Release Train Engineer

As a member of the IoT Operations team based in Apex, NC, you will serve as the servant leader and chief facilitator for one of Pentair Pool's Agile Release Trains (ARTs) within our IoT product ecosystem. Each ART aligns to one of our four IoT value streams - Applications, Backend, Edge, or Smart Devices - that together comprise the full-stack Pentair IoT experience.

In this role, you will drive the planning, coordination, and execution of multiple Scrum teams within your development value stream, ensuring alignment of strategy, priorities, and outcomes across product, architecture, and operations functions. You will partner closely with Product Owners, Product Managers, Value Stream Architects, DevOps, and QA leaders to maintain delivery cadence, optimize flow, and ensure successful release execution that meets customer and business objectives.

This position requires a balance of strategic systems thinking and disciplined delivery management. The ideal candidate is a critical thinker who is curious, creative, and outcome-driven, with strong communication skills and a demonstrated ability to manage cross-team dependencies in a fast-paced IoT development environment that integrates hardware, firmware, and software solutions.

Responsibilities:

• Serve as the Scrum-of-Scrums facilitator for 3-5 Scrum teams within an IoT value stream, ensuring continuous alignment with PI objectives, delivery commitments, and business priorities.
• Partner with Product Managers and Product Owners to maintain a healthy ART backlog, support program-level prioritization, and communicate delivery readiness across all teams.
• Plan and facilitate Program Increment (PI) Planning, ART Syncs, System Demos, and Inspect & Adapt workshops, ensuring collaborative planning and measurable improvement each iteration.
• Coordinate with other RTEs and the Solution Train Engineer (STE) to align value stream deliverables with integrated full-stack IoT product releases.
• Manage program-level risks, dependencies, and impediments, escalating when necessary while maintaining accountability for resolution within the train.
• Track PI objectives, key performance indicators (KPIs), and delivery metrics to ensure transparency of progress and outcomes across stakeholders.
• Collaborate with DevOps, QA, and engineering teams to plan, prepare, and verify readiness for code integration, branching, and release milestones.
• Drive continuous improvement within the ART by analyzing delivery data, facilitating retrospectives, and implementing Lean-Agile flow optimizations.
• Coach Scrum Masters, Product Owners, and teams on Agile principles, SAFe practices, and effective collaboration to promote team growth and maturity.
• Champion cross-functional communication and alignment between Product Management, Engineering, Operations, and Architecture disciplines.
• Foster an environment of trust, accountability, and psychological safety that empowers teams to deliver high-quality outcomes.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field.
  • An additional 5 years of relevant experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• Minimum 7 years of experience in Agile environments, including 3+ years as a Scrum Master or Agile Program-level leader supporting multiple teams.
• Proven experience in SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework) environments; SAFe Release Train Engineer or SPC certification preferred (or ability to obtain within 6 months).
• Strong understanding of IoT system architecture, including device, edge, cloud, and application layers.
• Demonstrated ability to plan and coordinate releases across multiple teams, including code branching and merging best practices.
• Experience with Agile Lifecycle Management tools (JIRA, JIRA Align, or equivalent), Confluence, and Microsoft 365.
• Proven ability to identify and manage risks, dependencies, and impediments across cross-functional teams.
• Strong interpersonal, facilitation, and communication skills with the ability to influence without authority across technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills; able to make decisions that balance short-term execution with long-term architectural and business goals.

Desired Skills & Attributes:

• Experience coordinating hardware and software product releases in an IoT or embedded systems environment.
• Demonstrated leadership in scaling Agile practices and fostering cross-team collaboration.
• Proficiency with data-driven performance analysis and continuous improvement frameworks.
• Ability to navigate and adapt SAFe principles to a rapidly evolving, mixed-development ecosystem.
• Natural curiosity and drive to understand how the IoT value stream connects to customer experience and business value.
• Comfortable presenting to all organizational levels, from development teams to senior leadership. Maintain and monitor the team's capacity levels and resource needs. Contributes to the development of performance metrics for scrum planning and execution to maintain alignment of team performance and business goals.

Reporting Structure:

• This position currently reports directly to the Senior Manager, IoT Operations

About Pentair

• Pentair (NYSE: PNR) is a global leader dedicated to building a safer, more sustainable world. Through industry-leading water and environmental solutions, Pentair delivers products and technologies that help people make the best use of the resources they rely on most.
• At Pentair Pool, we design and deliver connected IoT solutions that transform how customers manage, maintain, and enjoy their pools - driven by innovation, collaboration, and operational excellence.

Pentair is an Equal Opportunity Employer. With our expanding global presence, cross-cultural insight and competence are essential for our ongoing success. We believe that a diverse workforce contributes different perspectives and creative ideas that enable us to continue to improve every day.