SRE Manager (VPN)

The SRE Manager (VPN) role at Proton involves leading a team that ensures the reliability and performance of Proton VPN, a service that provides private internet connections to millions of users worldwide. Proton, founded by scientists from CERN, offers a suite of encrypted tools, including Proton Mail, Proton VPN, Proton Drive, Proton Pass, and Proton Calendar, all aimed at protecting user privacy and data security. The main day-to-day responsibilities include managing and developing a team of eight engineers, deciding on automation and measurement priorities, and owning the reliability of the Proton VPN fleet. This involves setting and maintaining Service Level Objectives (SLOs), managing error budgets, handling incident response, and conducting postmortems. The role also includes building monitoring systems to track user experience, particularly throughput, and replacing manual processes with automated tooling. Additionally, the manager will set engineering standards, coach engineers, and plan capacity and new locations in collaboration with various teams and providers. To qualify for this role, candidates must have several years of experience managing site reliability, infrastructure, or platform teams, with a proven track record of transitioning from manual to automated operations. Strong technical judgment on large Linux fleets is essential, including the ability to review designs, read Python and Ansible, and analyze postmortems. Experience in owning the reliability of a production service, building or rebuilding monitoring systems, and running physical infrastructure is also required. Additionally, candidates should have experience in developing engineers, giving direct feedback, and delivering projects that depend on cross-team collaboration. The ability to set and prioritize goals independently is crucial. Nice-to-have skills include a willingness to learn about physical infrastructure if not already experienced. The role is based in either the Geneva or Barcelona office, offering the opportunity to work in a dynamic, fast-paced environment with a team that values impact over optics. Proton's team is known for its high caliber, with members from leading organizations and elite academic backgrounds, and the company is profitable and independent, with no venture capital control. What the role asks for: - Several years of experience managing site reliability, infrastructure, or platform teams. - Experience leading a team from manual operations to automated ones, with results you can describe. - Strong technical judgment on large Linux fleets. - Experience owning the reliability of a production service, including SLOs, error budgets, incident response, and postmortems. - Experience building or rebuilding the monitoring of a production service, and getting engineers to rely on it. - Experience running physical infrastructure, or a clear willingness to learn it. - Experience developing engineers, giving direct feedback, and addressing underperformance. - Experience delivering projects that depend on teams outside your own. - The habit of setting your own priorities.