Description
The Team – Content (Product Management Organization)
You will join the Content team, which sits within the Product Management organization and is responsible for:
Venue & Market Coverage Strategy
Identifying which exchanges/venues and asset classes to pursue.
Deeply understanding how those venues operate and how their market microstructure works.
Market Rules & Microstructure Expertise
Building a real, detailed understanding of venue rules and behaviours:
Opening auctions and opening phases.
Continuous trading states and intraday auctions.
Circuit breakers, volatility interruptions, and trading halts.
Closing auctions, closing price formation, and special trading sessions.
Normalization Design
Designing the transformation from raw exchange data into the clients normalized format.
Defining how market states and other venue‑specific constructs map into a common schema so customers can treat markets as comparable and consistent.
Implementation Support
Working closely with Engineering to guide delivery of the normalization logic in software.
Acting as the subject‑matter authority for how each market “should look” in our output.
Client‑Facing Expertise
Owning client‑facing documentation that explains market specifics and the clients normalized fields.
Acting as the final source of truth for complex client queries, especially from:
Buy‑side firms (asset managers, hedge funds).
Proprietary trading firms.
Other highly quantitative, market‑microstructure‑focused clients.
Supporting and educating internal teams ( Client Support, Commercial) so they can resolve most queries, escalating the most complex questions to Content.
It is a highly technical, detail‑oriented team working at the intersection of product, market microstructure, and client use cases. The bar for knowledge and rigour is intentionally high.
The Opportunity – Why This Role Exists
The client has already built leading capabilities in equities. The next strategic step is to replicate that success in derivatives, initially focusing on futures and very quickly extending into options.
To do this, we need a snr, deeply xp derivatives market data SME to:
Lead the derivatives data content strategy (venue selection, coverage, prioritization).
Own the normalization and documentation for derivatives markets.
Partner with Engineering to build robust, scalable derivatives data processing pipelines.
Be the internal and external authority on derivatives market microstructure for our clients and teams.
This is one of only a handful of snr, high‑impact hires into the business. The expectation is that this person is better than the hiring manager in this slice of the domain – you will be the go‑to expert for derivatives content.
Role Title
Content Director – Derivatives
(working title; final job title may be refined with HR)
Key Responsibilities
1. Market & Venue Strategy – Derivatives
Define and execute the roadmap to extend the clients deep data coverage across:
Listed futures markets.
Listed options markets (strong preference for someone with deep options expertise).
Identify and prioritize exchanges/venues to onboard ( major derivatives exchanges, including those similar to LME, Cboe, CME and comparable venues).
Build and maintain a detailed understanding of each venue’s:
Trading models and market microstructure.
Product structures (contracts, expiries, strikes, underlyings, etc.).
Auction mechanisms and continuous trading behaviour.
Halt, limit‑up/limit‑down and circuit breaker mechanisms.
Opening, intraday, and closing processes.
2. Normalization Design & Data Modelling
Design how raw derivatives exchange feeds (PCAP, Level 3/market‑by‑order) are transformed into the clients normalized derivatives schema.
Own the specification for normalized fields, including but not limited to:
Market state and trading phase definitions.
Order types, matching models, and priority rules.
Instrument & contract representation (futures vs. options specifics).
Document precise mapping rules from each venue’s native terminology and states into the clients common model, ensuring that:
Customers can analyse derivatives markets across venues consistently.
Internal teams have an unambiguous reference for expected behaviour and edge‑cases.
3. Delivery with Engineering
Work day‑to‑day with Engineers to guide implementation of the derivatives normalization stack.
Support testing and validation of outputs against venue rules and client expectations.
Help debug complex data or behaviour issues by applying a deep understanding of the underlying markets and rules.
4. Client & Internal SME
Act as the final escalation point for complex client queries around derivatives data and behaviour (typically from snr quants, PMs, and market structure specialists on the buy side or in prop firms).
Create and maintain client‑facing documentation that:
Explains key market‑specific nuances.
Describes how the clients normalized fields should be interpreted for derivatives.
Educate and support:
Client Support and Commercial teams, so they can handle most queries independently.
Product and Engineering colleagues, so derivatives behaviour is deeply understood across the org.
5. Leadership, Standards & Culture
Set and uphold a very high bar for quality, rigour, and correctness in derivatives content.
Serve as a thought partner to the Head of Content and snr leadership on how the client builds out its derivatives capabilities.
Contribute to a culture that values substance over “shininess” – deep, correct knowledge and the ability to explain it clearly is what matters most.
Required xp & Skills
Core Domain xp
~10+ years’ xp working with listed derivatives data (futures and/or options) in a highly technical, content‑ or data‑focused role.
Deep, hands‑on xp with:
Exchange market data (ideally Level 3 / market‑by‑order, PCAP or similar).
Derivatives market microstructure, venue rules, and product structures.
Xp likely from:
Market data vendors / providers ( real‑time or historical data/content organisations).
Exchanges or trading venues.
Possibly large financial data firms, indices, or trading technology providers in derivatives‑heavy businesses.
Content / Product Skills
Track record of acting as a content specialist or similar ( running an exchange‑traded data group, derivatives content team, etc.).
XP:
Specifying and designing normalized data models and mapping rules.
Working closely with engineering teams to implement content/normalization logic.
Supporting client‑facing teams with complex, technical queries.
Communication & Documentation
Strong ability to explain complex market behaviour clearly to:
Highly quantitative external clients (quants, PMs, traders).
Non‑specialist internal stakeholders (Support, Commercial, etc.).
Good documentation skills are desirable but deep knowledge and clear verbal communication are more important. We will support with writing resources where needed, provided you can impart your knowledge effectively.
Mindset & Personal Qualities
Genuine subject matter expert who is comfortable being the “final word” on derivatives content.
Pragmatic, collaborative, and comfortable working in a smaller, fast‑growing organisation.
Values trust, autonomy, and outcomes over presenteeism and bureaucracy.
Enjoys mentoring and educating others and raising the bar around them.
Nice to Have
Direct xp at or with major derivatives exchanges ( LME, CME, Cboe or similar).
xp working with global teams and/or offshore content teams.
Exposure to both real‑time and historical/tick history derivatives data.
Familiarity with equities as well as derivatives (equities xp is a plus, but not required).
Working Model & Benefits (Indicative)
Hybrid working: Typically 2 days per week in the London office, with a strong preference for overlap on Tuesday and/or Wednesday to align with key stakeholders.
Work From Anywhere: ~40 days per year working from anywhere in the world (subject to practical connectivity/legality), enabling meaningful travel or time abroad without interrupting work.
Compensation (upon FTE conversion – indicative only):
Base salary expected in the £100,000–£120,000 range for the right xp level.
Bonus: Target bonus percentage (expected of base, subject to grade/HR confirmation).
Culture & Practicalities:
High‑trust environment focused on outcomes rather than clock‑watching.
Supportive of life events and flexibility ( remote working when unable to commute).
Diverse team: ~22 nationalities among ~80 people.
Weekly free team lunch and a modern office environment with ample collaboration space.
Job Title: Director Level / Programme Lead Level - Content (Real-time/historical Trading Data) Director
Location: London, UK
Job Type: Contract
Trading as TEKsystems. Allegis Group Limited, Maxis 2, Western Road, Bracknell, RG12 1RT, United Kingdom. No. 2876353. Allegis Group Limited operates as an Employment Business and Employment Agency as set out in the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003. TEKsystems is a company within the Allegis Group network of companies (collectively referred to as "Allegis Group"). Aerotek, Aston Carter, EASi, Talentis Solutions, TEKsystems, Stamford Consultants and The Stamford Group are Allegis Group brands.