Head of Digital Service Software

KONE is a global leader in the elevator and escalator industry, making people’s journeys safe, convenient, and reliable with smart and sustainable People Flow®. In a world where cities are constantly evolving and more and more people choose to live in them, we at KONE stand with one clear aim: to shape the future of cities. We make urban life more vibrant and livable. And we do it by enabling safe, sustainable, and effortless people flow for all. We help cities leave a positive mark on the planet - for the next century and beyond. We shape the future of cities.

KONE Technology and Innovation Unit (KTI) is where the magic happens at KONE. It's where we combine the physical world – escalators and elevators – with smart and connected digital systems. We are changing and improving the way billions of people move within buildings every day. We are on a mission to expand and develop new digital solutions that are based on emerging technologies.

KONE R&D brings together top talent from different disciplines into an industry-leading product and technology organization. We thrive in solving complex customer challenges, connecting legacy with the latest technologies across hardware and software engineering. In fact, roughly half of our R&D roles are in software. Agile ways of working mean that we are better able to meet our customers’ rapidly evolving needs for speed and innovation, in a global environment.

R&D unit in KTI is responsible for developing digital services at KONE. It’s the development engine for our Digital Services such as KONE 24/7 Connected Services, Office Flow and Partnership Ecosystem. Our common goal at KONE is to keep the end users safe and people flow uninterrupted. KONE moves 2 billion people every day and that means our services can really make cities better places to live.

KONE India Technology and Engineering Center (ITEC), is the Research, Development and Technology arm of KONE with 2.5 decades of excellence in innovation and execution. ITEC as the global capability center for KONE, employing employs more than 1000 experts, is a newly expanded technology hub in headquartered at Chennai and expanding in Pune.

Being a home to KONE Technology and Innovation (KTI) unit in India, ITEC houses a variety of technical competencies across R&D (Software, Hardware, Mechanical domains), Information Technology, Cybersecurity, Innovation, the Global Engineering Center, and Global Spare Parts Supply. Our teams around the clock work on cutting edge technologies, ranging from cloud platforms, embedded systems, and software engineering to Generative AI, data and analytics, business intelligence, and enterprise architecture – just to name a few. In addition to strong technical expertise and capabilities, ITEC proudly hosts the largest global R&D center of KONE among six others, including a state-of-the-art test tower, which opened in 2023. By collaborating to drive innovation globally, we focus on combining physical elevators and escalators with smart, connected digital systems, and developing solutions for smarter, more sustainable urban spaces.

We are looking for a seasoned leader to lead the Digital Services Software team at ITEC and the role is based out of Pune location. You will collaborate with a wide range of experts and leaders across India and global R&D location, ensuring that our digital software products operate smoothly from a connectivity perspective.

Role Overview

The role holds a critical position, responsible for the performance of team of 100+ software developers and their development. You will lead and drive the strategy, design, development, and delivery of KONE ITEC’s digital software solutions, ensuring they align with the company’s innovation roadmap, enhance customer value, and support KONE’s mission of improving urban flow. You will report to Head of India Technology & Engineer Center (ITEC) and in dotted line to Head of Software, Finland. Additionally, you will serve as a member of the India Technology & Engineering Centre (ITEC) R&D Leadership Team (LT), ITEC Pune Leadership team driving strategic priorities for ITEC.

Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership & Development

• Build, mentor, and inspire a high-performing software organization.
• Foster agile best practices, continuous learning, and a culture of innovation.

Delivery & Quality

• Oversee full lifecycle delivery of the products being developed in ITEC: requirements, design, implementation, testing, and deployment.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with product management, UX, hardware engineering to align on goals.
• Manage external partnerships, vendor relationships, and open-source contributions.

Innovation & Growth

• Scout emerging technologies (AI/ML, digital twins, edge computing) and pilot proof-of-concepts.
• Scale successful pilots into production-grade solutions that set industry benchmarks.

Qualifications

Must-Have

• Bachelor’s or master’s in computer science, Software Engineering, or related field.
• 12+ years of hands-on software development experience, with 5+ years in leadership roles.
• Deep expertise in cloud platforms (e.g., AWS)
• Proven track record of delivering large-scale IoT or industrial software systems.
• Strong command of agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban) and modern DevOps practices.
• Prior line management of medium to large organizations (50+ employees), with responsibility for operational and strategic outcomes
• Experience of developing and executing successful organizational development, transformation or business strategies and plans
• Proven abilities to achieve tangible results and to develop organizations or business
• Prior experience in leading in an international matrix organization
• Change management, financial and project management skills
• Good communication skills

Nice-to-Have

• Experience with AI/ML toolchains, digital-twin platforms, or real-time data processing.
• Background in building safety-critical or regulated software
• Prior exposure to building automation, elevator control systems, or people-flow analytics.

Behavioral competences

• Strategic and Business Acumen (KONE Leadership competences)
• Execution (KONE Leadership competences)
• Customer focus (KONE Leadership competences)
• Winning through people (KONE Leadership competences)
• Decision making (KONE Leadership competences)
• Collaborating (KONE Leadership and General competences)
• Integrity (KONE General competences)
• Drive and persistence (KONE General competences)

What are we looking for in an ideal candidate:

• Comes from a modern, forward-thinking tech environment—where innovation is valued more than formality (no need for suits and ties here)
• Demonstrates resilience and tenacity in navigating and overcoming organizational bureaucracy, driving meaningful change against structural inertia
• Passionate about modern software development practices, with hands-on experience and a strong vision for integrating AI tools seamlessly into the daily workflows of developer

What do you get in return?

KONE is building up a unique community, aiming to provide the most advanced People Flow™ solutions for its customers and lifting the customer experience to the top. At KONE, we are focused on creating an innovative and collaborative working culture where we value the contribution of each individual and where we share actively ideas. Sustainability is an integral part of our culture and a daily practice. We are proud to offer a range of opportunities that will support you in achieving your career and personal goals and enable you to live a healthy and balanced life. We believe in improving performance through inspiring, engaging and developing our people.

At KONE, we are focused on creating an innovative and collaborative working culture where we value the contribution of each individual. Employee engagement is a key focus area for us and we encourage participation and the sharing of information and ideas. Sustainability is an integral part of our culture and the daily practice. We follow ethical business practices and we seek to develop a culture of working together where co-workers trust and respect each other and good performance is recognized. In being a great place to work, we are proud to offer a range of experiences and opportunities that will help you to achieve your career and personal goals and enable you to live a healthy and balanced life.

Read more on www.kone.com/careers