Engineering manager
Panenco is a boutique software studio in Belgium. We build next-gen B2B SaaS products and enterprise AI solutions, always with an entrepreneurial spirit. We're a small team of the best and brightest, looking for 10x people who love to tackle challenging problems. We give you significant ownership and room to grow, expecting you to take charge and continuously evolve with the latest and greatest in our industry.
About the role
We're looking for an experienced engineering manager who, above all else, brings a relentless can-do mentality, an entrepreneurial mindset, and an AI-first approach to software delivery. At Panenco, we value proactive problem-solvers who embrace cutting-edge technology to multiply team velocity. In this role, you won't just oversee execution—you will champion modern, AI-augmented engineering workflows, empower high-performing teams, and help scale our studio.
With a solid technical foundation and proven leadership experience, you'll guide engineers in leveraging smart tooling, navigating complex architectures, and taking true ownership of end-to-end product delivery. We love leaders who thrive in fast-paced environments, roll up their sleeves, take initiative, and continuously push the boundaries of how software is built today.
Leadership & team empowerment
As an engineering manager, you'll be expected to:
Drive an ownership culture: Instill a pragmatic, "can-do" attitude across teams, encouraging engineers to take ownership and solve problems proactively.
Champion next-gen workflows: Lead by example in adopting intelligent coding assistants and modern automated practices to maximize developer productivity and focus.
Grow & coach engineers: Conduct regular 1:1s, support career progression, and foster a culture of high ambition, continuous learning, and psychological safety.
Bridge product & tech: Collaborate closely with product managers, client stakeholders, and tech leads to turn business strategy into clear, highly efficient execution roadmaps.
Drive delivery excellence: Unblock teams, streamline agile delivery processes, and maintain a high bar for software quality and execution speed.
Shape engineering culture: Lead hiring initiatives to bring in fellow self-starters, refine engineering standards, and redefine how teams operate with modern tech stacks.
Mindset & domain knowhow
While a strong technical and managerial background is essential, your attitude, adaptability, and drive are what will truly set you apart. We expect our engineering managers to remain technically grounded while leading with an entrepreneurial edge and an appetite for modern tools.
Key mindset & leadership traits:
Can-do mentality: You step up to meet challenges head-on, focus on solutions rather than constraints, and navigate ambiguity with ease.
Entrepreneurial drive: You treat products and projects like your own business, balancing technical elegance with business value, execution speed, and high ROI.
AI-first mindset: You naturally seek out intelligent automation, smarter workflows, and augmented development practices to accelerate team output without compromising quality.
Resourcefulness & action-orientation: You prioritize getting things done, removing blockers swiftly, and making confident decisions under pressure.
Core abilities & experience:
Engineering background: At least 6+ years of professional experience in software engineering, with prior experience as a senior, principal, or lead engineer.
Augmented software practices: Hands-on experience integrating modern development tools, smart coding partners, and intelligent automation into day-to-day engineering routines.
Engineering management: Proven track record in line management, leading engineering teams, and taking charge of delivery for complex SaaS and AI-driven products.
Architecture & strategy: Ability to guide architectural decisions, review cloud/system designs, and balance technical debt against execution velocity.
Agile & delivery management: Deep understanding of modern software delivery practices, continuous integration, iterative execution, and velocity tracking.
Modern stack literacy: Comfort navigating modern tech stacks (Node/TS, Python, cloud infrastructure) and emerging LLM frameworks to effectively guide team decisions.
Non-functionals & operations:
Team operations: Resource allocation, team health monitoring, and scaling engineering processes efficiently.
Risk & security awareness: Ensuring teams adhere to high standards of information security, code quality, and automated testing strategies.
Additional:
Language: Excellent written and spoken English skills are required.
Communication: Exceptional active listening, direct feedback, and stakeholder management skills.
Thought leadership: You actively share management and technical learnings to help the entire studio grow.
Locations
We're flexible with regards to remote work, but we do expect you to be at one of our offices at least 1 day per week for team cohesion.
Leuven, Belgium (Diestsevest 25/6th floor, 3000 Leuven)
Antwerp, Belgium (Franklin Rooseveltplaats 12, 2060 Antwerp)
We offer
We offer a friendly, dynamic, and inspirational working environment with a team that wants to move fast. You'll have the opportunity to work with the best and brightest in our industry, shaping our organizational structure and talent landscape. A fair compensation, office snacks, and fun afterwork drinks are included, of course! We equally provide a set of additional benefits: mobility budget, 32 holiday days, health insurance via Alan, meal vouchers, and so on.
The interview process
The interview process is short (but thorough) and will consist of 4 steps:
Intro conversation (videocall): 20min conversation to validate your fit with the position and align on the overall process.
Leadership & case interview (on-site): You present past management/technical scenarios and tackle a practical leadership, delivery, and modern engineering workflow case with our team.
Founder conversation (videocall): A dedicated video call with our CEO to discuss your career ambitions, share where our company is headed, and make sure our culture and goals are a strong mutual fit.
Contractual alignment (videocall): Our operations manager will walk you through our overall compensation package and practical arrangements.
How to apply:
Please apply through the form underneath this vacancy and write a personal note on why you would see yourself as a great fit for this position. Applications without a proper motivation will be rejected by default. Core traits we look for above all: an entrepreneurial mindset, a strong can-do mentality, an eagerness to leverage modern tech tools, intellectual curiosity, genuine humility, and a drive to take charge.
Want to help lead on the edge of the digital industry? Apply today!