Sydney Harbour

A Goal Is a Dream With a Deadline

Software Engineering Leader at talabat

About Me

Software engineering leader based in Dubai, UAE.

A highly organized and conscientious professional with a strong background in software engineering. I bring together technical expertise, team leadership capabilities, and a calm, level-headed approach to problem-solving, especially during critical situations.

Originally from Italy, I've built my career across multiple continents, from Naples to Nice, Sydney, and now Dubai. I am an Italian non coffee-drinker and ocean lover. I'm fluent in Italian, English, and French, with conversational Spanish. Though I must admit, hand gestures remain my most expressive form of communication.

I'm passionate about driving high-performing engineering teams, delivering quality initiatives, and staying at the forefront of emerging technologies including AI automation and cloud infrastructure.

Location Dubai, United Arab Emirates
LinkedIn linkedin.com/in/salvatorebalzano
Salvatore Balzano

Education

2005 - 2009

Bachelor of Engineering

University "Federico II"

Naples, Italy

Bachelor Degree of Engineering, Computer Science. Excepteur sint occana inna tecat cupidatat non proident.

2010 - 2012

Master in Software Engineering

University "Federico II"

Naples, Italy

Master in Software Engineering. Excepteur sint occana inna tecat cupidatat non proident.

2016

Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)

Scrum Alliance

Sydney, Australia

Scrum Master Certification. Excepteur sint occana inna tecat cupidatat non proident.

Experience

Oct 2024 - Present

Senior Engineering Manager

talabat

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Leading engineering teams to deliver innovative solutions in one of the region's leading food and grocery delivery platforms.

Oct 2022 - Sep 2024

Engineering Manager

Gumtree Group

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Managed engineering teams delivering key platform features and improvements for Australia's largest classifieds marketplace.

Nov 2019 - Oct 2022

Engineering Manager, Motors & Technical Lead

eBay Classifieds Group

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Led engineering initiatives across Gumtree AU, Autotrader and Carsguide platforms. Progressed from Technical Lead to Engineering Manager, Motors (reporting to CTO). Drove platform engineering roadmap, team innovation, and mentored engineering teams while overseeing technology processes and vendor integrations.

Nov 2015 - Nov 2019

Software Engineer to Technical Team Lead

News Corp Australia

Greater Sydney Area

Progressed from Software Engineer to Technical Team Lead for platform development. Full stack development with business-driven and test-driven methodologies. Led engineering teams, managed CI/CD platforms, and scaled Australia's largest news websites.

Oct 2012 - Nov 2014

Performance Engineer

EURECOM

Greater Nice Metropolitan Area

Web and network performance analysis based on user experiences. Developed FireLog browser tool and contributed to mPlane network measurement research project.