Manager, Developer Relations - Open Source

More about the DevRel team

The Developer Relations (DevRel) team at Databricks is dedicated to building and fostering relationships with communities of data practitioners. Our goal is to drive awareness and adoption of the Databricks Data + AI Platform — including Lakeflow, Lakebase, Genie Agents, and AI/BI — alongside the open source projects that underpin it, such as Apache Spark™, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, MLflow, Apache Iceberg™, and Omnigent. Our team also owns programs like the Databricks MVP program, the user group program, and DevConnect roadshows.

The impact you will have

• Own developer relations for our open source portfolio end-to-end — set the strategy, define what success looks like, and be accountable for the outcomes.
• Hire, level, and grow a team of Developer Advocates, and take real ownership of their careers: clear expectations, honest feedback, and a visible path forward.
• Strengthen Databricks' standing as a trusted, vendor-neutral participant in the Apache and Linux Foundation ecosystems — measured by what the projects gain, not only by what we gain.
• Establish repeatable advocacy approaches — content flywheels, contribution guides, event playbooks — that the rest of DevRel can adopt and replicate.
• Grow external, non-Databricks adoption and contribution across our open source projects, and help develop the next generation of maintainers.
• Drive awareness and adoption of the Open Lakehouse and Omnigent through your own speaking at industry events and conferences, and by getting your team on the right stages.
• Guide the creation of high-quality educational content — videos, sample notebooks, datasets, tutorials, courseware, and blog posts — that meets a high technical bar.
• Expand and nurture these communities by growing meetups and user groups and supporting practitioners in online communities, mailing lists, and issue trackers.
• Represent the community inside R&D, turning contributor friction into a documented, prioritized roadmap change.
• Apply AI-assisted workflows to increase your team's leverage while maintaining technical depth and originality.
• Define and defend meaningful success metrics for an open source DevRel team, and be able to explain them to executives.

What we look for

• 8+ years of combined experience in developer relations or developer advocacy and in a hands-on technical role — software engineer, data engineer, solutions architect, or similar.
• 2+ years managing and growing a developer relations team, including hiring, leveling, and promoting advocates.
• You have done the work yourself. You've written the posts, built the demos, given the talks, filed the issues, and sat in the forums — and you can still do all of it.
• A substantial, verifiable open source track record: sustained contribution, and experience with project governance, release processes, and community norms.
• Established relationships within the Apache Software Foundation and Linux Foundation ecosystems, and a clear understanding of how to engage them well.
• Deep knowledge of the Open Lakehouse stack — Apache Spark™, Delta Lake, Unity Catalog, Apache Iceberg™, and MLflow — and a working understanding of the agentic open source landscape, including Omnigent.
• Subject matter knowledge of solving data engineering, data science, or data analytics problems at scale.
• A genuine passion for growing people and building strong teams.
• Active participation and recognized leadership in open source community forums, chats, and meetups.
• Proven track record in nurturing developer communities, organizing user groups, and facilitating global meetups.
• Exceptional communication skills, with a talent for articulating complex concepts through writing, teaching, video, and public speaking.
• Experience using AI to scale a team's output without lowering the technical bar.
• Adept at collaborating with cross-functional stakeholders to align community initiatives with product objectives.

Pay Range Transparency

Databricks is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. The pay range(s) for this role is listed below and represents the expected salary range for non-commissionable roles or on-target earnings for commissionable roles. Actual compensation packages are based on several factors that are unique to each candidate, including but not limited to job-related skills, depth of experience, relevant certifications and training, and specific work location. Based on the factors above, Databricks anticipates utilizing the full width of the range. The total compensation package for this position may also include eligibility for annual performance bonus, equity, and the benefits listed above. For more information regarding which range your location is in visit our page here.

Zone 2 Pay Range

$155,100—$213,300 USD

About Databricks

Databricks is the Data and AI company. More than 20,000 organizations worldwide — including adidas, AT&T, Bayer, Block, Mastercard, Rivian, Unilever, and 70% of the Fortune 500 — rely on the Databricks Data + AI Platform to build and scale data and AI apps, analytics and agents. Headquartered in San Francisco with 30+ offices around the globe, Databricks offers a unified platform that includes Genie, Lakebase, Agent Bricks, Lakeflow, Lakehouse, and Unity Catalog. To learn more, follow Databricks on LinkedIn, X, YouTube, and Instagram.

Our Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

At Databricks, we are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture where everyone can excel. We take great care to ensure that our hiring practices are inclusive and meet equal employment opportunity standards. Individuals looking for employment at Databricks are considered without regard to age, color, disability, ethnicity, family or marital status, gender identity or expression, language, national origin, physical and mental ability, political affiliation, race, religion, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, veteran status, and other protected characteristics.

Compliance

If access to export-controlled technology or source code is required for performance of job duties, it is within Employer's discretion whether to apply for a U.S. government license for such positions, and Employer may decline to proceed with an applicant on this basis alone.