Skip to main content

About the DE SIG

Our Mission Statement​

"Our mission is to facilitate a trusted, accredited network of distinguished engineers and senior technology leaders who provide independent advice, strategic guidance and mentorship to worthy causes and Communities. Through our collective efforts, we seek to empower impactful initiatives, promote responsible use of technology, and do good in society beyond the boundaries of our industry roles."

Who We Are​

We are a Community of Distinguished Engineers — technical experts from leading multinational financial institutions. We act as a community independent from any organisational biases.

As a Special Interest Group (SIG) within the Fintech Open Source Foundation (FINOS), we are united by a shared mission to use our expertise for positive societal impact.

How We Can Help​

We offer technical leadership and guidance to organisations with limited access to technical expertise, helping them scale innovation and define sustainable technology strategies.

Our goal is to amplify our societal impact by becoming a trusted advisor and partner with organisations who need our help in setting technology direction and help them solve the most complex challenges.

What We Do​

We bring deep technical experience to bear on your toughest challenges. Our capabilities include:

  • Defining long-term technology direction
  • Solving complex, large-scale technical problems
  • Mentoring senior engineers and influencing tech leads
  • Aligning engineering efforts with strategic business goals
  • Shaping architectural decisions across teams and organizations
  • Driving innovation through research and prototyping
  • Helping you understand implications of emerging technologies

How We Work: Our Working Groups​

Our work is organized into focused working groups, each tackling a distinct area of our mission:

Outreach Working Group (active)​

Partners with charities and social impact organisations that would not normally have access to independent, high-level technical guidance. DEs from different firms collaborate to conduct technology landscape reviews, provide strategic technical guidance, enable in-house teams, and deliver open-source driven support — always through respectful, organisation-led partnerships.

Learn more about the Outreach Working Group →

Inclusive Engineering Working Group (active)​

Focuses on mentoring, allyship, and inclusive technology practices — mentoring across career stages, prioritizing underrepresented groups, ethical behavioral design (Nudge Unit), and education through talks, webinars, and school outreach.

Learn more about the Inclusive Engineering Working Group →

DE Role Definition Working Group (completed)​

Delivered a standard definition for the Distinguished Engineer role in Financial Services, providing clarity and consistency for organisations establishing or evolving their own DE programmes.

Why Choose the Distinguished Engineer SIG?​

We operate by a core set of guiding principles:

  • We listen first
  • We collaborate openly
  • We learn continuously
  • We innovate with purpose

Above all, we share our expertise with humility, passion, and dedication — without judgment, and without prejudice. Our goal is to leave every organization and person we work with stronger, smarter, and better equipped for the future.