Head of Engineering, Algorithmic Trading Group

Location: Chicago

Department: Algo Technology & Software Engineering

DRW is a diversified trading firm with over 3 decades of experience bringing sophisticated technology and exceptional people together to operate in markets around the world. We value autonomy and the ability to quickly pivot to capture opportunities, so we operate using our own capital and trading at our own risk.

Headquartered in Chicago with offices throughout the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia, we trade a variety of asset classes including Fixed Income, ETFs, Equities, FX, Commodities and Energy across all major global markets. We have also leveraged our expertise and technology to expand into three non-traditional strategies: real estate, venture capital, and crypto assets.

We operate with respect, curiosity, and open minds. The people who thrive here share our belief that it’s not just what we do that matters–it's how we do it. DRW is a place of high expectations, integrity, innovation, and willingness to challenge consensus.

About the Role:

DRW is seeking a Head of Engineering for the Algorithmic Trading Group to lead the software and hardware engineering effort. The position oversees a collaborative technical team of approximately 30 experienced software and hardware engineers with an average tenure of 10+ years.

Key Responsibilities:

• Set the technical direction across the full stack, spanning low-latency trading systems, custom hardware, risk management infrastructure, networking, and UX - driving top performance and scalability 
• Partner with trading and research teams to balance short-term revenue opportunities against long-term investments in engineering infrastructure
• Own production reliability by setting the standards for code quality, testing rigor, and release discipline, with a zero-tolerance approach to production outages
• Define the group's strategy for AI adoption, establishing best practices for efficient and safe use
• Lead, mentor, and grow the engineering team – attracting top talent and fostering a culture of technical excellence, knowledge sharing, and continuous improvement

Qualifications:

• 10+ years of progressive experience in software engineering, with at least 5 years in a senior engineering leadership role
• Demonstrated track record of building and operating highly reliable, latency-sensitive distributed systems
• Proven ability to recruit, develop, and lead high-performing engineering teams of 20+ engineers
• Strong familiarity with generative AI coding tools and autonomous agents, with a vision for how to deploy them effectively and safely across engineering workflows
• Track record of building and enforcing engineering practices that achieve near-zero defect rates in production 
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field

If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, please provide a resume and a brief statement on your approach to building high-performance, scalable, and extremely reliable systems.

The annual base salary range for this position is $300,000 to $500,000 depending on the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and relevant skill set. The position is also eligible for an annual discretionary bonus. In addition, DRW offers a comprehensive suite of employee benefits including group medical, pharmacy, dental and vision insurance, 401k (with discretionary employer match), short and long-term disability, life and AD&D insurance, health savings accounts, and flexible spending accounts.

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