Lead Software Engineer (Cambridge)

hackajob is collaborating with Redgate Software to connect them with exceptional professionals for this role.

Redgate creates simple software to help data professionals get the most value out of any database. Our solutions solve complex database management challenges across the DevOps lifecycle, making life easier for IT leaders, development, and operations teams by increasing efficiency, reducing errors, and protecting business-critical data. The data community trusts Redgate to balance speed to market, team collaboration, and data protection.

As a Lead Software Engineer, you will be part of a small, cross-functional team that typically includes a Tech Lead, Product Designer, Product Manager, and 4–5 software engineers. You will benefit from the support of the Group Engineering Manager who oversees delivery, people, and processes across the group, an Architect who provides technical direction at the product level, and a coaching function to help you get unblocked.

This role involves building the next generation of AI capabilities particularly targeted towards database administration. This includes developing new interfaces and approaches that address the needs of database professionals in using agentic AI, and working with other teams across Redgate to bring capabilities from their tools into the workflow.

Your work at Redgate:

• Work closely with the Tech Lead and wider team to translate business strategy into implementation.
• Be accountable for the quality of software design for the product team in which you are assigned, balancing technical debt against speed of delivery.
• Share technical decisions within the solution group, division and team.
• Lead significant pieces of work including clarifying requirements, facilitating meetings, breaking tasks down and checking-in with other team members.
• Write and maintain high quality software.
• Grow the skills of other software engineers to take engineering to the next level.
• Establish strong engineering practice and work to deliver the technical strategy.
• Regularly contribute to internal Level Up events to support growing and developing skills within the division.
• Work with the group architect to help inform technical strategy.
• Understand how the product or systems owned by your team solve customer problems and add value, prioritising engineering work based on its potential to provide value to customers.

Who you are:

• You’re an expert in modern .NET/ C#.
• You can design and build world-class scalable, resilient, and secure systems, considering trade-offs and future implications.
• You have a bias for simplicity and maintainability in the code you write and the products you build.
• You have evidence of leading complex pieces of work, including leading the collaboration with other teams.
• You are an excellent communicator, being able to distil complex technical decisions into clear rationale.
• You’re enthusiastic about engaging with customers as necessary to create a great product.
• You are driven by continuous improvement and foster a growth mindset within the team.
• You have evidence of supporting the professional development of other engineers through coaching, mentoring and role modelling.

Desirable skills:

• Experience in cloud infrastructure (especially AWS), infrastructure as code, and service management.
• Prompt engineering.
• Experience building AI applications/features and iterating based on user feedback.
• Agentic application frameworks e.g. Semantic Kernel, Langchain, Langraph, Strands agents etc.
• Agentic coding best practices.
• Experience with different AI coding tools e.g. Cursor, VSCode agents, Claude code, Codex etc.
• Experience developing servers and clients.
• Experience consuming existing servers and clients e.g. Claude desktop, cursor, etc.
• Experience with semantic search and vector databases.
• Front-end development with Typescript, React and/or Material UI.

Salary: Circa £70k to £85k subject to experience.

Why join us?

At Redgate, we believe supporting and empowering our people is key to our success. We create an environment where you can thrive in your career and enjoy every moment of your journey with us. Benefits include competitive salary, comprehensive health coverage, monthly wellbeing allowance, flexible working arrangements, generous paid time off, employee assistance program, community and social events.

Redgate has adopted a flexible-hybrid model. This means that people will work flexibly with a blend of remote (home) and co-located (office) work, with teams having the flexibility to decide which location best suits the outcomes they need to deliver.

Our diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging commitments:

• We believe diverse teams are better at solving problems and fostering a creative culture.
• We aim to offer a workplace where everyone feels a sense of belonging and can thrive.
• We support DEIB through our inclusion forum (Belong at Redgate) and regular DEIB events.

Redgate is an equal opportunity employer, welcoming applications from all backgrounds. If you need accommodation, please let us know via our application process or email.