DIRECTOR OF TECHNOLOGY · TARGET

Bhanu
Birani

Engineering leader · Bengaluru, India

I build and scale high-performing product engineering teams — from zero to millions of users. I bring a rare mix of strategic vision and hands-on execution, having led engineering teams across loyalty, authentication, payments, and mobile at enterprise scale.

15+ Years in tech
50+ Engineers led
$1B+ Business lift delivered
4+ Teams led

COMPANIES

Target Visa Avaya CX100

ABOUT ME

Builder. Leader. Technologist.

Experienced technology leader with a proven track record of building product and engineering teams from the ground up. I drive cross-functional teams with a boundaryless mindset, enhance operational efficiency, and foster cultures of collaboration and innovation.

I bring a unique blend of strategic thinking and execution excellence — shaping long-term product vision while delivering tangible results at speed. I thrive in both startup and corporate settings, knowing how to build a product in a month and scale it over time to serve millions of users.

SPECIALTIES

High-performance team building Cross-functional leadership Technology partnerships Engineering at scale Product strategy Frontend technologies AI powered products Startup to enterprise

Publications

  • iOS Forensics Cookbook
  • Getting Started with Flurry Analytics
  • iOS Game Programming Cookbook

Honors & Awards

  • Won Avaya Hackathon 2016
  • Significant Contribution Award
  • SPOT Award (Special Recognition)
  • B.Tech with Honors
  • Star Award

Certifications

CAREER

Experience

Target 4 years · Bengaluru
Director of Technology — Digital
January 2026 – Present
Leading high-performing leaders and teams driving Loyalty, Lists, Registries, Gifting, Accounts, Profile, Authentication experiences, and Privacy within the Digital portfolio.
Director of Engineering — Digital
April 2024 – December 2025
Led multiple full-stack teams across flagship applications and the Target.com ecosystem. Provided engineering leadership for the "Digital – Know Me, Reward Me" portfolio including Target Circle, Accounts, Profile, Login and Enrollment (re-architected authentication experience delivering over $200M in business lift), and Privacy.
Senior Engineering Manager — Digital (Engage Portfolio)
April 2022 – March 2024
Built and scaled high-performing engineering teams from the ground up to 30+ FTEs. Established strong second-line leadership. Led flagship teams across Target Circle, Deals, Gift Registry, Basket Building, and Platform. Played a key role in the Target Circle rebranding initiative — one of the major enterprise-wide initiatives.
Visa 5 years · Bengaluru
Engineering Manager
May 2021 – May 2022
Built and led engineering teams of full-time and contingent staff. Drove product delivery while leading process improvements. Led teams developing Visa In-App Provisioning SDKs and the Visa Digital Commerce white-label application.
Staff Software Engineer
June 2017 – April 2021
Led a team of engineers to architect, develop, deploy, and maintain Visa's mobile products and SDKs. Built automation pipelines to streamline release and distribution. Worked on mVisa SDK and other white-label mobile solutions.
Target Bengaluru
Senior Engineer
October 2016 – June 2017
Designed and developed Target's mobility products supporting Registry and Wishlist. Implemented CI/CD pipelines and worked on payments systems building scalable Java-based web applications and backend modules for payment gateway integrations.
Avaya Inc. Bengaluru
Senior Software Engineer (R&D)
July 2015 – September 2016
Developed SIP and VoIP-based telecommunication applications for iOS and macOS. Integrated IoT stacks with telecom products. Presented R&D solutions at global partner conferences.
CX100 Bengaluru
Senior Software Engineer
August 2012 – June 2015
Worked on ML-based email intelligence and delivered multiple mobile products. Built iBeacon, content-driven and radio-based applications. Developed streaming platforms with 255+ radio stations. Created interactive iPad novels using Cocos2d/Box2D. Implemented image processing using ImageMagick and OpenCV.
Packt
Author
June 2013 – November 2016
Published three technical books on iOS development, analytics, and forensics.
PPS Ltd Jodhpur
Application Developer
2011 – 2012
Built reusable AI components and mobile games using Cocos2d and Box2d.

EXPERTISE

Skills

Leadership

Technical Leadership Team Building Engineering Management Cross-functional Mentorship Strategic Planning

Product & Delivery

Product Strategy Agile / Scrum CI/CD DevOps Release Automation Project Management

Frontend & Mobile

iOS (Swift / ObjC) React JavaScript Cocos2d Mobile SDKs

Backend & Platforms

Java SIP / VoIP Payment Gateways REST APIs Image Processing

Domains

Loyalty & Rewards Authentication Payments Fintech eCommerce Telecom

Soft skills

Communication Stakeholder Management Executive Presence Thought Leadership

CONTACT

Let's connect.

Open to conversations around technology leadership, engineering culture, and product strategy. Also happy to chat about mentorship, speaking opportunities, or book topics.

@
Email
bhanubirani@gmail.com
in
LinkedIn
linkedin.com/in/bhanubirani
www
Website
bhanubirani.in

EDUCATION

B.Tech - Computer Science & Engineering
Rajasthan Technical University