Engineering manager job description template

picked.ai/engineering-manager/jd-template

A engineering manager

JD that is not generic.

One short, opinionated template. 280 words, not 1,800. Below: a side-by-side teardown of the typical job description and what to cut, the template ready to copy, and a one-click button to post it via Picked.

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The teardown

Side by side. Cut everything in red.

A typical JD · 1,847 words

scroll-killing

Engineering manager (typical posting)

About us · cut

Founded in 2019, ACME Inc is a fast-growing, mission-driven, customer-obsessed scale-up empowering the modern hiring loop. We have been featured in TechCrunch, won several awards, and our culture has been recognised by Best Places to Work.

About the role · cut

You will be joining a passionate, collaborative team of self-starters in a dynamic, fast-paced environment. We are looking for a high-performing professional who is excited by ambiguity and ready to wear many hats.

Responsibilities · cut

- Collaborate with cross-functional partners to align stakeholders - Drive impact across the business - Champion excellence - Be a culture ambassador for the team - Wear many hats - Lots more bullets like this

Requirements · cut

- 5+ years of professional experience - Strong communication skills - Self-starter - Team player - Comfortable with ambiguity - Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Nice to haves · cut

- A laundry list of every tool anyone on the team has ever used - MBA / advanced degree - Previous experience at a high-growth startup

Benefits · cut most of this

- Competitive salary - Equity - Health, dental, vision - Unlimited PTO (which no-one takes) - Free snacks (in office) - Annual offsite - Pet-friendly office - Pinball machine

Picked template · 214 words

ships

Engineering manager, platform · London or remote

We are hiring an engineering manager for our platform team. You will manage seven engineers and partner with two product managers across our deploy and observability stack. The team is one of three platform pods. We expect you to write code occasionally and review designs often.

One paragraph, not six sections

Context. What the role owns. Team size. How you ship. Everything else is noise until the interview.

Skip the company overview

They found your JD. They can find your website. They will skim it. They will learn about you in the interview if they are still interested.

Bullets only where they earn their place

A list of "responsibilities" tells the candidate nothing they cannot guess.

Post the comp band

You will filter the wrong people anyway. Either pre-application or after offer. Pre is cheaper.

The template · plain text

Copy. Paste. Replace the bracketed bits.

Post with this · 30s

engineering-manager.md

214 words · 3 min read

# Engineering manager, [team] · [city] or remote

We are hiring an engineering manager for [our team]. You will manage [N] engineers and partner with [N] product managers across [the domain]. The team is one of [N] pods. [How you operate]. [What you write].

## You will be good here if

- You have grown a senior IC and you can tell the story without flattering yourself.
- You can run the planning meeting that kills your own favourite project.
- [The third trait you actually care about].

## What we use

[Languages, infra, planning cadence]. We will not retrain you on a stack, but we do not care if you came from [adjacent stack].

## Compensation

[Currency][low] to [high] base. [low] to [high] percent equity. We post the band because we mean it.

## How we hire

30-second post, screen + assessment via Picked, 20-min interview via Picked, one on-site half-day with the team plus a 45-minute manager panel. We aim to give a yes or no in 7 days.

## What is the rubric

Coach instinct, bar setting, operational triage, comms across the org, self-instrumentation. Not credentials.

That is the JD. Apply via [link] or just send a paragraph about the engineer whose growth you are proudest of.

[Your name], [your title]

Tone rules

Eight phrases to delete
from every JD you ever write.

"Rockstar / ninja / wizard"

Nobody respectable applies to this. Replace with: nothing.

"Self-starter"

Means: we have no plan and no manager. Replace with: name the actual autonomy.

"Comfortable with ambiguity"

Same thing again. Replace with: tell them the specific ambiguity they will face.

"Fast-paced environment"

Means: chaotic. Replace with: name the cadence, sprints, ship-day, on-call.

"Champion"

A verb that means nothing. Replace with: the actual outcome.