Engineering Technical Lead in Glasgow

About Planet DDS

We’re on a mission to fix dental software - and we’re not playing small. Our platform replaces clunky, outdated systems with modern, cloud-based, AI-powered technology built to actually work at scale. From practice management to imaging to revenue cycle automation, we’re tearing down the old infrastructure and rebuilding the future of dentistry. Planet DDS is the fastest-growing provider of dental practice management solutions and the #1 cloud platform for DSOs and multi-location groups.

Overview

We’re looking for a Tech Lead who is a strong software engineer first – someone who has integrated AI development tools deeply into how they work and can drive a small, autonomous team to deliver meaningful outcomes for our customers. This isn’t a management role. You won’t have HR responsibilities. What you will have is ownership: a dedicated product pod (typically 2 software engineers and a QA engineer), a direct line to DevOps, DBAs, and Product, and access to real customers so you can iterate fast and ship with confidence. You’ll lead the technical direction of your pod, make architectural decisions, unblock your teammates, and set the standard for how modern, AI-assisted software engineering gets done at Planet DDS. You’ll have meaningful input into how we evolve our engineering practices as an organization, and you’ll be a key part of our transition to outcome-driven, pod-based delivery.

Hybrid position: works 1‑2x per week in our Glasgow, Scotland office.

Job Duties

• Own the technical delivery of your pod’s commitments end-to-end: from technical design through implementation, testing, and deployment.
• Drive planning, estimation, and prioritization within your pod, working closely with your Product Lead to balance technical quality with delivery speed.
• Remove blockers for your team; coordinate with DevOps, DBAs, and other pods to keep work flowing.
• Establish and maintain a sustainable pace of weekly deployments, continuously improving the team’s ability to ship with confidence.
• Make sound architectural decisions that are maintainable, scalable, and aligned with our product direction.
• Write production code daily – this is a hands‑on role where you lead by doing, not just directing.
• Use AI‑assisted development tools strategically across the full SDLC: planning work with AI agents, generating and refining code, creating comprehensive test coverage, and accelerating debugging.
• Drive improvements to development processes, tooling, and CI/CD pipelines within your pod and across the wider engineering org.
• Mentor engineers on effective AI‑assisted workflows; help establish team-wide patterns and practices that raise the bar for everyone.
• Conduct meaningful code reviews that focus on design, maintainability, and helping teammates grow.
• Foster a culture of technical curiosity, continuous improvement, and shared ownership of quality.
• Collaborate directly with Product to shape technical solutions that address real customer problems.
• Participate in customer feedback sessions to build empathy and inform technical decisions.
• Translate customer needs and product goals into clear technical plans your pod can execute against.

Essential Skills and Qualifications

• 12+ years of commercial software engineering experience, with a track record of shipping and maintaining production systems at scale.
• Demonstrated experience leading technical delivery – whether as a formal tech lead, senior engineer who naturally stepped up, or lead on complex projects where you were the person others looked to for direction.
• Deep understanding of software engineering fundamentals: OOP, design patterns, SOLID principles, testing strategies, and writing code that others can maintain.
• Proven experience using AI coding tools (Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, or similar) as a core part of your daily workflow – you should be able to articulate how you approach complex problems differently with these tools and how you’d help a team adopt them.
• Ability to work effectively across the stack; .NET and React experience strongly preferred, but excellent fundamentals in other modern stacks considered.
• Experience with CI/CD, automated testing, and shipping code frequently with confidence.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to make technical concepts accessible to both engineers and non‑technical stakeholders.
• Comfort with ambiguity and rapid iteration – you ship, learn, adapt, and help your team do the same.

Nice to Have

• Experience in SaaS, healthcare software, or other regulated/compliance‑sensitive environments.
• Hands‑on DevOps experience (IaC, Azure) or infrastructure knowledge that helps you make better architectural decisions.
• Prior experience introducing new tools, practices, or ways of working to a team – and navigating the human side of that change.
• Exposure to trunk‑based development, continuous deployment models, or outcome-driven delivery frameworks.
• Experience working with distributed teams across multiple time zones.
• Background in API design, integration patterns, or building platforms other teams consume.

Benefits

• Medical and Dental insurance.
• Life Assurance and Income Protection.
• Employee Well-Being program.
• 8 Public Holidays.
• 23 Days of Annual Leave.
• Company Paid Sick Time.
• Volunteer Time Off.
• Technology Stipend.
• Employee Referral program.
• Additional perk and voluntary benefit programs.

Salary is based on a number of factors and may vary depending on job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience. This position is also eligible for variable pay as part of the total compensation package. Planet DDS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.