Lead Software Engineer in Bristol

At Pike + Bambridge, we’re on a mission to change the way people buy cars. We offer a personalised, tailored service for busy professionals who are tired of biased advice or bewildering online portals that make car buying even more of a hassle. We believe in building long-term relationships, not one-off transactions. That’s why over 70% of our clients have leased two or more vehicles from us. Since we were founded, we’ve supported over 5,000 professionals across the UK and become a trusted partner for both individuals and businesses looking for a better way to lease vehicles. We are also proud to be the official vehicle suppliers to membership organisations, such as the Law Society of Scotland and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS). Simpler, faster and more personal. That’s the difference with P+B.

As our first senior technical hire, you will be the primary architect of our technology going forward. This isn’t just a coding role; you will be a strategic partner to the CEO, bridging the gap between high-level concepts and shippable products. You’ll be responsible for documenting workflows, architecting our core engine from the ground up, and evolving our current AI-driven systems into a world-class technical stack. We’ve already built some incredible AI-powered tools that streamline our work, but we also have legacy systems that need a technical lead to modernise them. We’re ideally looking for someone who’ll thrive in the rare opportunity to set the technical culture and standard for everything we build next.

Some qualifications you may have (we value talent over checklists, but here’s an idea of what we’re looking for):

• Foundational Education: A background in Computer Science, Engineering, or equivalent “in-the-trenches” experience.
• Architectural Instincts: Experience building scalable, high-performance systems and a deep understanding of design patterns.
• Full-Stack Fluency: A strong grasp of front-end tech, database management, and the ability to choose the “right tool for the job.”
• Backend & Infra: Node.JS, Python, FastAPI, REST APIs, GraphQL, Vercel, AWS, CI/CD, PostHog.
• Frontend: React, Next.JS, TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, Shadcn/ui, Storybook, PlateJS, SlateJS.
• AI/LLM Expertise: Hands-on experience working with AI tools and APIs to automate workflows or enhance product capabilities eg Claude API, OpenAI API, LangGraph, LangSmith, RAG, Prompt Engineering, Agentic AI (Certifications).
• The Startup Mindset: You are pragmatic. You understand the value of testing and process, but you don’t let over-abstraction get in the way of shipping and testing ideas.

At P+B, our culture defines how we work, how we make decisions, and how we treat the people around us. This is represented in our 4 core values:

• “Do the right thing” enables our people to demonstrate honesty, transparency and ethical behaviour in all actions and decisions.
• “Strive for excellence” pursuing the highest quality service, product and performance, and encouraging innovation, creativity and a forward-thinking mindset.
• “Embrace change, seek growth” promoting teamwork, open communication, and cooperation across P+B encouraging people to take initiative and make decisions that drive the business forward. Creating an environment of continuous learning and promoting individual growth.
• “Own it” taking responsibility and accountability for one’s actions, ensuring the achievement of goals and consideration for the impact that has on clients, colleagues and all other stakeholders. Prioritising the needs of customers and striving to exceed their expectations.

Put simply, we believe better people build a better P+B. If you care about doing meaningful work and constantly improving, you will feel at home here.

You’ll love this role if:

• You are a “Product-Minded” Builder: You enjoy the “Why” and the “What” as much as the “How.”
• You thrive on Ownership: You want to be the person who shapes the tech stack and influences the direction of our internal product suite.
• You are AI-Native: You don’t just follow AI trends; you integrate them to build smarter, leaner, and more effectively.
• You balance Pragmatism with Excellence: You know when to build a quick prototype and when to engineer a high-performance, fault-tolerant system.
• You’re a Collaborative Solver: You enjoy deep-focus solo work but are at your best brainstorming complex challenges with a tight-knit team.

Some of our employee benefits include:

• Continuous development and coaching
• Private healthcare
• Competitive salary
• Access to the P+B Club and optional EV through Salary Sacrifice
• Hybrid or remote working (we’ll bring you to Edinburgh for high-energy workshops, strategy sessions and team nights out)