Software Development Manager (Core Team)

At Poka, we’re transforming how frontline teams operate, learn, and solve problems.

Our connected worker platform is purpose-built for manufacturing, empowering frontline workers to share knowledge, collaborate in real-time, and drive continuous improvement. Think of it as the missing digital link, bringing the human interface into the stack of the Smart Factory, generating the right data and insights that drive entirely new scales of process improvements.

We’re proud to support global leaders like Nestlé, Bosch, Mars, and Danone in their digital transformation journeys and as part of the IFS family, our reach and impact continue to grow globally.

As Software Development Manager, you are responsible for the performance, health, and delivery predictability of one or more enabling and specialized engineering teams that own the foundations of the software platform. 

Rather than focusing on feature delivery for a single product area, your role is to create the conditions for product teams to move faster and safer. You ensure that core systems, platforms, and shared capabilities are reliable, scalable, and easy to adopt across the organization.

Occasionally, you’ll also join the development effort or contribute to technical decisions and architecture, partnering with the architects.

What you’ll be responsible for:

People leadership & team health

• Coach, mentor, and support developers through regular 1:1s, feedback, and performance reviews


• Support career development, growth plans, and promotion readiness


• Foster a healthy, inclusive, and high-performing team culture


• Recruit, onboard, and retain software development talent

Driving Innovation

• Actively surface and prioritizes innovation opportunities with high organizational leverage


• Model curiosity and continuous learning as a leader


• Create space for exploration and technical discovery via prototyping, proof of concept and spike efforts


• Ensures research outputs are documented and reusable

Cross-functional collaboration

• Partner closely with Product teams to align priorities, scope, and trade-offs


• Work with Architects to surface technical risks and constraints early


• Communicate delivery status, risks, and confidence clearly to leadership

AI enablement & adoption

• Drive the responsible and effective adoption of AI tools and practices within your team to improve productivity, quality, and developer experience


• Encourage experimentation with AI-assisted workflows (e.g. coding, testing, documentation, analysis), in partnership with Tech Leads


• Ensure AI usage aligns with company policies, security, and ethical guidelines


• Track and communicate AI adoption, usage, and impact across teams


• Share learnings, best practices, and successful experiments with other software development managers

What you bring to the table

• 5+ years of experience in software development


• 5+ years of experience in a leadership or people management role


• Ability to manage exploration and research projects


• Ability to work with/and manage high seniority developers


• Strong people management, coaching, and feedback skills


• Experience owning delivery outcomes for development teams


• Ability to manage ambiguity, risk, and competing priorities


• Strong collaboration and communication skills


• Systems-thinking mindset with a continuous improvement approach


• Experience with AI-assisted development tools or workflows is a strong asset


• Ability to evaluate the impact of AI on team productivity and ways of working

Want to learn more about our culture? Click HERE.

Please note: An understanding of English is essential at Poka, as it is the language used during company-wide meetings and many internal communications, ensuring effective collaboration and decision-making. In addition, as Poka operates in an international environment, English is the primary language for communicating with our clients and partners, enabling us to better serve them and represent Poka in a professional manner.