Our client is a financial services institution seeking a Head of Software Development to join their Technology function in a senior leadership capacity. This is a high-impact role with a clear pathway to Deputy CTO
The Role
This is a strategic leadership position responsible for driving the software engineering function, owning the end-to-end development lifecycle, and shaping the organisation’s technology direction. The role combines hands-on technical expertise with senior stakeholder engagement and leadership of distributed engineering teams There is a defined progression path into a Deputy CTO position, making this an excellent opportunity for an ambitious leader looking to step into executive-level responsibility.
Key Responsibilities
- Define and execute the software development strategy aligned to business objectives
- Partner with senior leadership to shape the technology roadmap
- Own end-to-end software delivery across platforms and products
- Lead architectural decisions and ensure the scalability of systems
- Drive best practice across Agile, DevOps and engineering standards
- Manage and develop offshore and distributed engineering teams
- Build a high-performance, collaborative engineering culture
- Oversee vendor relationships and offshore resource planning
- Contribute to governance, risk and compliance initiatives
Skills and Experience
- Extensive experience in software development with strong Java expertise
- Proven leadership experience managing engineering teams
- Experience overseeing the full software delivery lifecycle
- Background within financial services, ideally capital markets
- Strong understanding of cloud, microservices and modern architectures
- Experience working with offshore or distributed teams
- Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills
- Ability to operate both strategically and hands-on
- (Desirable) Experience in a high-growth or scaling environment
- Exposure to AI or emerging technologies
- Knowledge of regulatory and security frameworks such as SOC2 or ISO
- Background in fintech, SaaS or enterprise platforms
Package
Competitive base salary and performance-related bonus
Equity participation aligned with seniority, Clear progression to Deputy CTO
Hybrid working model, comprehensive benefits package including healthcare and pension