Director Software Engineering
Job Summary
Career Area:
Technology Digital and DataJob Description:
Your Work Shapes the World at Caterpillar Inc.
When you join Caterpillar yourejoining a global team who cares not just about the work we do but also about each other. We are the makers problem solvers and future world builders who are creating stronger more sustainable communities. We dontjust talk about progress and innovation here we make it happen with our customers where we work and live. Together we are building a better world so we can all enjoy living in it.
Role Summary
Caterpillar Inc. is seeking aDirector Software Engineering Data Analytics and AIto lead strategic engineering initiatives across digital platforms which include enterprise & telematics data ecosystems advanced analytics and AIdriven products that support Caterpillars connected equipment customer experience and operational excellence goals with a strong emphasis on translating data and analytics into scalable decision enabling capabilities for the business.
Based in India this role reports to the in-region (India & China) leader for the Cat Digital division and oversees teams responsible for building and scaling cloudnative applications data platforms and production AI/ML (including GenAI) capabilities spanning data pipelines quality lineage bias controls and the full model lifecycle from development and deployment through monitoring retraining and retirement as well as analytics solutions such as curated datasets metrics layers dashboards and insight products that enable consistent trusted business decisionmaking.
Job Summary
This role will lead and scale product engineering teams in India focused on data platforms data engineering data solutioning Snowflake-based data lake architectures analytics AI and GenAI initiatives for Cat leader will partner closely with global counterparts to deliver high-impact digital products and capabilities that power Caterpillars digital ecosystem telematics IoT analytics GenAI and AI experiences for our Customers and Dealers. The role requires strong technical depth strategic thinking people leadership and a proven ability to operate in a global matrixed environment-building digital solutions delivery accountability for the following three critical areas in India.
- Cat Digital Platform Data Solutioning and Data engineering as well as Data Lake solutions
- Data Analytics products engineering supporting Aftermarket Leads and Insights products and
- Gen AI and AI specifics solutions
Key Responsibilities
Leadership of India Engineering Organization - Build scale and lead high-performing engineering teams in India across Data Platform Data Engineering Data Solutioning Analytics and AI/GenAI. Foster a culture of innovation ownership collaboration and engineering excellence.
Attract grow and retain top-tier engineering talent building strong succession pipelines. Provide hands-on technical leadership architectural oversight and mentorship.
Global Collaboration & Delivery - Partner with global Product Architecture Security and Engineering leaders to deliver digital products aligned with Cat Digitals priorities. Operate across time zones ensuring seamless integration and delivery with U.S. and global teams. Drive clarity alignment and communication across global initiatives and roadmaps.
Product Engineering & Delivery Excellence - Accountable delivery of data-centric digital products platforms APIs and ML/GenAI solutions. Ensure robust software engineering practicesCI/CD DevOps automated testing observability and secure coding. Drive adoption of platform operating models reusable components and engineering standards across teams.
Data Solutioning Data Engineering and Data Lake - Snowflake - Architect and evolve scalable data platforms supporting telematics IoT asset health services and analytics use cases. Lead engineering for Snowflake workloadsdata lake zones optimization ingestion frameworks (Snowpipe) governance and cost management. Implement modern data architectures including Lakehouse streaming data and domain-oriented data products. Oversee development of enterprise-grade data pipelines across batch and streaming using Spark Kafka Airflow and cloud-native DataOps best practices including data quality automation versioned pipelines and pipeline data products are reliable secure well-modeled and meet business SLAs.
Analytics Insights & Digital Enablement - Enable scalable analytics capabilities supporting Caterpillars digital services and internal business operations. Drive adoption of governed self-service analytics and semantic models for global teams. Partner with BI and analytics teams to deliver high-value KPIs dashboards and insights.
AI/ML & GenAI - Lead development of ML/AI pipelinesincluding model training inference feature stores monitoring and lifecycle governance. Drive GenAI innovation across Cat Digital products:
- RAG-based solutions
- Vector databases
- Agentic workflows
- LLM integration for customer and dealer-facing products
- Champion Responsible AI practices governance and risk frameworks.
Operational Excellence & Compliance - Ensure platform reliability scalability and security in alignment with Caterpillars global policies. Drive cost optimization across cloud and Snowflake workloads. Implement robust data governance security controls regulatory compliance (GDPR CCPA) and data stewardship.
Leadership & Strategy
- Provide clear inspiring leadership and strategic direction for engineering teams delivering Data Analytics and AI solutions at enterprise scale shaping how AI-driven capabilities are built and adopted.
- Translate enterprise vision and product strategy into clear engineering priorities roadmaps and measurable outcomes balancing long-term platform thinking with near-term business impact.
- Lead teams confidently through change complexity and transformation aligning stakeholders and teams while maintaining a relentless focus on quality reliability and customer value.
- Act as a thought partner to senior leaders on how AI and data engineering can unlock new business value and operational efficiencies.
Engineering Excellence
- Drive a culture of engineering excellence accountability and predictable execution across multiple globally distributed teams.
- Continuously raise the bar on delivery quality reliability and operational maturity ensuring teams are equipped to scale responsibly as AI and data adoption grows.
- Promote disciplined execution while encouraging innovation and continuous improvement.
People & Culture
- Build mentor and inspire a strong cadre of engineering leaders serving as a developer of talent and future leaders within the organization.
- Create and sustain a culture grounded in ownership trust inclusion and continuous learning where teams are empowered to take initiative and deliver outcomes.
- Lead by example with integrity transparency and professionalism earning trust across teams and stakeholders.
Collaboration & Influence
- Partner closely with Product Architecture Data Science and Business leaders across regions to drive alignment and shared ownership of outcomes.
- Communicate with clarity and confidence at the executive level articulating priorities risks trade-offs and progress in complex environments.
- Represent the India engineering organization with strong executive presence influencing strategy and decisions in global forums.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelors degree in computer science Engineering or a related field or equivalent practical experience with 15 years of software engineering experience and significant leadership across platform data analytics and AI systems.
- Proven experience leading multiple engineering teams delivering enterprisescale digital platforms within large global or multiregional organizations.
- Strong foundation in cloudnative architectures data engineering and modern software design with experience operating and scaling complex systems.
- Experience in industrial manufacturing automotive IoT or connectedequipment environments including exposure to telemetry edge computing digital twins or predictive maintenance solutions.
- Demonstrated experience leading AI ML or GenAI engineering capabilities at enterprise scale including close partnership with Data Science Product and Architecture teams.
- Demonstrated leadership in modern engineering operating models including Agile transformation and productcentric ways of working with exposure to largescale data and AI ecosystems.
- Proven successleading large-scale engineering teams in India with global delivery responsibilities.
- Deep technical expertise in:
- Cloud-based data platforms (AWS/Azure/GCP)
- Snowflake (warehouse data lake) Spark Kafka
- Orchestration tools (Airflow Dagster)
- Data modeling data lake/lakehouse architectures
- Python SQL and distributed systems
- Strong experience building digital productsin a global environment.
- Experience operationalizing AI/ML and GenAI systems atscale.
- Strong communication cross-cultural collaboration and executive stakeholder management.
Leadership Expectations
The ideal candidate will be a seasoned engineering leader with the ability to lead large globally distributed organizations while balancing strategic vision with hands-on accountability. The leader is comfortable operating on a scale navigating complexity and driving innovation alongside operational excellence and brings global experience and executive presence with the ability to partner effectively with senior leaders across regions.
Strategic & Engineering Leadership
- Demonstrates strong engineering judgment across complex and interdependent technology domains with the ability to integrate multiple horizontal capabilities into cohesive outcome-driven strategies.
- Connects technology strategy to enterprise goals ensuring engineering decisions are aligned with business priorities and long-term value creation. Acts as a trusted thought partner to senior leaders on transformation modernization and execution at scale.
- Recognized as a strong developer of leaders and talent building sustainable leadership pipelines and high-performing teams.
Execution & Change Leadership
- Leads organizations through change ambiguity and transformation maintaining clarity focus and delivery discipline.
- Earnscredibility through consistent execution sound decision-making and a strong sense of ownership for outcomes.
- Operates effectively under uncertainty adapting quickly while keeping teams aligned and progressing.
Stakeholder Influence & Communication
- Builds strong trust-based relationships with stakeholders across the organization through emotional intelligence and clear persuasive communication.
- Communicates complex ideas with clarity articulating priorities risks trade-offs and recommendations effectively.
- Creates a strong sense of purpose and shared ownership inspiring followership and alignment beyond direct authority.
Decision-Making & Judgment
- Makes thoughtful data-informed decisions by evaluating alternatives engaging stakeholders and anticipating second-order impacts.
- Coaches and develops others in structured decision-making and problem-solving approaches.
Posting Dates:
May 15 2026 - June 5 2026Caterpillar is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants of any age are encouraged to apply
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Required Experience:
Director
About Company
Caterpillar is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial turbines and diesel-electric locomotives.