We’re partnering with a high-growth, international Financial Services business to appoint a Head of Software Development. This is a senior leadership role with a clear progression path to Deputy CTO, offering both strategic influence and hands‑on technical impact.
You’ll lead the engineering organisation end‑to‑end, shape the technology roadmap alongside the CTO and C‑suite, and build high‑performing onshore and offshore teams in a regulated, fast‑scaling environment.
The Role
As Head of Software Development, you will:
* Own the full software delivery lifecycle across multiple products and platforms
* Define and execute the engineering strategy aligned to business objectives
* Lead architecture, platform, and scalability decisions
* Represent engineering at executive and board level
* Remain hands‑on in Java where needed, setting technical standards and direction
* Lead and scale a distributed engineering team (10+ engineers, onshore & offshore)
* Drive agile delivery, CI/CD maturity, and engineering performance metrics
* Build strong offshore delivery models, governance, and communication frameworks
* Hire, mentor, and develop senior engineering talent
* Foster a high-performance, inclusive engineering culture
* Act as deputy to the CTO when required
* Influence major technology, vendor, and investment decisions
* Lead technology governance, security, and compliance initiatives
What We’re Looking For
* 10+ years’ Java development experience, with 5+ years in engineering leadership
* Proven experience leading offshore / distributed teams
* Strong background in full‑stack, platform, or enterprise engineering
* Experience owning end‑to‑end software delivery
* Background in Financial Services, fintech, or regulated environments
Nice to have
* VP Engineering / Head of Engineering experience
* Scale‑up or high‑growth environment exposure
* Knowledge of SOC 2, ISO 27001, and GDPR
* SaaS, fintech, or trading systems experience (e.g. Calypso)
* Competitive base salary + performance bonus
* Equity options
* Clear progression path to Deputy CTO
* Hybrid working (3 days onsite)
* Generous learning & conference budget
* Private healthcare, pension, life assurance & critical illness cover
* Leadership team that genuinely values engineering
#J-18808-Ljbffr