Director of Software Engineering

Location: Chicago, IL (Hybrid – 4 days in office) Job Responsibilities Set and execute the engineering strategy and roadmap for Morningstar Plan Advantage and Fiduciary Services technology, ensuring alignment with product and business goals. Lead, mentor, and grow a global engineering organization spanning onshore and offshore teams, focusing on hiring, retention, and the development of senior technical talent. Partner with the Director of Product Management to define and prioritize product and technology roadmaps, balancing near‑term delivery with long‑term platform investment. Drive AI adoption across product capabilities and internal engineering workflows by championing AI‑assisted development practices and delivering AI‑powered product features to market. Own technical architecture decisions for the platform, ensuring systems are scalable, secure, reliable, and built on modern cloud‑first principles. Establish and maintain engineering standards, development practices, and quality benchmarks across the organization. Champion a security‑first engineering culture, embedding secure development practices, code quality standards, and proactive vulnerability management throughout the development lifecycle. Oversee the full development lifecycle—from design and architecture through deployment, monitoring, and operational excellence. Collaborate cross‑functionally with design, research, methodology, client service, sales, and compliance teams to deliver integrated solutions. Manage engineering capacity, budgets, and vendor relationships, making trade‑off decisions that optimize for both velocity and sustainability. Represent engineering in client‑facing contexts as needed, including product demonstrations, technical due diligence, and strategic conversations with prospects and partners. Qualifications 10+ years of progressive experience in technology/software engineering, with at least 4 years in engineering leadership roles managing teams and managers. Demonstrated ability to build and operate scalable, enterprise‑grade software systems, ideally in a cloud‑first environment (AWS preferred). Deep technical foundation: fluency in modern backend technologies such as Java or Spring Boot, RESTful API design, distributed systems, and relational databases. Genuine curiosity about and experience with Artificial Intelligence, whether through shipping AI‑powered product features or adopting AI development tools. Passion for developing people – having built teams, grown engineers into leaders, and created cultures of ownership and continuous improvement. Strong understanding of Agile development practices with the judgment to adapt processes to context rather than rigidly following them. Excellent communication skills, capable of translating between technical depth and business strategy, and comfortable presenting to executives, clients, and engineering teams. Collaborative, low‑ego leadership style that earns trust across product, design, and engineering. Previous experience in financial services, retirement, or regulated industries is a strong plus but not required. Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics, or a related field or equivalent experience. Compensation and Benefits Competitive total cash compensation ranging from \$195,600 to \$299,916 (inclusive of base salary and target incentive). Financial health: 100% 401(k) match up to 6% of salary, stock ownership, and company‑provided life insurance. Physical health: comprehensive medical/dental/vision benefits, including optional HSA contributions and wellness incentives. Emotional health: Trust‑Based Time Off, paid sabbatical program, paid family caregiving leave, paid parental leave, and adoption assistance. Leadership coaching and formal mentorship opportunities. Annual flex stipend of \$1,000 for personal education and well‑being expenses, tuition reimbursement, and charitable matching gifts. Paid volunteering days and volunteer program opportunities. Employee resource and affinity groups to foster community. EEO is the Law – Morningstar is strongly committed to creating and preserving equal opportunity for all employees and applicants. We make all employment decisions without regard to race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, genetic information, citizenship, gender identity and expression, parental status, or other legally protected characteristics. #J-18808-Ljbffr Morningstar Credit Ratings, LLC