Engineering Director, Windows at DuckDuckGo

Who we are

DuckDuckGo is the online protection company and a remote-first team on a mission to raise the standard of trust online. We build privacy-first products including our desktop browser for Mac and Windows, mobile apps, and search services. We are profitable, growing, and committed to inclusive, high-trust engineering culture.

Your team and role

As Engineering Director, Windows you will lead the Windows Engineering functional team that builds and maintains our flagship desktop browser on a .NET/WPF architecture. You will coach and mentor engineers, shape career paths, optimize processes, and drive experiments that improve product quality, stability, and user experience.

Key responsibilities

• Provide strategic and technical leadership for the Windows engineering team, owning domains such as Duck.ai, Extensions, Stability, and Performance.
• Coach and mentor senior and principal engineers, foster a high-performing engineering culture, and support career development.
• Optimize development processes to increase velocity while maintaining rigorous quality standards.
• Translate product vision into executable roadmaps and collaborate cross-functionally with product, design, and data teams.
• Drive and oversee large experiments and platform initiatives that improve user privacy, performance, and reliability.
• Represent the team in architectural discussions and ensure technical decisions align with long-term platform goals.

What we look for

• 10+ years leading technical teams building large, complex consumer-facing products, preferably desktop software.
• 4+ years in senior leadership roles such as Director or VP, with hands-on people management and coaching experience.
• Deep technical expertise in .NET Core and WPF, or closely related desktop frameworks.
• Proven ability to lead high-impact projects from proposal through post mortem, and to make data-driven decisions.
• Experience scaling teams and systems through periods of rapid growth.

Nice to have

• Experience with privacy-oriented features, browser integrations, or ad blocking experiments.
• Background shipping AI-enabled features in consumer products.
• Experience with desktop performance and stability engineering.

Compensation

Compensation Range: $243,800 USD annually. Offers also include equity compensation and benefits. Compensation is consistent across professional levels regardless of location.

What we offer

• Competitive salary and stock options.
• Support for home office setup and co-working allowances.
• Paid parental leave, flexible time off, and wellbeing support.
• Opportunities to travel twice yearly for all-hands and team retreats.

Work model and expectations

This is a remote role with no required office location, but periodic in-person participation is expected for all-hands and team retreats. You will attend video meetings as needed and travel approximately twice per year.

How to apply

Apply via the DuckDuckGo careers page and include examples of leadership experience, large-scale projects you led, and outcomes you drove. Applications that demonstrate product impact and technical leadership will be prioritized.