R&D Senior Manager, Engineering, China

What You’ll Do 

Lead and Grow the China R&D Organization 

• Build, develop, and lead a high-performing local R&D team in China. 

• Recruit, develop, and manage the performance of the local R&D team. 

• Coordinate resources effectively within a global matrix organization and drive cross-time-zone, cross-cultural technical collaboration. 

Provide regular updates to the China leadership on R&D progress, technical risks, and resource requirements. 

Strategy and direction setting 

• Represent China in global R&D strategy discussions and ensure China strategy engineering requirements are given appropriate priority in the global product roadmap. 

• Define the technical boundaries and feasible delivery scope for the China version of UE and establish a practical path that balances Xinchuang requirements with global architectural constraints. 

• Direct your team’s ongoing evaluation of the domestic LLM and AI technology ecosystem for potential integration into engineering design scenarios. 

R&D delivery leadership 

• Lead technical decision-making and milestone management from compliance exploration and pilot release through to production readiness and beyond, as the China version of UE continues to evolve. 

• Lead the local team in completing customization content adaptation, extension development, customized packaging, and validation in localized and Xinchuang environments. 

• Direct your team’s exploration of AI agents and copilots to enhance the efficiency of local engineering workflows, building differentiated capabilities that leverage domestic AI models. 

Support Customer Engagement and Market Insight 

• Guide your team in conducting in-depth technical interviews with strategic customers, translating real engineering execution scenarios from owner-operators and EPCs into product requirements. 

• Oversee technical solution design and on-site deployment for pilot projects, with your team leading day-to-day delivery and ensuring priority workflows run reliably in compliant environments. 

• Build technical trust with customers and provide credible technical endorsement for the commercial team. 

Who You’ll Work With 

You will be working with teams in China and the UK, so you will work across time zones and cultures daily. Your key relationships include: 

• The local China R&D team you build and lead 

• The UK global R&D organization 

• The Portfolio Lead, on scope, priorities, and delivery sequencing 

The China leadership team 

• Global product management and the global product roadmap community 

• Strategic customers and pilot accounts — owner-operators, EPCs, and their engineering teams 

What We’re Looking For 

Above all else, we are looking for the right person, not the perfect CV. We value clear thinking, strong judgement, and the ability to make pragmatic technical decisions under real constraints, not just familiarity with tools or terminology. We are prioritizing proven leadership experience within B2B enterprise software organizations over deep domain-specific engineering knowledge, although the latter would also be advantageous. 

Core Skills (Required) 

• Proven leadership experience within a B2B enterprise software organization, ideally leading R&D or engineering teams through the full product lifecycle. 

• Strong understanding of Xinchuang compliance technologies, with hands-on experience adapting software to localized environments. 

• Practical experience with, or strong interest in, AI and LLM applications in industrial or engineering scenarios. 

• Experience serving as the China technical leader within a global matrix organization. 

• Fluent business English, with the ability to lead technical and strategic discussions with global headquarters. 

Core Skills (Beneficial) 

• Deep understanding of the digital engineering design stack: 1D data (P&ID tags and attributes), 2D drawings (process flow and layout drawings), and 3D models (piping, structures, equipment). 

• Deep user or development experience with AVEVA E3D, Unified Engineering, or similar engineering software platforms. 

• Experience integrating domestic LLMs into engineering-scenario AI applications. 

• First-hand engineering project experience in process industries such as power, oil and gas, chemicals, and green energy. 

Qualifications 

• Bachelor’s degree or above in engineering or a related discipline (Master’s preferred) — for example Computer Science, Automation, Chemical Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering. 

• 10+ years of experience in engineering software R&D, product technology, or technical management, including 4+ years of team management experience. 

Location and Travel 

This role is based in Beijing, China, and is delivered jointly with colleagues in the UK and across AVEVA’s global R&D organization, so you will collaborate across multiple time zones daily, and some travel should be expected for customer engagement and knowledge transfer. Strong remote collaboration skills are essential. 

R&D at AVEVA