Lead Engineer - Shape Strategy, Drive Change - £140k - £160k

Lead Engineer - Shape Strategy, Drive Change
London | Hybrid | Leadership without line management

Are you an engineering leader who still enjoys being close to the tech? We're looking for someone who combines big-picture thinking with hands-on expertise as well as being comfortable shaping architecture across a complex estate while collaborating closely with delivery teams.

You'll work at the heart of a major transformation programme: simplifying systems, scaling cloud adoption (GCP), and building the foundations for the future which includes early-stage work in AI.

You'll guide platform and application teams on engineering best practices, and help create smarter, more sustainable technology.

What you'll be doing:

• Leading strategic architecture decisions for a large, distributed environment

• Influencing across engineering, architecture, and delivery functions

• Working on cloud-first platforms, distributed systems, and big data challenges

• Partnering with senior leaders to shape and evolve tech roadmaps

• Helping drive change without the need for direct people management-though mentoring a small senior team is possible

What you'll bring:

• Experience driving tech strategy at scale, ideally across both platform and application layers

• Strong hands-on grounding in cloud, microservices, CI/CD, and modern software development practices

• A collaborative, practical mindset that balances innovation with delivery

• Background in financial services is a plus, but not essential. Experience from tech-first companies is equally valued

If you're someone who enjoys solving meaningful problems and shaping future-ready platforms, this role offers space to lead, influence, and grow.