Head of Software Engineering

Head of Software Engineering

I have partnered with a business on a mission to transform digital experiences at scale. This is a rare opportunity for an experienced Head of Software Engineering candidate who has real influence, owning engineering strategy, shaping architecture, and building a high-performing function from the ground up.

This is not a traditional corporate leadership role. The manager is looking for someone with a startup mindset, commercially aware, hands on, and comfortable operating in ambiguity. You'll bring an entrepreneurial approach, balancing speed with quality, and innovation with scalability.

Experience

• Define and execute the engineering strategy across digital, product and platform ecosystems.
• Lead end to end delivery, ensuring high quality, scalable, and reliable releases.
• Partner closely with Product and Design as part of a leadership trio, shaping vision and outcomes.
• Establish modern engineering standards (cloud first, CI/CD, automation, observability, secure SDLC).
• Drive operational excellence across performance, resilience, and security.
• Build and scale a multi site engineering organisation, embedding a culture of ownership and continuous improvement.
• Champion innovation and AI adoption where it delivers measurable business value.
• Improve developer experience and productivity through tooling and automation.
• Proven experience as a senior engineering leader (Head of / Director / VP level).
• Strong hands on technical background with credibility across engineering teams.
• Deep expertise in Microsoft ecosystems, modern cloud architectures, and distributed systems.
• Strong knowledge of Web, Mobile, FE technologies such as JavaScript, React, Kotlin, .Net, Azure.
• Experience implementing CI/CD pipelines, observability, and secure engineering practices.
• Track record of scaling teams and delivering in fast paced, evolving environments.
• Experience working in or with startup / scale up environments.
• Commercially aware, data driven, and decisive.
• Shape and lead engineering at a strategic, group wide level.
• Join a business investing heavily in digital transformation and innovation.
• Work in a high impact leadership role with real autonomy.

You're someone who:

• Thrives in ambiguity and change.
• Thinks like a founder, not just an operator.
• Balances technical depth with business impact.
• Leads from the front-comfortable being both strategic and hands on.

If you're ready to take ownership of a large scale engineering function while operating with the agility and mindset of a startup, this is a role worth exploring.

Competitive salary on offer, hybrid working with 2 3 days required in the office based in central London.

We are committed to ensuring that all job applicants are treated equally, without discrimination because of gender, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, gender reassignment, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability or age.