Senior Software Development Manager

About Us: Love Justice International (LJI) is a Christian nonprofit driven by a singular mission: to share the love of Jesus Christ by fighting the world’s greatest injustices. We pursue this calling through two primary efforts—our expanding anti-human trafficking work and the care of orphaned and abandoned children.

We are looking for faithful, compassionate, and mission-driven problem-solvers—people who think deeply about how to fight injustice and share Christ’s love in a broken world. This isn’t just a job; it’s a calling. If you’re searching for an easy, comfortable career, there are plenty of other options. But if you’re drawn to work that demands sacrifice, boldness, and faith, we invite you to apply and explore how you can be part of this mission.

Love Justice International has been recognized as a Best Christian Workplace for four consecutive years (2021–2024). Learn more about who we are, what sets us apart, and our open positions at lovejustice.ngo/careers.

What We Offer: Opportunities to truly change lives are exceptionally rare—but at LJI, that is exactly the kind of impact you can have. Although we’re a nonprofit, we operate as an “Impact Engineering” organization, focused solely on maximizing real-world outcomes. By combining scientific and business principles with field-led, locally informed insights, we intercept potential trafficking victims for under $150 each, creating a ripple effect that prevents several more individuals from enslavement. This remarkable efficiency underscores the profound, far-reaching impact your work can have on countless lives. 

Joining LJI means stepping into an opportunity to deeply impact lives by combating injustice and expressing the transformative love of Christ. At LJI, you'll be part of a connected, purpose-driven team committed to impactful, kingdom-class excellence.

We offer competitive and thoughtful benefits packages tailored to the specific role and location of our staff. Benefit offerings are designed to support wellness, work-life balance, and overall staff care. Details of specific benefits will vary based on location, local standards, and applicable regulations.

Position Type: Full-time, Support-Raised*, South Africa

*If hired, the candidate must raise financial support to cover their own salary, benefits, and expenses. This is a way for the body of Christ to come together in the fight against injustice. LJI will provide administrative support, prayer, and resources—including guidance from our Support Raising Coach— to help build a support base. Please prayerfully consider whether you are called to step out in faith and raise support for this role.

Program and Position Overview: Love Justice International (LJI) combats human trafficking through transit monitoring—intercepting potential victims at key transportation hubs, where traffickers and victims are most visible. Because trafficking is already underway at these points, our teams can gather vital information to assist law enforcement in arresting traffickers and disrupting trafficking networks. To date, LJI has intercepted over 84,000 individuals, resulting in more than 1,700 arrests. For more information on our impact, visit our website: lovejustice.ngo.

Our approach to maximizing mission impact involves a process we call "Impact Engineering." Our dedicated Impact Engineering Team develops, refines, and improves our core processes by creating practical, scalable tools such as software applications, data-collection systems, spreadsheets, standardized forms, and clear operational standards. By continuously testing, refining, and standardizing these tools, we ensure consistent, measurable, and scalable impact across all our programs. This team's innovative work directly supports our frontline staff and helps optimize our interventions, enabling Love Justice to deliver the greatest possible impact per dollar spent.

As Senior Software Development Manager, you will play a pivotal role in building and enhancing our mission-critical technology platforms that drive LJI’s impact. This includes leading a small but growing team of developers and remaining hands-on with coding (~50%).

While the majority of LJI’s technology efforts support our anti-trafficking work, we also operate a Family Homes program, which provides loving, long-term care for orphaned and abandoned children. Our software solutions reflect this broader mission.

You will oversee the development of three core software systems:

• Searchlight - A custom web-based data collection and analytics platform for trafficking intelligence, continuously evolving.
• Childlight - A database for organizing and maintaining child records from our Family Homes program, ensuring high-quality, holistic care.
• Operations Management - A task management system designed to help partner organizations track and execute key operational processes effectively. Many of these tasks are directly tied to data points within Searchlight and Childlight, ensuring that insights lead to timely action. 

This role focuses on optimizing, expanding, and scaling these tools to meet evolving program needs. While the core direction has been established, we value fresh insights and thoughtful contributions to enhance their effectiveness. You will work closely with program leaders, data scientists, and executive leadership to ensure that technology solutions align with LJI’s mission.

This position will report to the Chief of Staff.

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Leadership & Development
  • Lead and manage a small, agile team of developers.
  • Design, develop, and maintain core software platforms (Django, React, or similar frameworks).
  • Balance hands-on coding (~50%) with strategic leadership.
  • Ensure scalable architecture, high-performance applications, and robust security protocols.
• Project & Stakeholder Management
  • Collaborate with program leaders to understand software needs and refine technical requirements.
  • Work with stakeholders and developers to improve software roadmaps.
  • Manage software development lifecycles, from concept through deployment and maintenance.
• Strategic Growth & Innovation
  • Identify and evaluate new technologies that could enhance LJI’s impact.
  • Support initiatives from Love Justice Labs by prototyping ideas.
  • Contribute to long-term technology planning as the team scales.

Christian Culture: The work at Love Justice International (including the duties listed above) is conducted within a culture that strives to emulate Christ and make Him first and central. As part of our team, we seek staff who embrace the following expressions of what it means to Abide in Christ, our first Global Value:

• Our Primary Identity is in Christ
• We Believe God Is Sovereign Over Injustice
• We Are Made, Called, and Led By Christ
• We Commit to Connect with Jesus
• Prayer Should Be Central To Our Work
• Our Conduct Is Our Testimony 

We believe that our mission is not only about what we do but how we do it—through faith, prayer, and obedience to Christ.

Qualifications:

• Mission & Faith Alignment
  • Mature Christian faith and agreement with our Global Value to “Abide in Christ”
  • Knowledge, understanding, and agreement with how the Christian Gospel ministers to “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40) and guides us in our mission
  • Agreement with our Core Value “Be the Kingdom”(in mission execution and personal conduct)
  • Acknowledgment of our Statement of Faith
• Technical & Leadership Requirements
  • MA/MS in Engineering, Computer Science or related field (or equivalent experience)
  • 8+ years in software development, with expertise in full-stack technologies.
  • Strong proficiency in Django, React, AngularJS, or similar frameworks.
  • 5+ years of managerial experience, leading development teams.
  • Proven ability to scope, architect, and optimize software solutions for scalability and performance.
  • Experience in database management, cloud platforms, and security best practices.
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, capable of addressing complex technical challenges.
  • Experience with project management methodologies and tools.

Application Process: We will continue to invite applications for this position until a new Senior Software Development Manager has been hired. Candidates will submit a letter of interest and CV when they submit their application here: https://form.jotform.com/231144657782562 Nominations, inquiries, and questions concerning this search may be directed to careers@lovejustice.ngo. Visit the LJI careers page, https://www.lovejustice.ngo/careers, to learn more about our mission, explore FAQs, and see how you can be part of our work. 

Please allow us 1-2 weeks to process your application. Thank you for your interest!