Senior Software Developer in Harwell

Smedley Group is building world-leading technology platforms that sit at the intersection of motorsport, data, and high-performance engineering. Our work spans real-time data acquisition, analytics, simulation, and operational tooling - powering projects across the group, including FAT Karting League (FKL), and future technology-led ventures. We are now seeking a Senior Software Developer to play a pivotal role in delivering these platforms.

This is a senior, hands-on engineering position for someone who can translate high-level technical vision into robust, scalable, production-ready software. Working very closely with the Head of Advanced Technology, you will help shape system architecture, define best practice, and deliver full-stack solutions from initial design through to deployment and operation. While this is not a heavy people-management role, you will provide light technical leadership - mentoring developers, setting standards, and leading by example through high-quality delivery. This role sits at the heart of our technology ambition. We move quickly, solve real problems, and build software that performs under pressure. If you are motivated by complex systems, real-time data, and the opportunity to see your work used in demanding, high-performance environments, this role offers both challenge and impact.

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Leadership & Architecture
  • Work closely with the Head of Advanced Technology to define system architecture, technical standards, and long-term engineering strategy across the Smedley Group platform suite.
  • Translate high-level platform vision into clear technical designs and implementation plans.
  • Drive system architecture ensuring scalability, security, and performance across all systems.
• Software Development & Delivery
  • Lead the end-to-end development of new features and applications across both front-end and back-end systems.
  • Design and implement scalable, secure, and high-performance software solutions supporting real-time data, analytics, and motorsport workflows.
  • Introduce and uphold robust development processes and modern best practice across the codebase.
  • Ensure high standards of testing, documentation, version control, and CI/CD throughout the development lifecycle.
• Collaboration & Product Delivery
  • Work closely with product managers and UX/UI designers to refine requirements and deliver intuitive, high-quality user experiences.
  • Participate in sprint planning, estimation, and cross-team coordination to ensure predictable and high-quality delivery.
  • Act as a technical bridge between architecture, product, and implementation.
• Mentoring & Capability Building
  • Provide day-to-day technical guidance and mentoring to junior and experienced software developers.
  • Lead code reviews, sharing knowledge and raising engineering standards across the team.
  • Support the development of technical capability, tools, and working practices within the wider technology function.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement initiatives across processes, tooling, and architecture.

Essential Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related fields such as Mathematics and Physics.
• 5+ years of professional software development experience, including significant hands-on experience across architecture, front-end, and back-end systems.
• Strong proficiency in Python, C++, React, TypeScript, and C#.
• Strong understanding of software architecture, design patterns, and scalable system design.
• Experience designing and maintaining RESTful APIs.
• Strong understanding of database structures, particularly MongoDB.
• Experience with cloud platforms, primarily AWS.
• Experience with containerisation and orchestration technologies (Docker, Kubernetes, etc).
• Proven ability in technical leadership.
• Experience working with data-intensive or real-time systems (e.g. telemetry, analytics, dashboards).
• Strong understanding of modern AI development methods and how they can be applied strategically.
• Excellent communication and problem-solving skills, with a solution-oriented mindset and a bias for action and delivery.

Desirable

• Experience in motorsport or other high-performance engineering environments.
• Experience with MATLAB.
• Familiarity with real-time data pipelines and data acquisition systems.

Personal Qualities

• Delivery-focused software engineer who can own problems end-to-end.
• Calm and analytical under pressure, able to diagnose and resolve complex issues efficiently.
• Strong interest in emerging technologies.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, evolving start-up/scale-up environment.

Why Join Us?

You will join at a pivotal moment where data reliability directly impacts business decisions. This role has real responsibility and visibility — your pipelines will be used daily to drive financial insight, operational efficiency, and strategic growth. You will be building systems that matter in a fast-growing global organisation.

Diversity & Inclusion

Smedley Group is committed to attracting, recruiting, and retaining talented individuals from all backgrounds. We celebrate diversity and are proud to foster an inclusive environment where everyone is respected, empowered, and valued, regardless of age, disability, gender identity or expression, marital status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.