At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead and develop a high-performing engineering team in an AI-first SaaS environment.
- Company: Scaling SaaS company in Manchester with a focus on innovation.
- Benefits: Clear pathway to CTO role, competitive salary, and dynamic work culture.
- Other info: Exciting opportunity for growth in a collaborative, cross-border team.
- Why this job: Shape the future of AI technology while advancing your career to CTO.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in leading remote engineering teams and strong AWS knowledge.
MRJ have partnered with a scaling SaaS company based in Manchester to help them find a Head of Engineering who will become the CTO in 12 months taking over from the CTO/Founder.
The role is designed as a clear pathway into a future CTO position, with a structured 12-month transition plan and close partnership with the CTO/Founder. Over the first 12 months, you'll work closely with the CTO/Founder to take ownership of engineering delivery, raise standards, and then drive strategy and technical direction. From 12 months onwards, you'll be positioned to step into the CTO role.
Key Responsibilities- Lead and develop a high-performing engineering team across the UK and Poland, with a focus on coaching, clarity, and delivery excellence.
- First 6 months (hands-on leadership): Improve delivery practices, team effectiveness, and engineering standards; establish scalable ways of working across a growing, distributed team; support the team in delivering high-quality product outcomes, balancing speed and quality.
- Next 6 months (strategic leadership): Own the engineering roadmap and long-term technical direction in partnership with the CTO/Founder; define and implement an AI-first engineering approach aligned to product goals; build a scalable platform mindset across architecture, reliability, observability, and security; drive best practice in cloud engineering on AWS, ensuring robust, secure, and scalable systems; partner with Product and other stakeholders to align engineering execution with business priorities; hire and scale the team as the business grows, ensuring the right structure and capability for the next stage.
- 12 months onwards: all of the above as the new CTO.
- Proven experience leading cross functional and remote first engineering teams in a SaaS environment, ideally through a period of growth and scaling.
- Strong engineering leadership with the ability to be hands-on when needed, particularly in the early phase of the role.
- Experience operating in modern cloud environments, with strong AWS knowledge.
- A track record of improving engineering delivery: standards, processes, quality, reliability, and team performance.
- Confidence setting technical direction and making pragmatic decisions that support both product delivery and long-term platform health.
- Comfortable working in a distributed, cross-border team environment (UK/Europe).
- Excellent stakeholder management skills, able to collaborate closely with a CTO/Founder and influence across the business.
- Passion for AI-first engineering, including practical understanding of how AI influences product and engineering ways of working.
If you're an engineering leader who enjoys building high-performing teams, raising the bar on delivery, and wants a clear route into a CTO seat, we'd love to hear from you.
Head of Engineering employer: MRJ Recruitment
Join a leading B2B and B2C organisation that values innovation and growth, offering a dynamic work culture where your contributions directly impact the brand's success. With competitive day rates and the flexibility of remote work, this role provides excellent opportunities for professional development and collaboration across various teams. Be part of a household name in eCommerce, where your project management skills will thrive in an environment committed to continuous improvement and operational excellence.
