Manager, Database

About This Job 

The Technology Manager at CarMax is a people leader who is passionate about technology and how it enables a growing organization. They define roadmaps, manage stakeholders, and align teams to the organizational vision. They partner across teams, work closely with technologists to execute projects while helping to eliminate barriers and roadblocks. The Technology Manager adapts their leadership approach based on the team structure—whether leading internal associates directly, overseeing outsourced service delivery, or a combination of both. If you have a passion for people, technology, and delivering results through diverse teams, this is the job for you! 

What You Will Do – Essential Responsibilities 

Lead a portfolio of diverse Database technology projects and a distributed team of engineers with deep experience in Database technologies through technology modernization and transformation  

Team Leadership & People Management 

• Lead teams across different operating models, adapting management style appropriately providing direct coaching and development for internal associates, and performance oversight and feedback for service provider resources 

• Develop people through effective communication, ongoing feedback, and career development support 

• Shape an inclusive culture to attract strong talent while thriving in innovation, continuous improvement, and collaborative teamwork 

• Foster a unified team culture that bridges internal and external resources; champion collaborative behaviors regardless of reporting structure 

Operational Delivery 

• Work with stakeholders to develop and execute roadmaps aligned to business objectives 

• Drive delivery execution—leading Agile ceremonies and daily operations for teams under direct management, while ensuring outcomes and quality standards are met across all delivery models 

• Work through others to deliver resilient and scalable technology solutions that solve complex business problems 

• Communicate effectively at and above their level, ensuring alignment and support for team objectives with stakeholders and Senior Leadership 

Service Provider Oversight 

• For outsourced services: hold providers accountable to contractual commitments, quality standards, and delivery timelines 

• Serve as primary liaison between CarMax stakeholders and provider teams; manage relationships proactively and handle day-to-day escalations 

• Ensure provider resources are properly onboarded and have appropriate knowledge of CarMax systems, processes, and culture 

Governance, Compliance & Performance 

• Participate in governance meetings; prepare and present status, metrics, and issues for assigned areas 

• Monitor performance against SLAs and KPIs; validate accuracy of reported metrics and drive root cause analysis for issues 

• Ensure compliance with CarMax policies, security standards, and regulatory requirements; support audits by providing documentation and evidence for assigned areas 

• Support continuous improvement initiatives and track progress toward productivity targets 

Financial Management 

• Participate in cost management and budgeting for assigned teams and services 

• For outsourced services: validate invoices against deliverables and contracted terms; track utilization and flag discrepancies 

• Support cost tracking and savings realization reporting 

Purpose of the Role 

The Technology Manager's primary responsibility is to partner with their business areas and provide technology solutions and services that help deliver CarMax's strategic mission and plans. This Manager leads teams across various delivery models—adapting their approach whether managing internal associates or overseeing outsourced delivery—enabling CarMax's technology journey. You will be results-oriented, data-driven, and have a proven record of accomplishment influencing outcomes. The Manager will be comfortable guiding teams, setting performance standards, ensuring accountability and compliance across all team types, and motivating people to perform quality work. 

Qualifications and Requirements 

• BS/BA degree required with preference for a Technology related field of study (Computer Science, Engineering, etc.) 

• 5+ years of hands-on Database administration or engineering experience in an enterprise-level environment in at least one of the following Database technologies, SQL Server, Sybase (SAP ASE), Oracle 

• 3+ years' experience managing direct reports 

• Experience working with or managing vendor/service provider relationships 

• Familiarity with SLA management or outsourcing governance concepts 

• 5+ years experience building enterprise-grade solutions with Microsoft Azure or equivalent cloud technologies   

• Experience in DevOps, version control systems (Git), Site Reliability Engineering (SRE) practices, testing frameworks, Infrastructure as Code, building CI/CD pipelines (preferably Azure DevOps), scripting languages such as Python and shell scripts and working in an Agile/Scrum setting. Knowledge of ITIL framework and experience with Service Management tools such as ServiceNow   

Preferred Qualifications  

• 5+ years of relevant work experience across a broad spectrum of classic and emerging database technologies and features  

• Mastery over database security, backups, high availability, disaster recovery, resiliency, observability, and performance  

• Subject matter expert in the context of database configuration for everything related to infrastructure, including servers, virtualization, storage, networking, firewalls  

• Hands-on experience designing and operating mission critical database systems at scale across public cloud and multiple datacenters that have regulatory and compliance requirements  

• Prior experience with datacenter migration and modernization initiatives is highly desired  

• Ability to identify and recommend opportunities for automation and continuous improvement  

• Deep level expertise with scripting and automation across both Windows and Linux operating systems  

Success Factors 

• Delivery of technology solutions aligned with business objectives and roadmap commitments 

• Team development, engagement, and retention across all team types 

• Stakeholder satisfaction and effective communication 

• Analytical; solves problems at root cause and prioritizes effectively  

• For outsourced services: SLA achievement and effective provider relationship management 

• Audit readiness and   with security, regulatory, and policy requirements