IT Director in London

CapsLock is a global IT marketing company that pioneers unique, scalable customer acquisition solutions for B2C clients. We solve complex sales challenges across a wide range of industries, primarily for large North American partners. By integrating our expertise in Digital Marketing, IT, Design, AI-driven analytics, proprietary MarTech, and sales consulting we deliver powerful, data-informed customer acquisition solutions.

At CapsLock, people, technology, and forward-thinking innovation lie at the heart of everything we do. Our core values guide our approach to building and refining an internal product ecosystem that powers profitable acquisition models, flexible scaling, and optimized operations. Our diverse, global team, fluent in over 10 languages, thrives on open collaboration and the exchange of new ideas, pushing boundaries to ensure our clients’ success.

The IT Director will report directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and will be a key leader responsible for building a scalable, reliable, and secure technology foundation for CapsLock's internal products: MarTech platform, AI Agents, Automation tools. You will directly lead senior technical leaders and functions: Head of Engineering, Head of QA, Security Manager, and the AI Team. In close partnership with the Product Director, you will turn strategy into predictable delivery, modernize our engineering and quality practices, and ensure our platforms are ready to scale with performance marketing demands.

This role is for a hands-on technology leader who can operate at two levels: (1) collaboration with cross-functional teams and clear reporting to executive-level, and (2) deep collaboration with internal engineering team and domain teams to solve complex systems, data, and automation challenges.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the technology organization through senior leaders
• Build a high-performance engineering culture based on innovation, continuous improvement, technical excellence, accountability and AI-driven mindset
• Partner tightly with the Product Director to align product vision, technical strategy, capacity planning, and quarterly delivery commitments
• Collaborate with executive leadership on strategy, prioritization, and investment decisions (people, tooling, infrastructure)
• Create a transparent reporting rhythm for stakeholders
• Define and drive a multi-year technology strategy
• Establish an engineering operating system: planning cadence, execution rituals, delivery metrics, decision logs, and cross-team coordination that scales
• Own the technical roadmap alongside Product
• Make pragmatic build-vs-buy decisions; evaluate vendors and technologies with a clear ROI and long-term maintainability lens
• Implement agile methodologies
• Ensure security, compliance, and risk management across all IT systems
• Ensure predictable, high-quality delivery across Engineering and AI/R&D
• Set standards for product specifications handoff, technical design reviews, estimation, and quality gates
• Improve engineering throughput and quality using measurable indicators and targeted improvements
• Champion pragmatic documentation
• Lead QA strategy through the Head of QA
• Implement reliability practices
• Own release governance and staged rollouts
• Guide the AI Team to deliver production-grade AI capabilities, moving from prototypes to reliable systems
• Partner with Product to identify high-leverage AI opportunities and deliver measurable impact
• Set responsible AI practices: data privacy, model governance, human-in-the-loop controls where appropriate, and ongoing quality monitoring
• Shape org design and hiring plans to support growth
• Coach and mentor leaders; establish career ladders and performance expectations that retain top talent
• Create a learning culture

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in software engineering, including 4+ years in senior leadership roles (Director/Head/Engineering Manager leading managers)
• Proven experience leading multiple teams and senior leaders across Engineering, QA, and Security (directly or via strong managers)
• Strong background in building and scaling high-availability systems, automation platforms, and data-heavy products with clear performance requirements
• Hands-on understanding of modern software architecture (services, APIs, event-driven systems) and pragmatic technical decision-making
• Strong DevOps and cloud fundamentals: CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code, containerization, server-less technologies, observability, and operational excellence
• Track record of improving delivery predictability and quality through process, metrics, and technical leadership - not bureaucracy
• Strong security mindset: experience implementing secure practices and partnering with security/compliance functions
• Experience in collaborating with remote teams across different cultures and time zones
• Experience with agile methodologies and modern software development practices

Essential Qualities

• People-first leader who raises standards while building trust, clarity, and a sustainable pace
• Systems thinker who can connect product outcomes, engineering constraints, and operational realities into one plan
• Calm, decisive, and accountable under pressure (incidents, tight deadlines, high-stakes automation)
• High ownership and high degree of autonomy: you build structure where needed, remove friction, and make trade-offs explicit
• Strong collaborator: you are at your best when Engineering and Product are aligned and moving as one team
• Ability to communicate clearly with executives and non-technical stakeholders, and to report progress and risk with crisp narratives
• Strategic thinker with ability to balance short-term needs and long-term objectives
• Comfortable working in fast-moving environments where business impact, uptime, and correctness matter

Nice to have

• Experience with performance marketing ecosystems (Meta, Google, TikTok) and the realities of CPA/ROAS optimization, pacing, and attribution
• Experience with AI/ML technologies and implementing AI-driven solutions
• Knowledge of marketing technology platforms and digital marketing ecosystem
• Experience with cloud infrastructure and microservices architecture
• Experience with data platforms (lake/warehouse, ELT pipelines, event tracking, data contracts) and analytics governance
• Familiarity with common stacks used for high-scale web services and data products (e.g., PHP, Node.js, Go; PostgreSQL or similar)
• Professional degree in Computer Science, IT, or related field: bachelor degree, master degree, MBA, etc.

Why do we deserve your attention?

• Remote Work - we are a truly remote-first company. You choose where you feel the most productive and comfortable to make an impact.
• Paid Time Off - work-life balance matters to us, and we support it with paid time off for rest, personal time, or simply doing what makes you happy.
• Unlimited Sick Days - your health matters. Take the time you need to rest and recover - we’ll be here when you’re ready to return.
• Ongoing Learning - we believe in curiosity and growth. That’s why we support continuous learning with workshops, online courses, conferences, and certifications.
• Home Office - we help you set up your perfect workspace by covering equipment and furniture expenses, so you can do your best work from home.
• Co-Working Space - if you sometimes crave a change of scenery or more social interaction, we’ll cover the full cost of a co-working space.
• Medical Coverage - we support you and your family with reimbursement for medical insurance and health-related expenses, including dental care and psychological support.
• Physical Well-Being - from gym memberships and yoga classes to home workout equipment or even a bicycle, we give you the flexibility to stay active your way.
• Fun Stuff - from gaming nights and fitness challenges to annual retreats at world-class resorts, we make sure there’s never a shortage of fun and connection.