Head of Engineering at EQL

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

14 Sep, 26

Salary

0.0

Posted On

16 Jun, 26

Experience

10 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

AI Engineering, ML Infrastructure, Software Architecture, Data Engineering, Engineering Leadership, Demand Forecasting, Personalisation, Recommendation Engines, Vendor Management, Product Strategy, Team Development, Ecommerce, Shopify Integration, Feature Stores, Data Pipelines, Event Streams

Industry

Retail

Description

Come shape the future of commerce built for passion with us! At EQL, we’re building tools for brands that don’t just have customers—they have fans. These are the high-stakes cultural moments where passion runs deep, but the experience has often been broken: sites crash, bots win, and real fans lose out. If you’ve ever tried to score Jordans, Taylor Swift tickets, or a footy final seat, you know the frustration. EQL is changing that. We’re creating the world’s first fair launch platform to help retailers manage demand, block bad actors, and deliver seamless experiences that give real fans a fair shot. Backed by top VCs and angels, we’re solving big, meaningful problems with smart tech and a bold, collaborative team. It’s challenging and rewarding work, and we’re building a culture where curious, kind, and ambitious people thrive. If you want to help us shape the future of fan-first commerce—even if you don’t tick every box—we would love to talk. The role EQL is hiring a Head of Engineering to lead the next chapter of our platform. A major label drops limited merch to thousands of fans at once. The site holds, the queue stays fair, the right fans get through. EQL has largely figured that part out: the infrastructure is solid and the reliability is there. The next frontier is intelligence. Every launch generates a wealth of signal: who showed up, how they behaved, what they bought, what they missed. Most of it sits underused today. The opportunity is to turn EQL into a platform that genuinely learns from every drop, getting better at predicting what will sell, to whom, and when. That means building intelligence in, as a capability layer, not a feature: audience controls driven by real fan data, personalisation, demand forecasting that sharpens production calls before a drop goes live. We run the EQL platform and Shopify on the launch side and Fans as our audience layer, and connecting all three into one compounding system, where every launch makes the next one smarter, is the challenge we're asking this person to lead. We need someone who finds that exciting, who knows what best-practice AI engineering looks like today and has the range to bring a team with them. The engineering team reports to you, but this isn't a role for managing from a distance. The best version of this person stays close to the architecture, and shapes the technical decisions that matter. What you’ll do Technical Vision & Platform Direction Set the technical vision for EQL's platform: where it needs to get to, how it gets there, and what the architecture looks like when it does Make the consequential platform decisions (build vs buy, architectural trade-offs, the integration points between EQL, Shopify, and Fans) and make sure the team builds confidently within them Be the technical counterweight in product and leadership conversations: clear-eyed about what's possible, what's hard, and what the right trade-off is Represent engineering at the leadership table with a point of view grounded in the work, not abstracted from it Building Intelligence Into the Platform Own the intelligence strategy: how recommendation, personalisation, demand forecasting, and audience controls are architected as a compounding layer, not a series of one-off features Think seriously about what best-practice AI engineering looks like for EQL: the data pipelines, feature stores, and inference infrastructure that make intelligence reliable in production, under real load Own the vision for how fan data becomes a strategic asset: what we capture, how we model it, and how it feeds back into better outcomes for brands and better experiences for fans Partner with product to find where intelligence creates the most leverage, then lead the architectural thinking on how EQL, Shopify, and Fans evolve from separate systems into one interconnected platform Leading the Engineering Function Lead and develop a team of 12 engineers across two Engineering Managers: setting direction, raising the bar, and building a culture where great work is the norm Be the kind of leader engineers want to work for: technically credible, direct, and genuinely invested in their growth Own hiring and team shape, building toward the capabilities EQL needs Work with the EMs on delivery and team health; they run the day-to-day, you set the context and standard Build an engineering culture that's AI-native by default, where the team reaches for the best tools, moves fast, and ships things that matter Vendor Management & Technology Decisions Accountable for the evaluation of and relationships with key technology vendors: AI tooling, ML infrastructure, data platforms, Shopify ecosystem partners Stay genuinely across what's happening in AI and ML engineering, not conference-talk trends but the tools and techniques actually changing what's possible Who we look for We focus on hiring values-aligned people because we believe mindset matters as much as experience. Curiosity, drive, and a willingness to learn go a long way. Working at EQL means embracing ambiguity, being okay with imperfection, and playing bigger than we are as we solve tough problems together. If that sounds like it gives you energy and are excited to grow with us, we encourage you to apply—even if you're feeling unsure. We believe you’ll succeed in this role if you have: Extensive experience in software engineering, with meaningful time in both senior IC and engineering leadership roles — you have done both and know the difference Been to the summit of what’s possible with AI in engineering, and can lead real technical change: platform evolution, AI adoption, significant architectural shifts Experience leading teams building AI/ML systems in production — recommendation engines, demand forecasting, personalisation, or consumer intelligence. Not just API integrations; the systems underneath Strong understanding of data engineering: pipelines, feature stores, event streams, and the architecture that makes machine learning reliable at scale Ecommerce or marketplace background is a strong plus — you understand the commerce context even if you have not specifically worked in the fan or creator space You use every tool available to you, including AI — to ship great work fast. What matters is the quality of your thinking and your architectural judgment, not how much of the code you typed yourself You lead through technical credibility — engineers follow your direction because they respect your judgment, not because of your title You can explain a complex technical trade-off to a non-technical leader without losing the substance of what makes it hard You are direct about what is hard, what is wrong, and what the right call is — even when that is uncomfortable You build strong engineering cultures — by setting a standard and inspiring through it You’re genuinely curious and get energy from hard problems. You have a strong sense of agency and move to solve the right problems with urgency What we offer Fairness is not just something for our fans and retailers - it’s part of who we are which is why: We provide equity in EQL - we want our team to have skin in the game and to be as invested as we are in EQL’s success. We want the people that will make EQL successful to share in that success We provide competitive compensation and evaluate the market to ensure that remains true. We provide a flexible work environment because we understand that everyone works differently and want to support our team to be their best We provide generous time off above and beyond what we are required to because we know that well-rested people make better decisions and are more engaged - when you thrive we thrive When you want to collaborate in person with other humans, we have a workplace that welcomes the whole team including their furry friends. At EQL, diversity, equity, and inclusion are core to how we operate and grow. We’re committed to building a workforce that values and supports every individual. We believe equality strengthens our culture and drives accountability in championing diverse voices. EQL is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate based on race, colour, gender, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital or caregiving status, pregnancy, religion, political beliefs, or national origin.

Responsibilities

Lead the engineering function to evolve the platform into an intelligent system using AI for demand forecasting and personalisation. Set the technical vision and architecture while managing a team of 12 engineers and overseeing key technology vendors.