Lead Observability Engineer / Senior Software Engineer in London

Lead Observability Engineer / Senior Software Engineer in London

London Full-Time 63000 - 77000 £ / year (est.) Home office (partial)
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At a Glance

  • Tasks: Join a dynamic team to monitor and enhance our systems with innovative observability solutions.
  • Company: Capital One, a top-rated workplace focused on diversity and inclusion.
  • Benefits: Enjoy competitive pay, extensive training, and a comprehensive benefits package.
  • Other info: Hybrid work model with inspiring office facilities and excellent career growth opportunities.
  • Why this job: Make a real impact in tech while growing your skills in a supportive environment.
  • Qualifications: Experience in software engineering and a passion for problem-solving and learning new technologies.

The predicted salary is between 63000 - 77000 £ per year.

Location: Nottingham - Hybrid Working Pattern: 3 days in-office (Tuesday-Thursday) and 2 days remote.

Our Mission

We’re on a mission to be a force for good in lending. Throughout our almost 30-year history, we’ve consistently been recognised as a great place to work; in 2026, Capital One was officially ranked 9th in the UK’s Best Workplaces™ list.

You and the Role

This role is part of the cross-functional engineering team responsible for monitoring Capital One UK’s systems and applications, designing and enabling the platforms and software features that support our UK Observability estate. Working in and across tech teams is a natural part of our outcome-based culture, so you’ll have plenty of opportunity to talk, coach, and learn with many great and diverse individuals.

You do not need to be an expert in all of these areas; we are primarily looking for excellent problem solvers with a strong willingness to learn and adapt to new technologies:

  • Observability & Telemetry tools, including OTel, Grafana, and Prometheus
  • Good understanding of programming languages used for high-performance engineering such as Golang and Java
  • AWS, leveraging cloud-based services such as Fargate, Lambda, and Kubernetes implementations
  • AI tooling and prompt engineering to innovate and automate engineering workflows
  • CI/CD & DevOps tools, such as Jenkins, secrets management tools, Jira, and Infrastructure as Code
  • Agile methodologies, including Scrum and Kanban frameworks

And meet most of the following:

  • You have extensive, demonstrable knowledge of building platforms that are secure, testable, and perform at scale
  • You enjoy taking end-to-end responsibility for the technical design, implementation, and operational considerations of key deliverables
  • You want to design new technical solutions, think strategically about architectural decisions, and advocate for their adoption across wider engineering teams
  • You drive engineering best practices—such as Operational Excellence, Security, and Quality—and like setting standards across teams
  • You advocate for code quality, encouraging approaches such as pair programming, TDD, and BDD
  • You enjoy leading and mentoring, working closely with colleagues to share knowledge, cross-skill, and stand in for the Engineering Manager when needed
  • You thrive in a fast-paced environment and can easily pivot to meet evolving business priorities
  • You enjoy hybrid working, with Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in our bright offices

Where and how you'll work

This is a permanent position based in our Nottingham office. We embrace a hybrid approach to work. You'll spend three days a week in the office (Tuesday-Thursday), with Monday and Friday being dedicated work-from-home days. Our offices are designed to inspire and support you. At our Nottingham head office, you'll find an on-site gym, subsidised restaurant, mindfulness and music rooms, and our dedicated Learning Loft.

What’s in it for you

We invest in the growth of our people alongside our business. You will have extensive opportunities to learn and develop your career through our Capital One University training programmes and appropriate external providers, including access to up to £5,000 in funding for external qualifications. In addition to career development, our comprehensive benefits package is designed to grow with you, ensuring your wellbeing is prioritised at every stage of your career:

  • Wealth & Future: Competitive pension and performance-based bonus schemes
  • Holidays: Generous annual leave entitlement with options for flexible benefits like season-ticket loans and cycle-to-work schemes
  • Health: Access premium care through our private medical insurance and mindfulness resources
  • Family Support: We champion your milestones with enhanced parental leave

A full list of our benefits is available here.

What you should know about how we recruit

We pride ourselves on hiring the best people, not the same people. Building diverse and inclusive teams is the right thing to do and the smart thing to do. We want to work with top talent: whoever you are, whatever you look like, wherever you come from. We know it’s about what you do, not just what you say. That’s why we make our recruitment process fair and accessible. And we offer benefits that attract people at all ages and stages. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging at our core. We empower our associates to do great work by creating an inclusive culture—one that values diverse perspectives, fosters collaboration and encourages innovative ideas—and a place where associates of all backgrounds can thrive by bringing their most authentic selves to work. We call this our Culture of Belonging, and it rests at the heart of our business.

We partner with organisations including the Women in Finance and Race At Work Charters, Stonewall, and upReach to find people from every walk of life and help them thrive with us. Our associate-led Business Resource Groups were created to help support our diverse population and include over 10 groups across our offices (such as REACH, OutFront, Mind Your Mind, Women in Tech, EmpowHER, and Enabled). Because each Business Resource Group is as unique as the population it serves, they offer a range of activities, networking opportunities, special events and learning programs to associates. Capital One is committed to diversity in the workplace.

If you require a reasonable adjustment, please contact. All information will be kept confidential and will only be used for the purpose of applying a reasonable adjustment.

Lead Observability Engineer / Senior Software Engineer in London employer: Capital One Group

Capital One is an exceptional employer, offering a vibrant work culture that prioritises employee growth and well-being. With a hybrid working model, extensive training opportunities through Capital One University, and a comprehensive benefits package, employees are supported in both their professional and personal lives. The Nottingham office features inspiring facilities, including an on-site gym and mindfulness rooms, fostering a collaborative environment where diverse perspectives thrive.

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Contact Details:

Capital One Group Recruitment Team

StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫

We think this is how you could land Lead Observability Engineer / Senior Software Engineer in London

Join Local Tech Meetups

Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Capital One Group or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!

Contribute to Open Source Projects

Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Capital One Group.

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Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles

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We think you need these skills to ace Lead Observability Engineer / Senior Software Engineer in London

Observability & Telemetry tools
OTel
Grafana
Prometheus
Golang
Java
AWS

Some tips for your application 🫡

Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.

Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Capital One Group.

Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Capital One Group and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!

Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!

How to prepare for a job interview at Capital One Group

Brush Up on Your Coding Skills

For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.

Know Your Tools and Frameworks

Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Capital One Group uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.

Showcase Your Projects

Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.

Prepare for Behavioural Questions

While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.