At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead a dynamic engineering team while driving technical excellence and delivery outcomes.
- Company: Join a rapidly growing online car-changing destination with a vibrant culture.
- Benefits: Enjoy remote work, competitive salary, generous leave, and wellness support.
- Other info: Diversity and inclusion are key; we welcome all backgrounds to apply.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in a tech-driven environment and grow your leadership skills.
- Qualifications: Experience managing engineers and a passion for technical quality and team growth.
The predicted salary is between 72000 - 88000 £ per year.
OUR MISSION To become the car-changing destination of choice. By combining technology, media and deep automotive expertise, we've turned how people buy, sell, advertise and lease cars on its head. What started as a simple reviews site is now one of the largest online car-changing destinations in Europe. Last year alone we grew over 50% with nearly £3bn worth of cars bought on site, while £1.8bn of cars were listed for sale through our Sell My Car service. In 2024 we went big and acquired Autovia - creators of AutoExpress and Evo magazines - doubling our audience overnight. Together we now have one of the biggest YouTube channels in the world with almost 10m subscribers and over 1.1 billion annual views, while we sell 1.2 million print copies of our magazines and have an annual web content reach over 350 million. And we are a long way from done!
THE ROLE You will co-own the roadmap with the Product Manager and you will specifically own delivery health and technical outcomes. The role combines people leadership with hands-on technical accountability.
- Reports to - Head of Engineering / Director of Engineering
- Team span - 1 Engineering Team
- Works closely with - Product Manager (equal counterpart on the team)
- Role type - Full-time, people leadership with hands-on technical accountability
WHAT YOU'LL DO
- Co-own the roadmap with your Product Manager, balancing delivery, quality and technical health as genuine equals.
- Own delivery health for your team - predictability, throughput and the quality of what ships.
- Hold technical accountability by default.
- Ownership of technical quality of the team's work, including architecture and SLOs.
- Stay close to the codebase so you can make informed calls on technical trade-offs, risk and quality.
- Read code, review PRs and pair-programme regularly, both to maintain technical quality and to mentor engineers.
- Manage, coach and develop the engineers on your team, and own hiring from sourcing through to close.
- Set and track team-level goals in partnership with your direct reports.
- Own your team’s budget, including software spend and headcount planning.
- Own SLOs and operational health for the systems your team is responsible for.
- Drive adoption of AI tooling and practices within your team.
REQUIREMENTS - TECHNICAL BAR
- Read and understand code across the team's primary stack.
- Pair-programme effectively with engineers on real work.
- Review pull requests with meaningful, technically credible feedback.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
- Previous experience managing engineers, ideally within a product-led organisation.
- A track record of owning delivery outcomes, not just team happiness and process.
- Comfort holding both the people and technical threads of a team at once.
- Experience (or real enthusiasm for) hiring, budget ownership, and operational metrics like SLOs.
SUCCESS IN THE ROLE
- Your team ships predictably, and you can speak to technical trade-offs as fluently as delivery ones.
- Engineers on your team are growing, well-supported, and clear on how they’re doing.
- Your roadmap decisions hold up because you and your PM are genuinely aligned.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR YOU
- Fully remote working
- Competitive salary to fund that dream holiday to Bali
- Matched pension contributions for a peaceful retirement
- Share options - when we thrive, so do you!
- Bupa Private Healthcare, for peace of mind, plus eyecare vouchers
- Life Assurance for (even more) peace of mind
- Monthly coaching sessions with Spill - our mental wellbeing partner
- Enhanced holiday package, plus Bank Holidays
- 28 days annual leave
- 1 day for your wedding
- 1 day off when you move house - because moving is hard enough without work!
- For your third year anniversary, get 30 days of annual leave per year
- For your tenth year anniversary, get 35 days of annual leave per year
- Option to buy 3 extra days of holiday per year
- Work from abroad for a month
- Inclusive parental, partner and shared parental leave, fertility treatment and pregnancy loss policies
- Bubble childcare support and discounted nanny fees for little ones
- The latest tech (Macbook or Surface) to power your gif-sending talents
- Up to £500/€550 home office allowance for that massage chair you have been talking about
- Generous learning and development budget to help you master your craft
- Regular social events: tech lunches, coffee with the exec sessions, lunch & learns, book clubs, social events/anything else you pester us for
- Refer a friend, get paid. Repeat for infinite money
Diversity and inclusion is an integral part of our culture. We know that diverse teams are strong teams, so we welcome those with alternative identities, backgrounds, and experiences to apply for this position. We make recruiting decisions based on experience, skills and potential, so all our applicants are treated fairly and equally.
Technical Engineering Manager employer: Carwow Group
As a People Operations Specialist at our rapidly growing company, you'll be part of a dynamic team that prioritises employee experience and well-being. With a hybrid working model, competitive salary, and generous benefits including enhanced holiday packages and a strong focus on personal development, we foster a supportive and inclusive work culture where your contributions are valued and recognised. Join us in shaping the future of the automotive industry while enjoying unique perks like the option to work from abroad and a dedicated learning budget to help you thrive.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Technical Engineering Manager
✨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 Carwow 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 Carwow Group.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Carwow Group.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Carwow Group that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Technical Engineering Manager
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 Carwow 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 Carwow 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 Carwow 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 Carwow 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.
