Platform Lead in Leicester

Platform Lead in Leicester

Leicester Full-Time 70000 - 90000 € / year (est.) No home office possible
Blue Light Card Ltd

At a Glance

  • Tasks: Lead and develop the Platform Engineering team, shaping its direction and impact.
  • Company: Join Blue Light Card, a top-rated workplace committed to culture and wellbeing.
  • Benefits: Enjoy hybrid working, generous holidays, bonuses, and health support.
  • Other info: Be part of a fun, collaborative environment with excellent growth opportunities.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact by building a trusted platform for product teams.
  • Qualifications: Proven experience in platform leadership and deep AWS expertise required.

The predicted salary is between 70000 - 90000 € per year.

We’re looking for a Platform Lead to join our Engineering team at Blue Light Card at a pivotal moment. This is a foundational role, with the platform function just getting started and a real opportunity to shape its direction, culture, and impact from the ground up.

As Platform Lead, you’ll own platform engineering end to end, setting the strategy, building the team, and ensuring product squads have the tooling, infrastructure, and paved roads they need to deliver with confidence. You’ll define what “production ready” means across the organisation and work closely with Staff Engineers and Engineering Managers to make the right technical choices the easiest ones to make.

This is a hands‑on leadership role that balances deep technical involvement with organisational impact. You’ll stay close to the technology and the challenges teams face, while owning the platform roadmap, influencing technical direction, and building a platform team that product squads trust and rely on.

What you’ll do

  • Lead and develop the Platform Engineering team, creating an environment where engineers and squads can thrive
  • Own the platform roadmap, ensuring it delivers clear value to product teams and supports business growth
  • Act as the trusted technical authority for platform and infrastructure decisions across engineering
  • Set clear, practical production readiness standards covering reliability, observability, security, scalability, and cost
  • Build and evolve paved‑road platform solutions, reference architectures, and reusable tooling
  • Embed strong operational practices, including SLOs, alerting, and effective incident management
  • Use operational data and insights to continuously improve platform reliability, performance, and efficiency
  • Enable product teams to be increasingly self‑sufficient through great documentation, collaboration, and thoughtful use of automation and AI

What you’ll bring

  • Proven experience leading a Platform, Infrastructure, or SRE function in a product led engineering organisation
  • Deep, hands‑on AWS expertise across compute, networking, storage, serverless, and security
  • Strong Terraform experience, building reusable infrastructure‑as‑code that teams actively adopt
  • Experience defining and operating SLOs, observability standards, and incident management at scale
  • Ability to set technical direction and communicate it clearly to both technical and nontechnical stakeholders
  • A strong people focus, with a track record of mentoring engineers and building high performing teams
  • Experience with CI/CD pipelines, monitoring and logging platforms, and modern platform engineering practices
  • A commercial mindset, connecting platform investment to delivery speed, cost efficiency, and positive business outcomes

Our Culture

Our members, partners and colleagues are at the heart of everything we do. Our colleagues are integral to helping create the unique experience we deliver, so we’re genuinely committed to creating a place where our team love to work, and people want to join. We work as a team and try to have a bit of fun while we do it, and we recognise the importance of culture and the positive impact it can have on performance for you, the team, our organisation and our members. We believe in attracting the best talent no matter where you are, and have a hybrid working model, with colleagues based in London, the East Midlands and around the country.

We’re also officially recognised as a Top 100 Great Place To Work UK, one of the UK’s Best Workplaces for Wellbeing, Top 100 Best Workplaces for Women and recognised as investors in wellbeing by Investors in People.

What We Offer

  • Hybrid working
  • 25 days plus public holidays, buy and sell and an additional day off for your birthday
  • A company bonus scheme
  • Great social events e.g., Christmas party, family fun day, summer party, sports matches
  • Learning and development opportunities
  • Group auto‑enrolment pension plan
  • Enhanced maternity, paternity, sick pay
  • Company funded private medical insurance
  • Healthcare cashback plan
  • Employee assistance programme (including mental health support)
  • Modern office space with onsite gym including access to free HIIT & stretch classes, games area, chill‑out areas, book club, and more, when you visit our HQ in Cossington

Platform Lead in Leicester employer: Blue Light Card Ltd

At Blue Light Card, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and innovative work culture. As a Platform Lead, you'll have the unique opportunity to shape our platform engineering function while enjoying a hybrid working model, comprehensive benefits including enhanced parental leave and private medical insurance, and a commitment to employee wellbeing. Our recognition as a Top 100 Great Place To Work UK reflects our dedication to creating an environment where you can thrive both personally and professionally.

Blue Light Card Ltd

Contact Detail:

Blue Light Card Ltd Recruiting Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Platform Lead in Leicester

Tip Number 1

Network like a pro! Reach out to current employees at Blue Light Card on LinkedIn or other platforms. Ask them about their experiences and the company culture. This not only shows your interest but can also give you insider info that might help you stand out in interviews.

Tip Number 2

Prepare for technical discussions! As a Platform Lead, you'll need to showcase your deep AWS expertise and Terraform skills. Brush up on your knowledge and be ready to discuss how you've tackled challenges in previous roles. We want to see your hands-on experience shine!

Tip Number 3

Showcase your leadership style! Think about how you've built high-performing teams in the past. Be ready to share specific examples of mentoring engineers and fostering collaboration. We love to see candidates who can inspire and lead others!

Tip Number 4

Apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen by the right people. Plus, it shows you're genuinely interested in joining our team at Blue Light Card. Don’t miss out on this opportunity!

We think you need these skills to ace Platform Lead in Leicester

Platform Engineering
AWS Expertise
Terraform
Infrastructure as Code
SLO Definition and Operation
Observability Standards
Incident Management

Some tips for your application 🫡

Tailor Your Application:Make sure to customise your CV and cover letter for the Platform Lead role. Highlight your experience with platform engineering, AWS, and Terraform, as these are key areas we’re looking for. Show us how your skills align with our needs!

Showcase Your Leadership Skills:As a hands-on leader, it’s important to demonstrate your ability to mentor and develop teams. Share examples of how you’ve built high-performing teams and fostered a collaborative environment. We want to see your people focus shine through!

Be Clear and Concise:When writing your application, keep it clear and to the point. Use straightforward language to explain your technical expertise and how it relates to the role. We appreciate clarity, especially when it comes to technical direction!

Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it shows us you’re keen on joining our team at Blue Light Card!

How to prepare for a job interview at Blue Light Card Ltd

Know Your Platform Inside Out

Before the interview, dive deep into platform engineering concepts, especially around AWS and Terraform. Be ready to discuss your hands-on experience and how you've tackled challenges in previous roles. This will show that you’re not just familiar with the tech but can also lead a team effectively.

Showcase Your Leadership Style

Prepare examples of how you've built and developed high-performing teams. Think about specific instances where you mentored engineers or influenced technical decisions. This will help demonstrate your people focus and ability to create an environment where teams thrive.

Understand the Business Impact

Be ready to connect your technical expertise to business outcomes. Discuss how your platform strategies have improved delivery speed, cost efficiency, or overall performance in past roles. This shows that you understand the bigger picture and can align technical direction with business goals.

Ask Insightful Questions

Prepare thoughtful questions about the company’s platform roadmap and culture. Inquire about their current challenges and how they envision the role evolving. This not only shows your interest but also helps you gauge if the company aligns with your values and career aspirations.