Head IT Engineering Small Business IT

Head - IT Engineering, Small Business IT

Location: Hartford India (Hyderabad)

Position Summary

The Head of IT Engineering, Small Business IT, is responsible for leading the technology engineering organization supporting Small Business Insurance platforms and products. This leader will drive technology strategy, engineering excellence, modernization, product delivery, platform stability, and innovation while partnering closely with U.S.-based business and technology stakeholders.

The role leads high-performing engineering teams across application development, cloud engineering, DevSecOps, architecture implementation, quality engineering, and production support. The incumbent will play a critical role in accelerating digital transformation, enhancing customer and agent experiences, and delivering scalable, secure, and resilient technology solutions aligned with Hartford's business objectives.

Key Responsibilities

Technology & Engineering Leadership

• Lead the India-based Small Business IT engineering organization.
• Define and execute engineering strategy aligned to enterprise technology and business goals.
• Drive modernization initiatives across applications, platforms, APIs, cloud infrastructure, and engineering practices.
• Establish engineering standards, architecture governance, and best practices.
• Champion secure, scalable, resilient, and high-performing solutions.

Product & Delivery Execution

• Partner with Product Managers, Business Leaders, Architecture, and Enterprise Technology teams to deliver strategic business capabilities.
• Ensure predictable delivery of technology programs and product roadmaps.
• Drive Agile and Product Operating Model maturity across engineering teams.
• Improve speed-to-market through automation, DevSecOps, CI/CD, and engineering productivity initiatives.
• Manage delivery risks, dependencies, and operational outcomes.

Engineering Excellence & Innovation

• Foster a culture of innovation, continuous improvement, and technical excellence.
• Drive adoption of cloud-native technologies, AI-enabled engineering practices, automation, and observability solutions.
• Establish metrics and KPIs for engineering effectiveness, quality, reliability, and customer outcomes.
• Promote reuse, simplification, and technology debt reduction.

Talent Leadership

• Build and lead a high-performing engineering organization.
• Develop leadership bench strength and succession plans.
• Coach and mentor Engineering Managers, Architects, and Technical Leads.
• Drive employee engagement, inclusion, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Attract and retain top engineering talent within Hartford India.

Stakeholder Management

• Serve as a trusted technology partner to U.S. business and technology executives.
• Influence strategic decisions through data-driven insights and technology expertise.
• Communicate effectively with senior leadership regarding delivery, risks, investments, and transformation initiatives.
• Build strong cross-functional relationships across Business, Operations, Security, Infrastructure, Architecture, and Enterprise Services teams.

Risk, Security & Compliance

• Ensure adherence to enterprise security, compliance, risk management, and regulatory requirements.
• Drive operational excellence, production stability, and incident management practices.
• Strengthen application resiliency, disaster recovery, and business continuity capabilities.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or related field.
• 15+ years of progressive IT experience with at least 7+ years leading large engineering organizations.
• Proven experience leading global engineering teams in a complex enterprise environment.
• Strong expertise in Agile delivery, software engineering, cloud technologies, DevOps, API ecosystems, and enterprise applications.
• Experience managing multiple portfolios, programs, and engineering teams simultaneously.
• Strong stakeholder management and executive communication skills.
• Demonstrated success driving digital transformation and large-scale modernization initiatives.
• Experience building and developing high-performing engineering talent.

Preferred

• Experience in Property & Casualty (P&C) Insurance, Small Business Insurance, Financial Services, or other regulated industries.
• Experience with AWS, Azure, or hybrid cloud platforms.
• Knowledge of Guidewire, Digital Platforms, Data & Analytics, API-led architectures, and event-driven systems.
• Exposure to AI/ML-enabled engineering practices and automation frameworks.
• Master's degree in Technology, Engineering, Computer Science, or Business Administration.

Leadership Competencies

• Strategic Thinking
• Enterprise Leadership
• Customer Focus
• Talent Development
• Innovation Mindset
• Influencing & Collaboration
• Results Orientation
• Change Leadership
• Accountability & Ownership
• Continuous Improvement

Success Measures

• Delivery of business and technology outcomes.
• Engineering productivity and quality improvements.
• Application reliability, resiliency, and operational excellence.
• Talent retention, engagement, and leadership development.
• Cloud modernization and technology transformation progress.
• Stakeholder satisfaction and partnership effectiveness.