Lead Engineer (Advanced AI Engineering)

• We are looking for Lead Engineers to join our new Advanced AI Engineering team
• You will combine applied research and solution development to create effective solutions to critical AI business challenges, building operational MVPs that our engineering teams can scale out across the Group’s business areas
• You will be working within the Data & AI Unit of the Chief Technology Office (CTO), where we define and lead the Group’s Data and AI technology strategy, serve as the Group’s design authority for Data and AI, and inspire, develop and incubate new AI‑driven products, capabilities and ways of working through applied research and product discovery
• These are hands‑on roles, working at the forefront of Agentic AI adoption, which will draw upon your curiosity and problem‑solving abilities, your experience building and supporting technology solutions within production environments, and your knowledge of GenAI technology
• Support ideation activities, working with team members and business stakeholders to explore the art of the possible and identify areas of challenge and opportunity
• Evaluate AI methods and technologies, conducting experiments and building proof‑of‑concepts
• Develop operational MVPs and support their delivery to business platforms and engineering teams

Benefits

• A generous holiday allowance: You’ll be eligible for a minimum of 22 days holiday (excluding bank holidays), rising to 30 days based on length of service and grade.
• A flexible way of working: Whether you want flexibility over your location or when you log on, together we can create an approach that works for you and for the business.
• Family leave: Up to 63 weeks of maternity or adoption leave. Statutory maternity or adoption pay is available for 39 weeks, and 20 weeks will be enhanced to the equivalent of full pay. Partners can have six weeks of fully paid paternity leave.
• Flex cash: This is 4% of your basic salary and can be used to spend on the benefits of your choice, or you can choose to take it as a cash top up in your monthly salary.
• Health insurance: Our company funded Private Medical Benefit provides all colleagues with access to good quality medical care, including accommodation, nursing care and specialist advice.
• Colleague Offers: Get discounts on everything from electrical items to cinema tickets and weekly food shopping. You can share this benefit with up to ten family members or friends.
• Financial products: Take advantage of our great financial products, some at a discounted rate, including current accounts, home and car insurance and loans.
• Share plans: Participate in Sharematch and receive matching shares of up to £45 a month from the company, and you can choose to participate in Sharesave, our combined savings and share option plan.
• Pension: We offer a generous pension plan, with all joiners being automatically enrolled in our ‘Your Tomorrow’ scheme. You can decide how much you save and get a sense in where your contributions are invested.

Experience of working in teams employing agile practices and using modern SDLC toolingA solid understanding of requirements for managing operational and AI risk in a regulated environment, including reliability, security, safety and explainabilityAbility to collaborate as part of a high-performing engineering team – mentoring and supporting others and engaging stakeholders on technical directionApplied AI/ML and GenAI experience with knowledge of established patterns (RAG, tool use, guardrails, evaluation, agents) and an ability to evaluate tools and approachesProven experience engineering technology solutions in complex environments and supporting production operationsExperience of research, either in industry or as part of an advanced degreeExperience of partnering with Enterprise Architecture functionsExperience developing technology solutions for customer-facing platforms at scale (digital apps, contact centre/voice, colleague tooling)Experience delivering technology solutions inregulated industries (financial services preferred)