Software Development Manager at Salt South Africa

• We’re looking for an experienced Software Development Manager to join a growing engineering function responsible for building and evolving customer‑facing SaaS products in the B2B sales and marketing space.
• This role combines hands-on technical leadership with people management. You’ll be accountable for the performance, development, and engagement of a group of software engineers, while also maintaining a strong influence over code quality, engineering standards, and delivery efficiency.
• You’ll be comfortable working within a modern technology stack (NodeJS/NestJS, Vue, Redis, SQL Server, Snowflake), able to dive into the code when needed, and confident setting direction for scalable, maintainable systems.
• This position suits someone with a strong engineering background who has progressed into leadership and enjoys enabling teams to do their best work.

Key Responsibilities
Performance Management

• Set, track, and evaluate performance metrics to ensure high standards of quality and productivity.
• Act as a guardian of engineering standards, ensuring systems are maintainable and optimised for long‑term performance.
• Provide clear, constructive feedback and support engineers in overcoming challenges.
• Continuously improve performance management processes to promote accountability and transparency.

People Management

• Line manage a group of software engineers, supporting personal development and performance.
• Lead, mentor, and coach team members, fostering a collaborative and inclusive environment.
• Conduct regular 1:1s and performance reviews focused on growth, skills development, and engagement.
• Identify development needs and help deliver or source appropriate training opportunities.

Recruitment and Retention

• Support hiring by identifying capability gaps, participating in interviews, and helping select high‑quality candidates.
• Drive retention initiatives that keep engineers motivated, engaged, and progressing in their careers.

Continuous Improvement

• Promote a culture of continuous improvement, encouraging teams to share ideas and refine ways of working.
• Identify and introduce best practices, tools, and processes that improve delivery, quality, and well‑being.
• Facilitate retrospectives and reflective sessions to drive learning and improvement.

Culture and Engagement

• Build a high‑trust, collaborative engineering culture with strong communication and teamwork.
• Lead by example, role‑modelling values and contributing to a healthy, positive working environment.

About You
You’ll bring:

• Significant experience in a SaaS environment delivering clean, efficient software using SOLID principles and established design patterns.
• A strong background as a hands‑on software engineer, with the ability and willingness to get into the code when required.
• Experience working with mature DevOps practices and modern CI/CD pipelines.
• A solid understanding of building and operating maintainable, secure, and scalable systems.
• Experience with automated testing and quality assurance.
• A proven track record of leading engineering teams working on complex or distributed systems.
• Strong problem‑solving ability and the aptitude to learn new tools and technologies quickly.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and collaboration skills.
• A degree in Computer Science or a related discipline from a recognised institution.