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Director Software Development Jobs in Michigan (NOW HIRING)

This role will be involved with the Software Development Life Cycle methodology and framework, directing software system validation and testing methods, as well as directing software programming ...

This role will be involved with the Software Development Life Cycle methodology and framework, directing software system validation and testing methods, as well as directing software programming ...

Software Development Engineer Who We Are Looking For: We are looking for a Mobile Software ... You thrive in a fast-paced startup where ambiguity is part of the job, your decisions have a direct ...

P-NMOB1 Senior Software Development Engineer

Troy, MI · On-site

$116K - $153K/yr

... direct impact on the company's direction and success and should not be hindered by ambiguity or ... software development experience. * 7+ years of programming experience with at least one modern ...

Collaborate with the development team to understand requirements, design specifications, and technical documentation for municipal ERP software modules. * Write clean, efficient, and maintainable ...

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Director Software Development information

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$91.1K

$155.1K

$210.1K

How much do director software development jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 7, 2026, the average yearly pay for director software development in Michigan is $155,125.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $133,400.00 and $180,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What does a Director of Software Development do?

A Director of Software Development leads and manages software engineering teams to deliver high-quality software products and solutions. They are responsible for setting technical direction, establishing development processes, and aligning projects with business goals. This role involves overseeing project timelines, mentoring engineering managers, collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders, and ensuring teams have the resources needed for success. The Director also plays a key role in recruiting talent, evaluating team performance, and implementing best practices to drive innovation and efficiency.

What is the difference between Director Software Development vs Software Engineering Manager?

AspectDirector Software DevelopmentSoftware Engineering Manager
ResponsibilitiesOversees multiple teams, strategic planning, and long-term goalsManages day-to-day team operations, project delivery, and technical guidance
FocusHigh-level leadership, cross-team coordination, and business alignmentTeam management, technical mentorship, and project execution
Required CredentialsBachelor’s or Master’s in CS or related, extensive experience, leadership skillsBachelor’s or Master’s in CS or related, strong technical background, leadership experience

The main difference is that the Director Software Development focuses on strategic leadership and overseeing multiple teams, while the Software Engineering Manager concentrates on managing individual teams and project execution. Both roles require technical expertise and leadership skills, but the director role involves broader organizational responsibilities.

How does a Director of Software Development typically balance technical leadership with people management responsibilities?

As a Director of Software Development, you are expected to provide both technical direction and effective team leadership. This often means splitting your time between high-level architecture decisions, code reviews, and staying updated on emerging technologies, while also focusing on coaching managers, developing talent, and fostering a collaborative team environment. Balancing these areas requires strong delegation skills, setting clear goals and expectations, and maintaining open communication channels. Many directors find success by empowering technical leads to own day-to-day technical decisions, allowing them to focus on strategic planning, cross-functional alignment, and organizational growth.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Director of Software Development, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Director of Software Development, you need extensive experience in software engineering, leadership, project management, and a relevant technical degree. Familiarity with development frameworks, cloud platforms, Agile methodologies, and certifications like PMP or Scrum Master are highly valuable. Strong communication, strategic thinking, and team-building skills help drive cross-functional alignment and motivate high-performing teams. These skills are essential for delivering successful software products, managing complex projects, and fostering innovation within the organization.
What are the most commonly searched types of Software Development jobs in Michigan? The most popular types of Software Development jobs in Michigan are:
What cities in Michigan are hiring for Director Software Development jobs? Cities in Michigan with the most Director Software Development job openings:
Infographic showing various Director Software Development job openings in Michigan as of May 2026, with employment types broken down into 2% As Needed, 69% Full Time, 27% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 92% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 5% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $155,125 per year, or $74.6 per hour.

Senior Director, Software Engineering

Clarivate Analytics

Ann Arbor, MI • Hybrid

$247K/yr

Full-time

Posted 11 days ago


Job description

As the Senior Director, Software Engineering, you are the main point of contact for business and content operations leadership working closely with business, product, and content operations managers across multiple business unit domains. You will be the go-to person and subject matter expert for individual products and specific technologies. Responsible for software delivery of multiple engineering teams typically consisting of 5+ engineers, you will drive the definition, architecture, agreement, and implementation of technology strategy.

About You - experience, education, skills, and accomplishments

  • Bachelor's degree in computer science or related field; or equivalent work experience
  • 10+ years of experience in technology leadership with a proven ability to lead cross-functional teams, drive transformation, and influence stakeholders
  • 10 + years of experience working as a software engineer developing commercial software
  • 10 + years of experience with common programming languages including Java and Python

It would be great if you also had...

  • Master's degree
  • 6+ years of experience working with any of one the RDBMS (MySQL/SQLServer/Oracle/PostgreSQL)
  • 6 + years of experience working with XML, HTML, XSLT, Unicode, DTDs, XML Schema, XQuery, XPath, PDF, TIFF and similar formats
  • 5 + years in leading / managing software engineering teams
  • 3 + years of experience working in Agile Development (Scrum)
  • 3 + years of experience in a SaaS delivery model
  • Experience with current JavaScript frameworks, particularly Angular)
  • Experience in ETL Development tool (Talend or Pentaho)
  • Experience with Big Data technologies (Databricks, Spark, EMR, Hive)
  • Experience building Microservices, SOAP, REST Services (Java/NodeJS)
  • Working experience in AWS Environment
  • Working knowledge of Messaging (AMQ, JMS)
  • Be able to implement and guide teams through test-based development
  • Understanding of ML, NLP, including entity extraction, data mining, sentiment analysis, content summarization and other data science techniques desirable

What will you be doing in this role?

  • Lead technical teams and focal point for development issues across a development-wide program
  • Oversee the designs and may develop prototype/actual code
  • Responsible for reviewing requirements, and the design, implementation, and unit testing for their teams
  • Responsible for communicating accurately the status of ongoing work to stakeholders. Will present status updates to project management and senior leaders
  • Attend project planning sessions with Product Owners, Content Owners and Business Analysts to analyze requirements
  • Ensure teams develop modules using disciplined processes, adhering to industry standards and best practice guidelines
  • Ensure teams carry out unit and other testing, ensuring application meets needs of client and business
  • Provide assistance in researching and adopting new and emerging technologies, evaluating new tools, technologies and platforms to be included in projects
  • Identify ways to improve the operation of own area and to achieve efficiencies and results and assists in process improvement
  • Use AI to improve the software development process. For example UX, Coding and QA areas.
  • Lead and manage teams including supporting career development of teams' members (objective setting, performance management, talent management, etc.)

About the Team

You will be part of the Academic and Government segment supporting ingestion, enrichment, and delivery of content for products such as ProQuest, Web of Science and Incites. We build UI workbenches for Content Operations enrichment as well as work with AI and Data Science team on automation of content processes. Our newest projects use Java Spring boot, Angular, and Postgres DB. We also have teams that support large scale data delivery using Databricks Scala, Hive and AWS EMR. Our primary stakeholders are the application product managers and the content operations managers. We also collaborate with Web of Science Editorial team and Global Content Acquisition as well as other A&G product technology teams. The projects range from small enhancements to multi team feature deliveries. You will be managing 2-4 teams and their size ranges from 4 to 10 engineers. The teams consist of our journal citation reference management team, large scale big data delivery team and our legacy content management system that supports all three business segments.

Hours of Work

  • This is a full-time position, primarily working core business hours in your time zone, with flexibility to adjust to various global time zones as needed.
  • Hybrid position working in the office 2-3 days a week.
  • Must live in commutable distance to our Philly, Alexandria or Ann Arbor offices

At Clarivate, we are committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all qualified persons with respect to hiring, compensation, promotion, training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment. We comply with applicable laws and regulations governing non-discrimination in all locations.