DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING
Remote -- Florida Based | Occasional Travel Required
ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY
A fast-growing, exclusive CNC machine tool distributorship with rights to a leading Swiss-type precision turning platform. Part of one of the largest machine tool distribution networks in North America, the company has grown market share by 50%+ in every territory it has entered and is currently expanding aggressively across the East Coast, Midwest, and now the West Coast. The Director of Engineering is a newly created leadership role designed to support that growth by building and scaling the technical infrastructure behind the sales operation. This is a remote-first role based in Florida with occasional travel to support field operations nationally.
THE ROLE
The Director of Engineering leads a distributed team of 9-10 Applications Engineers and Technical Account Managers across the United States. This is a player-coach position -- the right person is a leader who brings structure, consistency, and accountability to a growing technical team while remaining connected to the technical work happening in the field. As the company expands into new markets, the Director of Engineering is the person who ensures the technical side of the operation scales with the sales side. The role reports to the President of the company and has direct access to executive leadership.
RESPONSIBILITIES
• Lead, manage, and develop a team of 9-10 Applications Engineers and Technical Account Managers distributed across the U.S.
• Establish consistent technical processes, standards, and best practices across all field operations and customer-facing technical activity
• Oversee machine installation and commissioning processes to ensure quality and consistency across all markets
• Support Applications Engineers on complex customer applications, part processing challenges, and technical escalations
• Partner closely with the VP of Sales to align technical support resources with sales activity and new territory development
• Develop and maintain training programs and onboarding procedures for new Applications Engineers as the team grows
• Travel periodically to key markets including the Twin Cities MN, Southern California, and Palm Beach County FL to support field teams and customer engagements
• Monitor team performance, capacity, and customer satisfaction metrics; identify gaps and implement improvements
• Contribute to the evaluation and selection of new equipment configurations, automation solutions, and tooling offerings
• Serve as a technical escalation point and resource for the broader organization on Swiss CNC machine applications and integration
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
• Base salary: $150,000 -- $170,000
• Performance bonus component
• Remote work arrangement -- Florida based preferred
• Travel expenses covered
• Full health, dental, and vision coverage
• 401(k)
• PTO and paid holidays
IDEAL CANDIDATE
• 3+ years of engineering leadership experience in a manufacturing, machine tool, or precision machining environment -- managing a technical team is required, not just individual contributor engineering experience
• Exposure to Swiss CNC machines or sliding headstock turning centers -- does not need to be a Swiss CNC expert but must be able to hold a credible technical conversation with Applications Engineers and customers on Swiss CNC applications
• Experience leading distributed or remote technical teams is a strong plus -- this team is spread across multiple states and time zones
• Strong process orientation -- comfortable building repeatable systems, documentation, and training frameworks in a fast-growing environment
• Player-coach mentality -- this is not a purely administrative leadership role; the right person stays close to the technical work and earns the respect of the field team through their own competence
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills -- this role sits at the intersection of engineering, sales, and customer success and requires clear, confident communication with all three audiences
• Florida based strongly preferred -- remote structure requires discipline and self-direction; proximity to Palm Beach County is an advantage for in-person collaboration with the broader leadership team
• Willingness to travel periodically to Minnesota, Southern California, and Florida as needed to support field operations and customer engagements
WHY THIS ROLE
• Ground floor leadership opportunity network -- the company has grown 50%+ in every market it has entered and is now expanding to the West Coast and beyond
• Direct reporting line to the President with real influence over how the technical organization is built -- this is not a role that inherits a fixed structure; you are building it
• A company that moves fast and values decisive action -- if something needs to change, it changes; no bureaucratic runaround
• A technical team that is already performing well in the field and needs a leader to bring cohesion, consistency, and career development -- the raw talent is there
• Long-term career upside as the organization continues to scale -- this role will grow in scope as the company adds new markets and team members