Software development manager

SchemeServe is insurance software like no other.

Built in the cloud for MGAs, brokers and insurers, we deliver unrivalled flexibility, unstoppable innovation and (most importantly) truly Obsessive Support.

Founded in 2000 by our CEO, Adam, we've grown organically-no outside investment, no nonsense. Just strong values, strong culture and a strong team.

We're fully remote (yep, even before the pandemic made it cool), but we do meet up twice a year for epic Team Retreats (March and September). Think idea-sharing, deep connections, good food and the occasional inflatable flamingo.

We're mad about self-development. Want free books? Mentoring? Paid certs? No problem.

We also offer:

Paid days off for charity work

A relaxed, genuinely friendly culture where you can be yourself

We seriously believe this is the best place you'll ever work.

If that excites you-brilliant. It should.

Who we're looking for

We're on the hunt for a UK-based Engineering Manager who's passionate about growing people, not just writing code. This is a hands-off coding role-you won't be shipping production code yourself, but you will be coaching, mentoring, unblocking and empowering the engineers who do.

You'll work closely with our Head of Engineering to lead a multi-disciplinary, fully remote team. Think team-building, goal-setting, career development, and making sure the right people are in the right seats to do their best work.

We're a creative and collaborative crew, always up for a challenge. If you've got a good sense of humour and a "let's do this" attitude, we'll get along just fine.

Your Role:

As a software development manager, your mission is to create the conditions for your team to thrive-delivering high-quality software, frequently and confidently.

This is a mostly hands-off code role, but you will be responsible for ensuring that your team is productive, happy, and supported in doing their best work.

You'll report to the Head of Engineering; and work in close collaboration with our Heads of Role (Frontend, Backend, QA). While those Heads provide technical direction, coding standards, and mentoring within their disciplines, you will focus on people leadership, delivery management and cross-functional collaboration.

In practice, this means you'll:

Coach and develop engineers, helping them grow their skills and careers

Collaborate with Heads of Role to ensure engineers have the guidance and mentorship they need

Contribute to architecture and technical planning conversations, providing strategic input and representing the team's needs

Drive delivery-clearing blockers, ensuring good process, and making sure projects land

Work closely with Product Managers and stakeholders to align work with business goals

Create a positive, inclusive culture rooted in autonomy, psychological safety, and accountability

Monitor team performance, delivery health and morale-and step in where needed

be involved in hiring, onboarding, and personal development initiatives for your team

Advocate for your engineers, their work, and their experience across the organisation

Ensure a healthy delivery cadence-ensuring the team ships quality code frequently (ideally daily or weekly)

What you'll need

4+ years of experience in software development, including at least 2 years managing or leading engineers

A track record of guiding teams through the full software development lifecycle

Strong communication skills-you're clear, concise, and human

Ability to lead with context without micro-managing; you build trust and autonomy

Confidence in architectural conversations and strategic thinking

Calm under pressure, pragmatic in a pinch

A passion for great tech (bonus points for open source enthusiasm)

A strong understanding of business context and product impact

Nice-to-haves

An understanding of cloud hosting, specifically Azure

Knowledge of the benefits and pitfalls of working with a service based architecture

Background in SaaS, fintech, or insurance? Big thumbs up!

A Note for Recruiters

Thanks, but we're good. We're already working with a few trusted partners.

Any unsolicited emails will be politely ignored (or possibly used as examples of bad outreach in internal chats).