At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a dynamic engineering team to create top-notch digital client experiences.
- Company: Join Hargreaves Lansdown, the UK's leading investment platform with over 1.86 million clients.
- Benefits: Enjoy flexible working, generous holiday, and a range of health and wellness perks.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in a forward-thinking company focused on innovation and client success.
- Qualifications: Significant experience in tech leadership within regulated environments; strong engineering background required.
- Other info: This role offers hybrid working options and values diversity in its workforce.
The predicted salary is between 48000 - 84000 £ per year.
Excited to grow your career? Our purpose is to make it easy for people to save and invest for a better future. We are looking for great people to join us, so please come and invest in YOUR future at Hargreaves Lansdown. We know that sometimes people can be put off applying for a job if they don't tick every box. If you're excited about working for us and have most of the skills or experience we're looking for, please go ahead and apply. We’d love to hear from you!
About the role
HL are looking for an experienced and talented Senior Software Engineering Manager to lead a Unified Client Experience (UCX) product development team in building market-leading solutions for our clients. This is an opportunity to join the UK’s number one investment services company, managing over £149.7 billion in assets for more than 1.86 million UK investors. As a secure, and highly respected brand, HL offers you the chance to make a genuine impact within one of the UK's most innovative and digitally focused businesses.
What You'll Be Doing
- Lead and inspire a cross-functional engineering team (c.40 people across 6 squads) to deliver high-quality digital client experiences.
- Provide structured leadership that ensures consistent delivery, productivity, engagement, and team wellbeing.
- Foster a culture of technical excellence, purpose, and innovation aligned with HL’s values and our regulated environment.
- Support the Head of Development to prepare for a next-generation replatforming of our core trading and customer systems.
- Recruit, develop, and retain top engineering talent, nurturing a high-performance culture with psychological safety at its core.
- Ensure best practices in agile delivery, DevOps, secure engineering, and operational support are upheld across the teams.
- Take ownership of your team's services – ensuring they are secure, reliable, scalable, and continually improved.
- Work closely with Product Managers and stakeholders to align engineering outcomes with business and client value.
- Translate complex technical concepts into business-friendly language and influence decision-making at senior levels.
- Champion continuous learning, cross-functional collaboration, and inclusive team growth.
About You
- Significant experience in senior technology leadership roles within large-scale, regulated environments—ideally in Investment, Asset or Wealth Management.
- Track record of managing and scaling high-performing software engineering teams (40+), balancing delivery and innovation.
- Strong engineering background with the ability to communicate architectural decisions to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- You create guardrails on scope, technical design, NFRs, and quality—then empower your team to innovate within them.
- Client- and product-focused mindset, with experience partnering closely with Product Managers and business teams.
- You embrace ambiguity, foster collaboration, and promote psychological safety to help teams navigate change.
- Hands-on knowledge of secure API design, authentication services, and mobile development (Swift/Kotlin, React Native).
- Exposure to Figma, Vercel, and modern DevOps tools and practices.
- Experience leading engineering efforts across legacy and modern technology stacks, including COBOL and Microsoft technologies.
- Excellent stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence and align cross-functional teams.
Tech Stack
- React (Web and Native) / Typescript / GraphQL / RDMS and NoSQL (Oracle, PostGress, DocumentDB)
- AWS / Terraform IaC / Kubernetes
- .NET / SQL Server
Interview Process
This will be a 3-stage interview process comprising an initial informal call with the hiring manager, followed by two structured interviews.
Working Schedule
37.5 hours per week, with flexibility based on business demands and occasional onsite visits to our London and Bristol offices.
Why us?
Here at HL, we’re the UK’s number 1 investment platform for private investors, based in Bristol. For more than 40 years we’ve helped investors save time, tax and money on their investments. To achieve our mission, we believe we have a workplace like no other, with constant learning, dynamic teams, and a great ethos. We're steered by core values that promote service, quality, innovation, and opportunity in everything we do.
What's on offer?
- Discretionary annual bonus and annual pay review
- 25 days holiday plus bank holidays and 1-day additional Christmas closure
- Option to purchase an additional 5 days holiday
- Flexible working options available, including hybrid working
- Enhanced parental leave
- Pension scheme up to 11% employer contribution
- Income Protection and Life insurance (4 x salary core level of cover)
- Private medical insurance
- Health care cash plans - including optical, dental, and out patient care
- Health screening programme
- Help@hand - confidential support including mental health counselling and remote GP
- Wellhub - unlimited access to fitness provider and wellness coach sessions
- Variety of travel to work schemes with bike storage and shower facilities
- Inhouse barista and deli serving subsidised coffee and sandwiches
- Two paid volunteering days per year
Hargreaves Lansdown is an inclusive employer that values diversity in its workforce. We encourage applications from all individuals without regard to race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, disability or age. This role may also be available on a flexible working or part time basis – please ask the Recruitment & Onboarding team for more information. Please note, we are unable to provide employment sponsorship to candidates.
Senior Software Engineering Manager (UCX - Unified Client Experience) employer: Hargreaves Lansdown
Contact Detail:
Hargreaves Lansdown Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior Software Engineering Manager (UCX - Unified Client Experience)
✨Tip Number 1
Familiarise yourself with Hargreaves Lansdown's core values and mission. Understanding their focus on service, quality, innovation, and opportunity will help you align your discussions during interviews and demonstrate that you're a good cultural fit.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare to discuss your experience in leading large-scale engineering teams, particularly in regulated environments. Be ready to share specific examples of how you've balanced delivery and innovation while fostering a high-performance culture.
✨Tip Number 3
Brush up on your knowledge of secure API design and modern DevOps practices. Given the technical requirements of the role, being able to speak confidently about these topics will set you apart from other candidates.
✨Tip Number 4
Network with current or former employees of Hargreaves Lansdown if possible. Gaining insights into their experiences can provide you with valuable information to tailor your approach and show your genuine interest in the company.
We think you need these skills to ace Senior Software Engineering Manager (UCX - Unified Client Experience)
Some tips for your application 🫡
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV highlights relevant experience in senior technology leadership roles, particularly in regulated environments. Emphasise your track record of managing high-performing software engineering teams and any specific technologies mentioned in the job description.
Craft a Compelling Cover Letter: Use your cover letter to express your enthusiasm for the role and the company. Discuss how your background aligns with Hargreaves Lansdown's mission and values, and provide examples of how you've fostered collaboration and innovation in previous roles.
Showcase Technical Expertise: In your application, highlight your hands-on knowledge of secure API design, mobile development, and familiarity with the tech stack mentioned (React, Typescript, AWS, etc.). This will demonstrate your capability to lead the engineering team effectively.
Prepare for Interviews: Anticipate questions related to your leadership style, experience with agile delivery, and how you manage cross-functional teams. Be ready to discuss specific examples of how you've influenced decision-making and aligned engineering outcomes with business value.
How to prepare for a job interview at Hargreaves Lansdown
✨Showcase Your Leadership Skills
As a Senior Software Engineering Manager, you'll need to demonstrate your ability to lead and inspire a large team. Prepare examples of how you've successfully managed cross-functional teams in the past, focusing on your approach to fostering a high-performance culture and ensuring team wellbeing.
✨Communicate Technical Concepts Clearly
You'll be required to translate complex technical ideas into business-friendly language. Practice explaining your previous projects or architectural decisions in a way that non-technical stakeholders can easily understand, highlighting your ability to influence decision-making at senior levels.
✨Emphasise Your Client-Focused Mindset
Hargreaves Lansdown values a client- and product-focused approach. Be ready to discuss how you've partnered with Product Managers and business teams in the past to align engineering outcomes with client value, showcasing your understanding of the importance of user experience.
✨Prepare for Agile and DevOps Discussions
Given the emphasis on best practices in agile delivery and DevOps, brush up on your knowledge of these methodologies. Be prepared to discuss how you've implemented agile practices in your previous roles and how you ensure secure and reliable software delivery across teams.