Jobs / United States / Riot Games INC
Manager, Software Engineering (Services Lead) - Unpublished R&D Product
Riot Games INC · 🇺🇸 Los Angeles, USA; Redwood City, USA
Sponsorship verdict
Sponsorship possible
One solid signal, not two — worth applying, and worth asking about sponsorship early.
- Employer is on a government sponsor recordThe US Department of Labor certified 64 H-1B/E-3 labor condition applications for this employer between Oct 2025 and Jun 2026 (latest Jun 2026) — the step every H-1B hire needs first. USCIS also records 33 H-1B approvals in FY2023. Source: LCA disclosure data (US Department of Labor (OFLC)).
- The posting doesn’t mention sponsorshipSilence isn’t a refusal — ask the recruiter before investing much time.
- No salary bar for this routeH-1B has no fixed salary bar: the employer must pay at least the prevailing wage for the role and area. Cap-subject employers enter a lottery weighted by wage level. Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/12/29/2025-23853/weighted-selection-process-for-registrants-and-petitioners-seeking-to-file-cap-subject-h-1b, rules effective 2026-02-27.
- What Riot Games INC paid sponsored hires in similar roles3 certified filings for “Technical Product Manager III” (Computer and Information Systems Managers) in CA: $129k–$237k, median $158k. Most were filed at wage level I (50%) — 1 lottery entry, ≈15% projected selection odds for cap-subject employers. Source: US Department of Labor LCA disclosure data (Oct 2025 – Jun 2026).
- Confirmed live todayWhen a source last listed this job as open.
US H-1B: cap-subject employers enter a lottery weighted by wage level — Level I gets 1 entry, Level IV gets 4 (DHS projected selection odds ≈15% at Level I to ≈61% at Level IV). Universities and non-profit research employers are cap-exempt. The $100,000 fee for new petitions from abroad is currently blocked by a court order (appeal pending).
A verdict summarises public evidence; it is not legal advice and never a guarantee — the employer and the immigration authority decide. Sign in to factor in where you can already work.
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Sponsor Radar — Riot Games INC
The US Department of Labor certified 64 H-1B/E-3 labor condition applications for this employer between Oct 2025 and Jun 2026 (latest Jun 2026) — the step every H-1B hire needs first. USCIS also records 33 H-1B approvals in FY2023. Source: LCA disclosure data (US Department of Labor (OFLC)).
Past sponsorship or register membership never guarantees sponsorship for this vacancy or for you. Full Sponsor Radar for Riot Games INC →
About the role
Riot engineers bring deep knowledge of specific technical areas but also value the opportunity to work in a variety of broader domains. As Engineering Managers, we gain organizational alignment by building a strong engineering vision and offering creative solutions to organizational design. We also serve as mentors for a team of engineers, overseeing their performance and trying to find stretch opportunities for their growth while maintaining a focus on results. As a Manager, Software Engineering within Riot Discovery Studio, you will report to the Tech Director on an unpublished R&D product, leading a team of internal and external engineers to support product exploration, integrate and extend critical backend technologies, and scale our technology to meet the needs of a live Riot title. You will be accountable for all technical decisions of your team’s focus areas and help shape the product. You will own the technical health of the product's backend services from prototype through live operation, including architecture, scalability, reliability, observability, deployment, incident response, and infrastructure cost. You will be hands-on in implementation, at least initially. Responsibilities: • Support defining the engineering strategy and technical roadmap to develop our global backend infrastructure with an understanding of our audience and product goals • Manage and scale an engineering team to support product needs through various development stages (i.e. pre-production, production, and post-launch) • Partner with product and delivery as they define product features and product roadmap • Collaborate and coordinate with Riot Central technology teams to efficiently deliver world-class solutions • Direct development and manage performance of external engineers in other geographies • Collaborate in technical/architectural discussions, provide direction and drive decision-making • Drive the planning and execution of engineering work including requirements gathering, technical discovery, technical design, and work breakdown and estimation. • Own the technical success of the services team, including operational excellence and cost in live environments • Identify, interview, and hire software engineers to support team and Riot hiring goals • Support engineers with performance management and career development, including stretch opportunities for them to grow • Create a culture of leadership across engineering by seeking different perspectives at all levels to solve problems and contribute ideas Required Qualifications: • 6+ years of experience as a software engineer • 4+ years of game development experience working in various platforms (i.e. mobile, console, PC, etc.) • 2+ years experience in a leadership position, working directly on the production of a game as an Engineering Manager • Experience leading teams through feature development (planning, execution, delivery, post-release support) • Experience building reliable, scalable, and maintainable backend distributed systems • Experience with the full software development lifecycle, including shipping one or more products on large code bases that span a range of platforms and tools • Experience collaborating across non-engineering departments to create solutions • Experience with modern backend technologies such as Go, Java, C#, or similar Desired Qualifications: • Experience developing online games integrating Unreal Engine and backend services • Experience managing co-development or outsourcing relationships • Experience leading a backend transition from prototype to production • Experience improving live service uptime, reliability, and operational readiness • Familiarity with modern game platforms and practices For this role, you'll find success thro