Contract – Interim Head of Software Development / Senior Engineering Manager
* Location: Hybrid – Bristol (2-4 Times a Month – Flexible)
* Rate: £600 Inside IR35 (via Umbrella)
* Contract: 6 Months
* Platform Stack: TypeScript, ReactJS, NextJS, AWS, Java/Node Backend
We are seeking a senior technology leader to drive high-impact, business-critical transformation initiatives across a modern digital platform. This role demands strong architectural vision, delivery oversight, and stakeholder engagement across multiple agile engineering teams.
The Role
You will operate in a strategic, hands-off technical leadership capacity, supporting four agile teams (~40 engineers) through large-scale platform modernisation efforts. While you will not have direct line management responsibilities, you will be accountable for technical alignment, DevOps advocacy, architectural consistency, and cross-team delivery enablement.
Key to this role is representing the technology function at programme level — contributing to planning, risk identification, and delivery governance. You'll partner closely with Tech Leads, Enterprise and Solution Architects, and product leadership to guide re-platforming initiatives across Java/Node backends and front-end frameworks (ReactJS, TypeScript), hosted on AWS.
Core Responsibilities
* Provide architectural guidance and ensure alignment with programme-wide technical strategy
* Champion DevOps practices and support CI/CD, observability, and cloud-native tooling adoption
* Represent engineering within programme-level forums, planning sessions, and governance routines
* Ensure delivery is technically robust, scalable, and aligns with evolving business goals
* Mentor senior engineers and technical leads to uplift delivery standards and architectural thinking
* Influence agile maturity and help establish delivery best practices in a scaling environment
* Stay technically involved via architectural reviews, solution shaping, and technical oversight
What we’re looking for:
* Proven track record in leading large-scale engineering transformation and re-platforming initiatives
* Deep understanding of cloud-native architecture (preferably on AWS)
* Experience working across both backend (Java/Node) and modern frontend (React, TypeScript) stacks
* Strategic thinker with strong planning, stakeholder management, and programme representation skills
* Advocate for DevOps culture, tooling, and modern software delivery practice
Interview Process
* 1 Stage Interview – 1 Hour with Senior Leadership over teams or onsite
If this opportunity is of interest please apply now or email kam.hussain@sandersonplc.com
Candidates must be UK based residents and have full rights to work, visa sponsorship is not available.