Senior Manager - Machine Learning

Teamwork makes the stream work.

Roku is changing how the world watches TV

Roku is the #1 TV streaming platform in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, and we've set our sights on powering every television in the world. Roku pioneered streaming to the TV. Our mission is to be the TV streaming platform that connects the entire TV ecosystem. We connect consumers to the content they love, enable content publishers to build and monetize large audiences, and provide advertisers unique capabilities to engage consumers.

From your first day at Roku, you'll make a valuable - and valued - contribution. We're a fast-growing public company where no one is a bystander. We offer you the opportunity to delight millions of TV streamers around the world while gaining meaningful experience across a variety of disciplines.

What does the team work on?

Roku’s Search & Recommendations (S&R) organization owns the company’s core content discovery platform. This is the platform that helps viewers find something to watch across Roku Search, Browse, The Roku Channel, Live TV, sports, and partner experiences. It sits at the intersection of consumer experience, machine learning, distributed systems, content metadata, and business impact.

The Search team’s mission is to deliver the best TV search experience: fast, comprehensive, and reliably relevant. That means understanding typed, on-screen keyboard, and voice queries; retrieving the right content across a massive catalog; ranking results intelligently; and continuously improving discovery quality through experimentation and measurement. Done well, this work directly improves key Roku outcomes such as streaming hours, user engagement, and monetization.

What is the role?

As a Senior Manager at Roku Search, you will lead a team of talented engineers and ML scientists to build and improve the search that powers Roku. You will work closely with product managers, designers, and content partners to understand the user needs and business goals and translate them into technical requirements and solutions. You will also collaborate with other engineering teams to ensure the search is scalable, reliable, and efficient.

This is a unique opportunity to work on a high-impact and high-visibility product that reaches millions of users every day. You will have the chance to apply your expertise in Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Information Retrieval to solve challenging problems and deliver a delightful search experience to Roku users.

How will I use AI at Roku?

At Roku, we don’t just use AI; we work with it. AI agents and smart tools help power drafts, analysis, and repetitive workflows, while our people bring direction, judgment, and accountability.

We value curious, adaptable builders who can show how they’ve used AI, agents, or automation to move faster, improve quality, and scale their impact. Strong candidates know how to frame problems, guide AI-assisted work, check the output, and learn quickly. Above all, they bring curiosity, adaptability, and sound judgment.

What are the responsibilities of the role?

• Manage, mentor, and grow a team of engineers and data scientists who work on the search platform and ML optimizations.

• Define the vision, strategy, and roadmap for search relevance, platform optimizations, and innovation

• Oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of search engine features and algorithms, such as query understanding, ranking, relevance, personalization, and voice search

• Conduct data analysis and user research to identify search engine opportunities and challenges

• Collaborate with multiple Cloud (ML and engineering) teams, product and business teams to ensure a high degree of alignment and ruthless prioritization in a fast-paced, hyper-growth environment

• Provide technical direction, guidance, mentoring, and hands-on management.

• Plan for operational efficiency to scale products, programs and practices.

• Recruit and manage a world-class Search platform and ML engineering talent.

• Assimilate Roku culture and lead by example to nurture and develop it with the broader team

• Identify, recommend, and develop best practices to improve agility in development pace across geo-distributed teams

What experience would help someone be successful in this role at Roku?

• 12+ years of experience in software engineering, with 3+ years of experience in managing engineering teams

• Strong background and hands-on experience in Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Information Retrieval

• Proven track record of delivering high-quality and scalable search engine solutions

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work effectively across different teams and stakeholders

• Passion for creating a great user experience and solving hard problems

• Experience with voice search, speech recognition, or natural language understanding is a plus

• Experience with cloud computing platforms, such as AWS or GCP, is a plus

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent work experience.

#LI-SK8

What's Roku's approach to hybrid working?

Roku fosters an inclusive and collaborative environment where teams generally work in the office Monday through Thursday. Fridays are generally flexible for remote work, except for employees whose specific roles or assigned office location require five days' a week attendance.

What are some of the benefits?

Roku is committed to offering a diverse range of benefits as part of our compensation package to support our employees and their families. Our comprehensive benefits include global access to mental health and financial wellness support and resources. Local benefits include statutory and voluntary benefits which may include healthcare (medical, dental, and vision), life, accident, disability, commuter, and retirement options (401(k)/pension). Employees are supported in taking time off, in accordance with local leave policies and other personal needs to support their evolving work and life needs. It's important to note that not every benefit is available in all locations or for every role. For details specific to your location, please consult with your recruiter.

Accommodations

Roku welcomes applicants of all backgrounds and provides reasonable accommodations and adjustments in accordance with applicable law. If you require reasonable accommodation at any point in the hiring process, please direct your inquiries to EmployeeRelations@Roku.com .

What should I know about Roku's culture?

Roku is a great place for people who want to work in a fast-paced environment where everyone is focused on the company's success rather than their own. We try to surround ourselves with people who are great at their jobs, who are easy to work with, and who keep their egos in check. We appreciate a sense of humor. We believe a fewer number of very talented folks can do more for less cost than a larger number of less talented teams. We're independent thinkers with big ideas who act boldly, move fast and accomplish extraordinary things through collaboration and trust. In short, at Roku you'll be part of a company that's changing how the world watches TV. 

We have a unique culture that we are proud of. We think of ourselves primarily as problem-solvers, which itself is a two-part idea. We come up with the solution, but the solution isn't real until it is built and delivered to the customer. That penchant for action gives us a pragmatic approach to innovation, one that has served us well since 2002. 

To learn more about Roku, our global footprint, and how we've grown, visit https://www.weareroku.com/factsheet .

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