Lead Software Architect

Job Title: Lead Software Architect

Salary: £68,600 to £91,700

Location: Cambridge, UK Hybrid

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time, 35 hours per week

Overview

Are you passionate about shaping technology that delivers impact at scale?

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and motivated Lead Software Architect to help evolve digital platforms that support learners, lecturers, and researchers globally. This role offers the chance to influence the technical foundations of widely used digital products, ensuring they remain scalable, secure, and future-ready.

About the Role

As Lead Software Architect, you will take ownership of software architecture and engineering delivery across a product or platform area.

Working at the intersection of architecture, product, and engineering, you will translate solution designs and product priorities into well-structured, deliverable software. You will ensure technical direction is robust and delivery is maintained from planning through to production and live operation.

You will provide technical leadership across the full engineering lifecycle, including backend and frontend architecture, infrastructure, CI/CD pipelines, and operational readiness. While not primarily hands-on coding, the role requires strong engineering expertise, including the ability to review code, challenge design decisions, and support engineering teams when needed.

A key aspect of the role is leading the adoption of AI-enhanced engineering practices. You will guide teams in using AI-assisted tools across planning, development, and testing, focusing on practical and responsible use that improves quality, efficiency, and maintainability.

You will collaborate closely with architects, product owners, and UX teams to ensure requirements are technically sound, well-defined, and effectively delivered.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the software architecture for a product or platform area, ensuring scalability and long-term sustainability
• Drive engineering delivery from planning through to production
• Translate solution designs into actionable engineering plans with clear scope and dependencies
• Provide technical leadership to distributed engineering teams
• Remove blockers and make pragmatic technical decisions to maintain delivery momentum
• Define and uphold engineering standards, patterns, and best practices
• Lead adoption of AI-assisted development tools and practices
• Oversee operational readiness, including infrastructure, CI/CD, and monitoring
• Evaluate technology and tooling decisions, including build vs buy considerations

This is a hybrid role, typically requiring % of time in a collaborative office environment. Flexible working arrangements may be considered.

About You

You are a senior software architect or engineering leader with a proven track record of delivering complex platforms or digital products end-to-end.

You are comfortable engaging with both technical and non-technical stakeholders and bring strong communication skills, sound judgement, and a pragmatic mindset.

You have experience:

• Translating product and solution designs into engineering delivery
• Leading distributed teams
• Balancing technical quality with delivery pace in complex environments

Additional experience in content platforms, education technology, modern web stacks, or introducing new engineering practices would be beneficial.

Benefits

• 28 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical, dental, and health insurance
• Discretionary annual bonus
• Pension scheme
• Life assurance
• Sustainable travel initiatives
• Flexible benefits package

Recruitment Process

• Application with CV and short questions
• Initial screening call
• First-stage interview with engineering and product stakeholders
• Final-stage interview with senior leadership

Successful candidates will be subject to background checks where required.

Additional Information

The organisation is committed to creating an inclusive and accessible recruitment process and welcomes applications from candidates of all backgrounds. Adjustments can be made during the recruitment process where needed.