Senior Engineering Manager, Cloud Platform

San Mateo, CA - USA

Monthly Salary: Not Disclosed

Posted on: 30+ days ago

Vacancies: 1 Vacancy

Job Summary

About Upstart

At Upstart were united by a mission that matters: to radically reduce the cost and complexity of borrowing for all Americans. Every day we bring creativity experimentation and advanced AI to reshape access to credit helping millions move forward financially with clarity and confidence.

As the leading AI lending marketplace we partner with banks and credit unions to expand access to affordable credit through technology thats both radically intelligent and deeply human. Our platform runs over one million predictions per borrower using more than 1800 signals powering smarter fairer decisions for millions of customers. But the numbers only hint at the impact. Every idea every voice and every contribution moves us closer to a world where credit never stands between people and their financial progress.

Were proudly digital-first giving most Upstarters the flexibility to do their best work from wherever they thrive alongside teammates across 80 cities in the US and Canada. Digital-first doesnt mean distant. Were intentional about in-person connection through team onsites planning sessions and moments that spark creativity and trust. And whether you choose to work primarily from home or collaborate in-person from one of our offices in Columbus Austin the Bay Area or New York City (opening Summer 2026) youll have the support to work in the way that works best for you.

If youre energized by tackling meaningful problems excited to innovate with purpose and motivated by work that truly matters wed love to hear from you.

The Team

The Cloud Platform organization provides the foundational infrastructure that powers Upstarts engineering teams. Within this organization the Compute and Infrastructure teams enable scale reliability cost-efficiency and developer velocity across our cloud ecosystem.

The Compute team owns our Kubernetes-based compute platform ensuring it is performant resilient and easy to use. They focus on enabling scalable infrastructure patterns and self-service capabilities for product teams.
The Infrastructure team manages our cloud architecture and platform tooling maintaining Infrastructure-as-Code standards automating pipelines and designing secure observable and future-proof systems. Their charter spans network architecture (e.g. VPCs service mesh SaaS integrations) and reusable platform patterns (e.g. AWS CDK Backstage CI/CD).

Together these teams are building the next generation of Upstarts internal cloud platform secure by default scalable by design and built for developer experience.

The Role

This role leads both the Compute and Infrastructure teams within the Cloud Platform organization. Youll define and execute the technical and organizational strategy for Upstarts internal platform balancing scale simplicity and developer empowerment.

Youll also oversee our cloud cost efficiency program ensuring infrastructure investments are measurable and aligned with company priorities.

This is a high-impact leadership opportunity with broad visibility across engineering. Youll help shape core platform capabilities reduce complexity for product teams and invest in growing a strong inclusive team culture.

How Youll Make an Impact

Lead and scale two high-impact platform engineering teams. Compute and Infrastructure within the Cloud Platform organization.
Define and execute a cohesive strategy for Upstarts multi-cluster cross-region compute and infrastructure platforms that prioritizes simplicity performance security and scale.
Partner with engineering and product leaders to deeply understand developer needs and drive platform improvements that boost development velocity.
Shape platform abstractions that streamline compute scaling infrastructure provisioning and network management for engineering teams.
Champion automation observability and platform ownership across both teams.
Lead Upstarts cloud cost efficiency initiatives including workload optimization and governance practices.
Invest in your teams growth through mentorship clear expectations and opportunities for technical and leadership development.
Contribute to the evolution of our Cloud Platform vision by applying first-principles thinking to complex technical and organizational challenges.

Minimum Qualifications

5 years of engineering leadership experience including managing managers or overseeing multiple technical domains.
7 years of hands-on experience building and operating distributed systems or infrastructure in a cloud-native environment.
Proven ability to lead multiple technical domains (e.g. compute networking automation) under a unified platform strategy.
Strong technical judgment with the ability to define clear charters and structure teams for speed clarity and cross-functional alignment.
Demonstrated success in hiring mentoring and retaining top engineering talent while fostering an inclusive and high-performing culture.

Preferred Qualifications

Deep expertise in Kubernetes cloud networking service meshes (e.g. Istio or Linkerd) and Infrastructure-as-Code tools like CDK or Terraform.
Experience architecting AWS-native solutions including VPC design IAM and multi-account strategies.
History of delivering platform capabilities that measurably improved developer experience and operational efficiency.
Strong background in infrastructure automation observability and platform reliability best practices.
Experience building internal developer platforms libraries or CI/CD pipelines that abstract cloud complexity (e.g. via Backstage).
Experience managing cloud vendor spend cost attribution and optimization across a large organization.

#LI-REMOTE

#LI-MidSenior

At Upstart your base pay is one part of your total compensation package. The anticipated base salary for this position is expected to be within the below range. Your actual base pay will depend on your geographic locationwith our digital first philosophy Upstart uses compensation regions that vary depending on location. Individual pay is also determined by job-related skills experience and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

In addition Upstart provides employees with target bonuses equity compensation and generous benefits packages (including medical dental vision and 401k).

United States Remote - Anticipated Base Salary Range

$186100$257500 USD

What youll love

At Upstart our benefits are designed to support your health financial well-being family and personal growth. Heres what you can expect:

Competitive compensation including base pay bonus opportunities and annual equity grants that vest quarterly
Generous 401(k) plan with Upstart matching $2 for every $1 contributed up to $15000 per year
Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP) with discounted stock purchase options for eligible employees
Affordable medical dental and vision coverage with multiple plan options - Upstart covers 90% to 100% of the cost depending on the plans you choose
Health Savings Account contributions from Upstart for eligible plans
Income protection benefits including company-paid Basic Life AD&D and Short- and Long-Term Disability coverage with options to purchase supplemental coverage
Paid time off sick and safe time and company holidays
Paid family and parental leave to support caregiving and major life moments
Family-centered benefits through Carrot and Cleo supporting fertility parenthood and caregiving
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offering mental health support and life-centered resources
Financial wellness resources including access to financial planning tools and a financial concierge service
Annual wellness allowance to support your physical and emotional well-being and personal development based on what matters most to you
Annual productivity allowance to invest in relevant tools and resources you need to do your best work no matter where you work from
Connection and community through team events and onsites all-company updates and employee resource groups (ERGs)
Onsite perks including catered lunches and fully stocked micro-kitchens when working from one of our four offices located in the Bay Area Austin Columbus and New York City (opening Summer 2026!).

Upstart is a proud Equal Opportunity Employer. Just as we are dedicated to improving access to affordable credit for all we are committed to inclusive and fair hiring practices.

If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application interviewing completing any pre-employment testing or otherwise participating in the employee selection process please email

Experience:

Manager

About UpstartAt Upstart were united by a mission that matters: to radically reduce the cost and complexity of borrowing for all Americans. Every day we bring creativity experimentation and advanced AI to reshape access to credit helping millions move forward financially with clarity and confidence.A...