At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead and inspire engineering teams to innovate and deliver life-saving products.
- Company: Join a mission-driven company that values creativity and teamwork.
- Benefits: Enjoy 25 days annual leave, bonuses, health insurance, and a supportive pension plan.
- Other info: Be part of a culture that celebrates growth and collaboration.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in a dynamic environment focused on saving lives.
- Qualifications: Proven leadership in engineering with experience in product development and compliance.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 € per year.
Furthermore, here at FFE we value our employees giving them the freedom to be creative and innovative. Having a great team spirit and people that are proud to work for a company that saves lives, our teams see the direct impact of their efforts in the daily operations.
Duties and Responsibilities:
- Engineering Leadership & Strategy
- Overall responsibility for electronics, mechanical, software and development engineering activities.
- Translate the company’s technical and product strategy into clear engineering objectives and execution plans.
- Create and implement best practice engineering vision, strategy, policies, processes and procedures to aid and improve business performance.
- Ensure engineering outputs comply with relevant standards, regulations, and internal processes.
- Champion the consistent use of formal problem‑solving tools, structured testing methodologies, documentation standards, and design governance.
- Continuously assess and improve the development strategy for both new and existing products.
- People Management
- Line management of the electronics, mechanical, software and development engineering teams.
- Coach, mentor and develop direct reports (circa. 20 employees).
- Set department objectives and monitor ongoing progress and performance.
- Ensure strong communication between the teams to facilitate efficient exchange of information and in order to implement change and improvements.
- Establish strategy and best practices for staff to ensure achievement of overall business objectives.
- Build a high‑performance culture focused on accountability, collaboration, and technical excellence.
- Identify capability gaps and drive upskilling, succession planning, and recruitment priorities.
- Foster strong engagement and clear communication across engineering teams and the broader business.
- New Product Development (NPD) and Sustaining Engineering
- Oversee engineering contributions to NPD projects, ensuring technical robustness, regulatory compliance, and on‑time delivery.
- Ensure engineering teams deliver products that meet customer value propositions, performance, quality and cost targets.
- Maintain high standards of testing, validation, verification, and design quality throughout the product lifecycle.
- Contribute to sustaining engineering activity, ensuring product integrity, reliability, and customer satisfaction.
- Ensure timely and effective resolution of issues impacting quality, regulatory compliance, or customer experience.
- Act as a senior engineering representative in cross‑functional reviews, portfolio discussions, and strategic planning.
Skills and Experience:
- Proven leadership experience leading multi-disciplinary engineering teams, including electronics, embedded software and mechanical engineering, within a product development environment.
- Direct experience delivering electronics-based products into medium or high volume manufacture, not just prototype or low-volume development.
- Proven ownership of engineering industrialisation, including Design for Manufacture (DFM), Design for Test (DFT), Design for Assembly (DFA) and Design for Cost (DFC).
- Strong background in safety critical or regulated products, with hands-on experience supporting certification, compliance and post certification change (e.g. fire, aerospace, industrial, medical or similar regulated environments).
- Demonstrated experience leading complex hardware/software product development programmes from concept through certification and into sustained production.
- Clear accountability for engineering handover to manufacturing, ensuring designs are production-ready, fully documented and supported through ramp-up and ongoing manufacture.
- Experience working closely with manufacturing, test engineering and supply chain teams, including engagement with contract manufacturers / EMS partners.
- Strong working knowledge of structured validation, verification, test and design governance, including formal design reviews, risk assessments and traceable test evidence.
- Proven ability to lead sustaining engineering, including issue resolution, obsolescence management, cost down activity, yield improvement and customer-led corrective actions.
- Track record of applying structured problem-solving methodologies (e.g. 8D, RCA, fault tree analysis) in both development and production environments.
- Educated to degree level in a relevant engineering discipline (electronics, electrical, embedded systems, mechanical or similar), or equivalent senior experience.
Leadership & Commercial Capability
- Strong, hands-on engineering leadership style, with the credibility to challenge and support senior engineers and technical specialists.
- Clear experience setting direction, managing priorities and driving delivery across multiple concurrent projects.
- Commercial awareness of how engineering decisions impact product cost, margin, quality and lifecycle performance.
- Experience managing engineering budgets, resource planning and capability development.
- Ability to communicate complex technical issues clearly to non-technical stakeholders, including senior leadership.
- A pragmatic, delivery focused mindset, balancing technical excellence with business outcomes.
Desirable (Differentiating) Experience
- Experience with long product lifecycles and configuration-controlled product portfolios.
- Exposure to multiple international certification regimes (e.g. EN / UL / FM / regional approvals).
- Experience working across multi-site engineering teams.
- Prior involvement in cost reduction and value engineering programmes post launch.
FFE Benefits include: 25 days Annual Leave, Company bonus Scheme, Halma Pension plan, BUPA health insurance, Simply Health cash plan, EAP.
If you like wild growth and working with happy, enthusiastic over-achievers, you'll enjoy your career with us!
Not the right fit? Let us know you're interested in a future opportunity by clicking Introduce Yourself in the top-right corner of the page or create an account to set up email alerts as new job postings become available that meet your interest!
Head of Engineering in Cambridge employer: Halma
At FFE, we pride ourselves on fostering a dynamic and innovative work environment where creativity thrives and team spirit is paramount. Our employees enjoy a range of benefits including 25 days of annual leave, a company bonus scheme, and comprehensive health insurance, all while contributing to life-saving technologies that make a real difference. With a strong focus on professional development and a culture of collaboration, FFE is an exceptional place for engineers looking to grow their careers in a meaningful way.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Head of Engineering in Cambridge
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to your connections in the engineering field and let them know you're on the hunt for a Head of Engineering role. You never know who might have the inside scoop on an opportunity that’s not even advertised yet.
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for those interviews by brushing up on your leadership stories. Think about times you’ve led teams through challenges or implemented successful strategies. We want to hear how you can translate your experience into driving our engineering vision at FFE!
✨Tip Number 3
Show us your passion for innovation! During interviews, share examples of how you've fostered creativity within your teams. We love candidates who can inspire others and push boundaries in engineering.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to 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 being part of our mission to save lives through engineering.
We think you need these skills to ace Head of Engineering in Cambridge
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion:When you're writing your application, let your enthusiasm for engineering and innovation shine through. We want to see how excited you are about the opportunity to lead a team that makes a real difference in people's lives!
Tailor Your Experience:Make sure to highlight your relevant experience in leading multi-disciplinary teams and delivering electronics-based products. We love seeing how your background aligns with our mission and values, so don’t hold back!
Be Clear and Concise:Keep your application straightforward and to the point. Use clear language to describe your achievements and how they relate to the role. We appreciate a well-structured application that’s easy to read!
Apply Through Our Website:Don’t forget to submit your application through our website! It’s the best way for us to receive your details and ensures you’re considered for the role. Plus, it’s super easy to do!
How to prepare for a job interview at Halma
✨Know Your Engineering Stuff
Make sure you brush up on your technical knowledge, especially around electronics, software, and mechanical engineering. Be ready to discuss your past projects and how they align with the company's focus on safety-critical products.
✨Showcase Your Leadership Skills
Prepare examples of how you've successfully led multi-disciplinary teams. Highlight your experience in coaching and mentoring, as well as how you've fostered a high-performance culture in previous roles.
✨Understand the Business Impact
Be prepared to discuss how engineering decisions affect product cost, quality, and lifecycle performance. Show that you can balance technical excellence with business outcomes, which is crucial for the Head of Engineering role.
✨Communicate Clearly
Practice explaining complex technical issues in simple terms. You'll need to demonstrate your ability to communicate effectively with non-technical stakeholders, including senior leadership, so clarity is key!
