Lead Engineer, Service Center Technology

Join Guardian Life as a Lead Engineer, Service Center Technology in Holmdel, United States, and lead the charge in transforming customer service through cutting-edge technology. At Guardian Life's Digital & Technology organization, you'll be the hands-on technical leader for innovative products and platforms focused on customer engagement solutions like IVR systems, virtual assistants, Genesys, Amelia, CRM, and Oracle Service Cloud. With a competitive salary range of $118,980 - $195,465, this role offers unparalleled opportunities for engineering leaders passionate about AI, microservices, cloud-native architectures, and agile delivery in the insurance industry.

Why Join Guardian Life?

Guardian Life, a leader in insurance and financial services, is committed to inspiring well-being for millions of customers. As a Lead Engineer, you'll thrive in a collaborative environment that values engineering excellence, innovation, and work-life balance. Work three days a week from our state-of-the-art offices in Holmdel, NJ, Bethlehem, PA, or New York, NY, with flexibility to achieve your goals. Surrounded by diverse colleagues with high ethical standards, you'll contribute to technical roadmaps that drive business outcomes, modernize customer service technology, and foster a culture of continuous improvement. Explore career growth through skill-building, leadership development, and philanthropic initiatives at one of America's most trusted companies.

Role Description

As the Lead Engineer for Service Center Technology, you'll guide agile squads in building secure, scalable, high-performing solutions aligned with Guardian's architectural standards. Collaborating with Product D&T Leaders, Product Managers, COEs, Data, AI, Architecture, and QA teams, you'll translate business needs into technical execution. Specializing in customer service platforms, you'll optimize IVR, virtual assistants, and engagement tools using AI, APIs, microservices, and distributed systems. This leadership role demands hands-on coding, mentoring, and driving SDLC practices, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud-native deployments in AWS, Azure, or GCP environments.

Detailed Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and technical delivery for one or more agile squads in customer service technology.
• Define and enforce coding standards, best practices, application support, and test automation strategies to ensure scalability and security.
• Manage team-level dependencies in partnership with the Product Owner, optimizing workflows for peak performance.
• Continuously identify opportunities to optimize team processes and engineering practices.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Product, COEs, Data, AI, Architecture, and QA teams for technical alignment.
• Conduct rigorous design and code reviews to uphold quality, scalability, supportability, and security standards.
• Mentor engineers, fostering skill development, technical depth, and professional growth across the team.
• Troubleshoot complex issues in customer service platforms and implement sustainable, long-term solutions.
• Drive adoption of SDLC practices, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud-native solutions like AWS or Azure.
• Contribute to technical roadmaps, influencing architecture decisions and modernization initiatives for IVR, virtual assistants, and CRM systems.
• Write, deploy, and maintain code or configurations to directly support product teams.

Required Skills

Guardian Life seeks a proven leader with expertise in customer service technology. Key skills include:

• Genesys platform development and leadership
• Amelia virtual assistant integration
• CRM and Oracle Service Cloud proficiency
• AI, machine learning, and data engineering
• APIs, microservices, and distributed systems architecture
• Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Agile methodologies and CI/CD pipelines
• Test automation and code review processes

Education & Experience

• 9–12 years of software engineering experience, with 3+ years in technical leadership roles.
• Significant hands-on experience developing and leading teams in customer service technology, including IVR and virtual agents.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers, improve team performance, and collaborate in cross-functional agile environments.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field preferred.

Compensation Overview

The base salary range for this Lead Engineer, Service Center Technology position in Holmdel, United States, is $118,980.00 - $195,465.00 annually. Actual pay is determined by education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities. Eligible for annual incentives, sales bonuses, or other compensation.

Benefits

Guardian Life offers comprehensive benefits to support your well-being:

• Flexible work arrangements with hybrid office options in Holmdel, NJ; Bethlehem, PA; or New York, NY.
• Contemporary health, dental, and vision insurance.
• 401(k) with company match and retirement planning.
• Paid time off, parental leave, and wellness programs.
• Professional development, tuition reimbursement, and leadership training.
• Philanthropic opportunities and employee resource groups.
• Inclusive culture promoting diversity and equal opportunity.

Equal Employment Opportunity: Guardian is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity. Reasonable accommodations provided for disabilities, pregnancy, and related conditions. Learn more at www.guardianlife.com/careers/corporate/benefits.