on their children monthly as they do on housing. Artificial intelligence is adding to concerns, with 46% of Gen Z and 32% of Millennials pessimistic about its impact on their careers. Despite these challenges, younger generations are responding proactively. Gen Z and Millennials started saving for retirement at ages 22 and 28 respectively, years earlier than previous generations, and seek professional financial guidance at higher rates.
Northwestern Mutual's 2026 Planning & Progress Study reveals that 60% of Americans consider poor money habits a dealbreaker in new relationships. Excessive gambling and risk-taking rank as the top financial red flag, followed by hiding purchases and high credit card debt. Among Gen Z couples, 41% report money arguments are seriously straining their relationships. Financial compatibility has emerged as more important than emotional chemistry, physical attraction, or shared interests for maintaining successful long-term relationships. Single Americans seeking partners who earn money expect an average income of $139,000 annually, with women's expectations ($172,000) significantly exceeding men's ($101,000). Nearly three-quarters of Americans believe couples should discuss finances well before marriage or cohabitation, though 19% of married couples delayed these conversations until after major milestones. The survey included 4,375 US adults, conducted online between 5–21 January 2026.
Sixty percent of Americans consider poor money habits a dealbreaker in new relationships, with excessive gambling and risk-taking ranking as the top financial red flag, according to Northwestern Mutual's 2026 Planning & Progress Study. Financial stress particularly affects younger couples, with 41% of Gen Z pairs reporting money arguments strain their relationships. Among single Americans who value partner income, ideal earnings average $139,000 annually, though expectations differ sharply by gender: women prefer partners earning $172,000 whilst men seek $101,000. Couples in serious relationships prioritise financial compatibility over emotional chemistry, physical attraction, and shared interests. Nearly three-quarters of Americans believe financial discussions should occur well before marriage or cohabitation, though 19% of married couples delayed these conversations until after major milestones. The study surveyed 4,375 US adults aged 18 and older between January 5 and January 21, 2026.
More than half of millennials (53%) are not fully financially independent from their parents, according to Northwestern Mutual's 2025 Consumer Sentiment Survey. Americans now expect to achieve financial independence at age 37 on average. Record housing costs, student loan debt and gaps in financial preparedness are the primary obstacles. Among millennials, 43% lack a retirement account, 66% don't have an emergency fund, and 31% lack savings accounts altogether. Meanwhile, 74% of parents are considering or planning to provide financial support to help their children move out. The survey, conducted by The Harris Poll between 5 and 21 January 2026, included 4,375 US adults aged 18 or older. Northwestern Mutual's chief strategy officer called the findings "a massive wake-up call for America".