OPT Technical Lead Manager Jobs
Technical Lead Manager jobs on OPT sit at the intersection of hands-on engineering and people management, making them highly attractive to employers who need someone to both build and lead. Most roles require STEM OPT eligibility, giving you up to three years of work authorization without H-1B visa sponsorship.
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Lead Release Manager (Hybrid - Columbia, SC)
The Lead Release Manager oversees the planning, coordination, and governance of software releases to ensure timely, secure, and compliant deployments. This role acts as the central point of contact for release activities, enforces process adherence, and drives continuous improvement in release management practices.
What You'll Do:
Release Planning and Coordination:
- Develop and maintain release schedules and calendars in collaboration with development and operations teams.
- Coordinate release timelines to ensure alignment across cross-functional teams.
- Schedule and manage deployments across all required environments.
- Define and continuously improve release management processes and standards.
- Resolve conflicts and bottlenecks during the release cycle to maintain delivery predictability.
Collaboration and Communication:
- Serve as the primary point of contact for all release-related activities.
- Ensure all required sign-offs and reviews are completed in accordance with change management procedures.
- Communicate release status, risks, and issues to stakeholders in a timely manner.
- Mentor application teams on release and change management policies and best practices.
Governance and Compliance:
- Verify that all releases meet organizational standards, security policies, and audit requirements.
- Produce and maintain reporting, metrics, and audit evidence for compliance reviews.
- Conduct audit testing and generate reports for controls monitored by the release management team.
What You'll Need:
- An associate's degree in computer science or a related field is required; a bachelor's degree is preferred.
- 4-6 years of comparable work experience with knowledge of the software development lifecycle.
- Knowledge of release management processes.
- Experience with Agile, Scrum, and Kanban principles and practices.
- Guide Release Coordinators with priorities for ensuring deadlines and engagements are completed within the service level agreements in our standards.
- Knowledge of CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery) and Azure DevOps practices within Change/Release Management.
- Ability to express technical information to the users in a non-technical manner.
About us
AgFirst Farm Credit Bank provides financing, as well as technology and other value-added services, to association partners so they can lend to rural residents and agricultural operations of all sizes. We take pride in investing in our employees, our partners and our community.
Find out more on AgFirst.com, and follow us on LinkedIn!
Job Description
Lead Release Manager (Hybrid - Columbia, SC)
The Lead Release Manager oversees the planning, coordination, and governance of software releases to ensure timely, secure, and compliant deployments. This role acts as the central point of contact for release activities, enforces process adherence, and drives continuous improvement in release management practices.
What You'll Do:
Release Planning and Coordination:
- Develop and maintain release schedules and calendars in collaboration with development and operations teams.
- Coordinate release timelines to ensure alignment across cross-functional teams.
- Schedule and manage deployments across all required environments.
- Define and continuously improve release management processes and standards.
- Resolve conflicts and bottlenecks during the release cycle to maintain delivery predictability.
Collaboration and Communication:
- Serve as the primary point of contact for all release-related activities.
- Ensure all required sign-offs and reviews are completed in accordance with change management procedures.
- Communicate release status, risks, and issues to stakeholders in a timely manner.
- Mentor application teams on release and change management policies and best practices.
Governance and Compliance:
- Verify that all releases meet organizational standards, security policies, and audit requirements.
- Produce and maintain reporting, metrics, and audit evidence for compliance reviews.
- Conduct audit testing and generate reports for controls monitored by the release management team.
What You'll Need:
- An associate's degree in computer science or a related field is required; a bachelor's degree is preferred.
- 4-6 years of comparable work experience with knowledge of the software development lifecycle.
- Knowledge of release management processes.
- Experience with Agile, Scrum, and Kanban principles and practices.
- Guide Release Coordinators with priorities for ensuring deadlines and engagements are completed within the service level agreements in our standards.
- Knowledge of CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery) and Azure DevOps practices within Change/Release Management.
- Ability to express technical information to the users in a non-technical manner.
About us
AgFirst Farm Credit Bank provides financing, as well as technology and other value-added services, to association partners so they can lend to rural residents and agricultural operations of all sizes. We take pride in investing in our employees, our partners and our community.
Find out more on AgFirst.com, and follow us on LinkedIn!
See all OPT Technical Lead Manager Jobs
Sign up for free to unlock all listings, filter by visa type, and get alerts for new OPT Technical Lead Manager Jobs.
Get Access To All JobsTips for Finding OPT Sponsorship as a Technical Lead Manager
Lead with your dual technical and managerial track record
Technical Lead Managers are expected to write code and manage engineers. Quantify both sides in your resume: systems you architected and team outcomes you drove. Employers want evidence you can operate at both levels simultaneously.
Confirm your role qualifies as STEM OPT
Technical Lead Manager roles typically fall under STEM CIP codes in computer science or engineering. Verify your degree field matches the role's classification so you can apply for the 24-month STEM OPT extension before your initial 12 months expire.
Target companies with existing engineering leadership pipelines
Companies that already promote engineers to management are more likely to have structured sponsorship processes. Look for organizations with staff-plus or engineering manager ladders, where the Technical Lead Manager title appears across multiple teams.
Address OPT authorization proactively in your outreach
Many hiring managers conflate OPT with H-1B visa sponsorship costs. Clarify early that STEM OPT requires only an E-Verify enrollment from the employer, not a visa petition. Removing that misconception often unblocks roles that seemed unavailable.
Build a portfolio that demonstrates team impact, not just personal output
At the Technical Lead Manager level, employers evaluate whether you multiply the team's output. Document examples of mentoring engineers, improving delivery cadence, or reducing system incidents through process changes you introduced.
Start the H-1B conversation before your STEM OPT window closes
STEM OPT gives you roughly three years to secure long-term sponsorship. Raise the H-1B timeline with your manager or recruiter early in your tenure, ideally before the October lottery registration window for your second year.
Technical Lead Manager OPT: Frequently Asked Questions
Can F-1 OPT students work as Technical Lead Managers in the United States?
Yes. Technical Lead Manager is a specialty occupation that typically requires a bachelor's degree or higher in computer science, software engineering, or a related field, making it fully compatible with F-1 OPT work authorization. If your degree is in a qualifying STEM field, you're also eligible for the 24-month STEM OPT extension, giving you up to three years of total work authorization.
Does a Technical Lead Manager role qualify for the STEM OPT extension?
In most cases, yes. Technical Lead Manager roles typically map to STEM CIP codes in computer science or electrical engineering, which qualify for the 24-month extension. The key is that your underlying degree must be in a STEM-designated field. Your Designated School Official can confirm whether your specific degree and job title combination qualifies before you apply.
What do employers need to do to hire a Technical Lead Manager on OPT?
For standard OPT, employers need to do nothing beyond verifying your EAD card during the I-9 process. For STEM OPT, the employer must be enrolled in E-Verify and sign a formal training plan with you. E-Verify enrollment is straightforward for most mid-size to large companies and does not involve the costs or timelines associated with an H-1B petition.
Where can I find Technical Lead Manager jobs that are open to OPT candidates?
Migrate Mate is built specifically for F-1 OPT and international students seeking U.S. jobs with visa-friendly employers. Rather than filtering through thousands of listings that assume permanent work authorization, Migrate Mate surfaces Technical Lead Manager roles from companies that are already structured to hire on OPT and sponsor for H-1B afterward.
Will companies sponsoring Technical Lead Managers on OPT also sponsor H-1B later?
Not automatically, but it's a reasonable expectation to set early. Companies that hire on STEM OPT understand that authorization is temporary. Many use the OPT period to evaluate candidates before committing to H-1B sponsorship. Clarifying the long-term sponsorship path before accepting an offer helps avoid surprises as your STEM OPT end date approaches.