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Software Engineering Manager Jobs in Ohio (NOW HIRING)

You'll manage a team of software engineers, collaborate directly with product management on roadmap execution, and operate as a peer to architecture and platform peers across Exostar's R&D ...

Lead, Software Engineering Job Code: 37206 Job Location: Mason OH Job Schedule: 9/80: Employees ... Basic understanding of Earned Value Management (EVM). #LI-KM1

Director of Software Engineering

Cleveland, OH · On-site +1

$245K/yr

Lead multiple software engineering teams, maintaining high standards of quality, reliability, and ... Coach Engineering Managers and Team Leads to strengthen leadership capability across distributed ...

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Software Engineering Manager information

See Ohio salary details

$94.6K

$161K

$190.6K

How much do software engineering manager jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 18, 2026, the average yearly pay for software engineering manager in Ohio is $161,030.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $164,500.00 and $164,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is L1, L2, L3, and L4 developer?

In software engineering, L1, L2, L3, and L4 typically refer to different levels of developer seniority or experience, with L1 being entry-level and L4 representing senior or lead roles. These levels often indicate increasing technical skills, responsibility, and leadership expectations within a company’s engineering hierarchy.

How much do software engineer managers make?

Software engineering managers typically earn a median annual salary ranging from $120,000 to $180,000, depending on experience, location, and company size. They often oversee teams, coordinate projects, and require strong technical and leadership skills, with some roles offering additional bonuses or stock options.

What are some common challenges faced by Software Engineering Managers when leading diverse development teams?

Software Engineering Managers often encounter challenges such as balancing technical leadership with people management, aligning team members with different backgrounds and skill sets, and ensuring effective communication across remote or cross-functional teams. Navigating these challenges involves fostering an inclusive environment, setting clear expectations, and adapting management styles to individual team members’ needs. Successful managers also prioritize regular check-ins and feedback to keep projects on track and support professional growth within the team.

What Does a Software Engineering Manager Do?

A software engineering manager oversees a team of people who are working on the development of new computer software or the enhancement of existing computer programs. Because this is a management job, your duties may include coordinating and planning with other departments within the company and with company executives. In addition to management skills, you need a firm understanding of the technical aspects of software engineering. Another aspect of this career involves understanding the market and competitor’s products so that your software can compete and meet market demands.

What is the difference between Software Engineering Manager vs Software Developer?

AspectSoftware Engineering ManagerSoftware Developer
CredentialsBachelor's or Master's in CS or related field, often with leadership experienceBachelor's or higher in CS or related field
Work EnvironmentLeads teams, manages projects, collaborates with stakeholdersFocuses on coding, debugging, and implementing features
Employer & Industry UsageUsed across tech companies, startups, and large enterprisesCommon in all software development settings
Search & Comparison IntentUnderstanding managerial roles, leadership responsibilitiesFocus on technical skills, coding tasks

The main difference between a Software Engineering Manager and a Software Developer lies in their roles and responsibilities. Managers oversee teams, coordinate projects, and handle strategic planning, while developers focus on coding and technical implementation. Both roles are essential in the software development lifecycle, but they serve different functions within an organization.

What does a Software Engineering Manager do?

A Software Engineering Manager oversees a team of software engineers, guiding the development of software projects from planning to implementation. They are responsible for managing the team's workflow, ensuring high-quality code, and meeting project deadlines. In addition to technical leadership, they also handle hiring, mentoring, and performance reviews. Their role bridges the gap between technical execution and business objectives, ensuring that software solutions align with strategic goals.

What does a software engineer manager do?

A software engineering manager oversees software development teams, coordinates project planning, sets technical goals, and ensures timely delivery of software products. They also handle team management, performance evaluations, and collaborate with stakeholders to align technical efforts with business objectives.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Software Engineering Manager, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Software Engineering Manager, you need a solid background in software development, team leadership, and project management, often backed by a degree in computer science or a related field. Familiarity with development tools, agile methodologies, version control systems, and, in some cases, certifications like PMP or Scrum Master are valuable. Exceptional communication, problem-solving, and mentoring skills distinguish top performers in this role. These competencies are crucial for successfully guiding technical teams, delivering projects efficiently, and fostering a collaborative and innovative engineering culture.

What engineer makes $500,000 a year?

Senior software engineering managers and highly experienced software engineers at large tech companies can earn $500,000 or more annually, often including base salary, bonuses, and stock options. These roles typically require extensive experience, leadership skills, and expertise in areas like cloud computing, machine learning, or system architecture.
What are the most commonly searched types of Software Engineering jobs in Ohio? The most popular types of Software Engineering jobs in Ohio are:
What are popular job titles related to Software Engineering Manager jobs in Ohio? For Software Engineering Manager jobs in Ohio, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Software Engineering Manager jobs in Ohio look for? The top searched job categories for Software Engineering Manager jobs in Ohio are:
What cities in Ohio are hiring for Software Engineering Manager jobs? Cities in Ohio with the most Software Engineering Manager job openings:
Infographic showing various Software Engineering Manager job openings in Ohio as of June 2026, with employment types broken down into 93% Full Time, 5% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 92% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 6% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $161,030 per year, or $77.4 per hour.
Manager, Software Engineering

Manager, Software Engineering

Exostar

Cincinnati, OH • On-site

Full-time

Posted 8 days ago


Job description

Job Overview:
We're looking for an engineering leader who stays close to the code, holds a high technical bar, and can translate product priorities into shipped software without losing momentum. You'll manage a team of software engineers, collaborate directly with product management on roadmap execution, and operate as a peer to architecture and platform peers across Exostar's R&D organization.
You will use AI coding tools - Claude Code, GitHub Copilot - yourself, daily. You will model that behavior for your team. AI-native development is not optional at Exostar; it's how we build.
This role reports to the Director, R&D Engineering and operates in Exostar's FedRAMP Moderate / CMMC Level 2 environment serving defense primes including Boeing and BAE Systems.
What You'll Own
Engineering Delivery
  • Lead a team of software engineers building production features across Exostar's identity, credentialing, and supply chain security platform.
  • Own the technical quality of your team's output - architecture decisions, PR reviews, code quality, and production reliability.
  • Drive sprint execution: planning, backlog refinement, dependency management, and delivery against committed milestones.
  • Identify and resolve blockers before they become delays - escalate when needed but own the outcome.
  • Establish and maintain engineering metrics: deployment frequency, change failure rate, cycle time, defect escape rate.

AI-Native Engineering Leadership
  • Use Claude Code and GitHub Copilot daily in your own workflow - not as optional productivity tools, as standard practice.
  • Model AI-native development for your team: code generation, agentic workflows, AI-assisted PR review, and automated testing.
  • Drive adoption across your team: coach skeptics, celebrate early adopters, measure impact, and share learnings org-wide.
  • Stay current on the AI tooling landscape - surface new tools and workflows to the Director when they're worth evaluating.

Product & Roadmap Collaboration
  • Partner with product managers to translate roadmap priorities into engineering scope - push back on ambiguity, not on accountability.
  • Participate in quarterly planning: capacity estimation, sequencing, and dependency identification across teams.
  • Maintain clear line of sight from customer commitments to sprint execution for your team.
  • Surface engineering constraints to product early - don't absorb scope silently, negotiate it explicitly.

People Leadership
  • Build and sustain a strong engineering team by hiring well, developing talent, addressing performance gaps, and making tough decisions when required.
  • Lead consistent 1:1 conversation that prioritize coaching, development, and long-term impact.
  • Build a team culture of end-to-end ownership: engineers who ship, monitor, and stand behind their systems in production.
  • Partner with the Director on career development frameworks and internal promotion pipelines.

Responsibilities-Your day if you join us:
Required:
  • 7+ years of software engineering experience, with 3+ years in an engineering leadership capacity managing a team.
  • Hands-on daily user of AI coding tools - Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, or equivalent. You use these yourself, not just advocate for them.
  • Comfortable in code: you conduct meaningful PR reviews, write production code when it unblocks the team, and can challenge architecture decisions with technical depth.
  • Cloud-native engineering experience on Azure or AWS - microservices, containerization, CI/CD, IaC.
  • Strong written and verbal communication - you can write a crisp engineering spec and hold your own in a cross-functional planning session.
  • U.S. Person. We are not able to consider candidates requiring sponsorship.

Location: Hybrid- Cincinnati, OH (3x/week)
Preferred Qualifications:
You are exactly who we are looking for if you:
  • Experience in a FedRAMP, CMMC, HIPAA, or equivalent regulated environment - understanding of how compliance requirements land in the SDLC.
  • Azure depth: Entra ID, managed identities, Azure DevOps, Azure Gov familiarity.
  • Exostar's primary stack: C#/.NET, Angular, Python, TypeScript, Kubernetes, Terraform.
  • IAM, PKI, credentialing, or federated identity domain experience.
  • Experience building or operating agentic AI workflows: MCP, multi-tool pipelines, AI-assisted code review or testing.
  • Track record of driving AI tooling adoption at team scale - teach-the-trainer models, adoption measurement, coaching skeptics.

Why Exostar
  • AI-native engineering org: Claude Code and Copilot are standard, not experiments. Leadership actively backs it and uses it.
  • Real compliance stakes: FedRAMP Moderate, CMMC 110/110, Azure Gov multi-tenant. Engineering decisions matter here.
  • PE-backed (Arlington Capital Partners) with the resources to invest and the urgency to execute.
  • Direct line to a Director who is hands-on, technically credible, and invested in your development.
  • Mission-driven: securing collaboration infrastructure for the Defense Industrial Base.

About Exostar
Exostar's cloud-based platforms create exclusive communities within the Aerospace and Defense, Life Sciences, and other highly regulated industries where members securely collaborate, share information, and operate compliantly. Within these communities we build trust. By analyzing community data, we provide insights and intelligence enabling organizations to make better, timelier decisions, mitigate risk, and operate more efficiently.
  • We believe in employee development: we promote internally and provide training and educational assistance.
  • We provide a fun, engaged workplace, with social and community-building events.
  • We offer comprehensive benefits and flexible time off plans.

Exostar is an Equal Opportunity Employment Employer. The company provides equal employment opportunities to all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, disability status or genetic information. Exostar is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all persons in all facets of employment including recruiting, hiring, compensation, promotion, training, benefits, transfers and working conditions.
Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.