Lead Hardware Management Engineer – Global Quantitative Trading Firm | Up to £350k TC
A globally renowned quantitative trading firm is seeking a highly skilled Hardware Management Engineer to join its Research Infrastructure Engineering team. This group builds and optimises the high-performance platforms that underpin research and trading - spanning operating systems, workload scheduling, HPC, large-scale storage, and ultra-low latency networking.
In this role, you will partner directly with researchers and traders, driving the design, optimisation, and scalability of Linux-based systems that enable next-generation trading strategies. This is a hands-on, lead position with strong technical ownership, where your expertise in hardware, kernel tuning, and system performance will have a visible impact.
Responsibilities
* Engineer and manage high-performance Linux-based platforms supporting research and trading.
* Design and optimise workload scheduling, large-scale storage, and SDLC frameworks.
* Deliver Linux Kernel tuning and low-latency network optimisation.
* Implement telemetry collection and instrumentation for high-throughput applications.
* Stay ahead of industry trends, generating POCs for emerging technologies.
* Collaborate with research and trading teams to ensure systems performance meets evolving strategy needs.
Company:
* Technology-led culture – Drives both trading and internal investment decisions
* c.1,000 employees – Large enough for scale, small enough for individual impact
* New state-of-the-art London HQ – Core hub for engineering and trading, Free On-Site Gym
* Flat structure – Direct access to senior engineers and C-level leaders
* Strong Glassdoor rating
* Great work life balance (frequently quoted on Glassdoor) – Free Breakfast and Lunch, 2 days per week WFH
* Competitive Compensation – Year 1 guaranteed bonus, 13% pension, Potential for Sign-On Bonuses
Requirements:
* 10+ years’ Linux administration or platform engineering experience.
* Expertise in Linux Kernel tuning and hardware optimisation.
* Strong understanding of networking and storage performance.
* Experience with DevOps tooling (Terraform/Ansible).
* CI/CD pipeline experience (GitLab, Jenkins preferred).
* Programming/scripting ability in Python, Golang, or similar.
* Monitoring experience with Splunk, Prometheus, Grafana.
* Containerisation exposure (Docker, Kubernetes).
* Technical leadership experience is strongly advantageous.