At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead technology strategy and build innovative digital products for ambitious organisations.
- Company: Fast-growing digital venture studio with a focus on scalable technology solutions.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, share options, bonuses, and remote work flexibility.
- Other info: Dynamic environment with opportunities for personal and professional growth.
- Why this job: Shape the future of technology while working with exciting clients and projects.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in tech leadership and strong software engineering background.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 90000 £ per year.
£80k-£90k + Share options + bonus - Remote (South UK based) - Remote working with some visits to clients in London, Southampton and Bournemouth. Our client is a fast growing digital venture and product studio that helps ambitious organisations turn ideas into scalable technology products, platforms and digital services. They work with a mix of founders, growth businesses and purpose-led organisations, supporting them across product strategy, venture building, digital transformation, AI, data, software engineering and go-to-market delivery. The business is entering an exciting next stage of growth and is now looking for a CTO to lead its technical direction, strengthen delivery capability and help shape the future of its technology proposition.
The Role
The CTO will be responsible for leading the company’s technology strategy, technical delivery and engineering capability. This is a hands on leadership role for someone who can operate strategically with clients and senior stakeholders, while also being close enough to the technology to guide architecture, product decisions, delivery standards and team performance. You will work closely with the founders and senior leadership team to define the technical vision, build scalable delivery processes, support commercial growth and ensure the business continues to deliver high-quality digital products for its clients.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the overall technology strategy, ensuring the business has a clear, scalable and commercially aligned technical roadmap.
- Own technical leadership across digital product, platform development, AI-enabled solutions, data, integrations and software engineering.
- Act as a senior technical advisor to clients, helping them shape product ideas, define technical requirements and make confident technology decisions.
- Translate complex client challenges into practical, commercially viable technology solutions.
- Lead architecture and technical design across client projects, ensuring solutions are scalable, secure, maintainable and fit for purpose.
- Build, lead and mentor a high performing technical team across engineering, product delivery and technical consulting.
- Set standards for engineering quality, code review, documentation, testing, deployment, security and delivery governance.
- Work closely with product, design and commercial teams to ensure projects are delivered on time, on budget and to a high standard.
- Support pre-sales and new business activity by contributing to discovery sessions, technical proposals, solution design and client pitches.
- Help shape the company’s AI, automation and data capability, ensuring the business remains ahead of market demand.
- Identify opportunities to productise services, improve delivery efficiency and create repeatable technical frameworks.
- Manage technology partners, third-party suppliers and external development resources where required.
- Ensure best practice around cyber security, data protection, infrastructure, cloud architecture and compliance.
- Provide clear reporting to the leadership team around technical delivery, risk, resourcing, capability and future investment needs.
About You
You will be a commercially minded technology leader who enjoys building things, teams, products, platforms, processes and client relationships. You will be comfortable working in a fast moving, entrepreneurial environment where the role requires both strategic thinking and hands on delivery. You are likely to have worked in a digital product studio, software consultancy, venture builder, SaaS business, agency, start-up or scale-up environment.
Skills and Experience
- Proven experience as a CTO, Head of Engineering, Technical Director, VP Engineering or senior technology leader.
- Strong background in software engineering, digital product development, cloud platforms and scalable architecture.
- Experience delivering technology solutions for external clients, ideally across multiple sectors.
- Comfortable working across discovery, architecture, delivery, launch and continuous improvement.
- Strong understanding of modern development practices, including agile delivery, CI/CD, DevOps, testing and secure engineering principles.
- Experience with AI, automation, data platforms, APIs, integrations or emerging technologies would be highly valuable.
- Ability to lead technical conversations with both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Strong commercial awareness, with experience supporting sales, proposals, pitches or client discovery.
- Track record of building and leading high-performing engineering or technical teams.
- Able to balance speed, quality, commercial reality and long-term scalability.
- Strong understanding of cloud infrastructure, ideally AWS, Azure or GCP.
- Experience managing technical risk, data security, compliance and governance.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to simplify complex technical ideas.
What Success Looks Like
- A clear and commercially aligned technology strategy is in place.
- Technical delivery becomes more scalable, consistent and efficient.
- Client confidence increases through stronger technical leadership.
- The business can win larger and more complex digital transformation, product and AI-led projects.
- Engineering quality, delivery governance and technical standards improve.
- The team feels supported, clear on direction and able to deliver excellent work.
- The company builds stronger repeatable frameworks, products and technical propositions.
Ideal Profile
The ideal candidate will be someone who can operate as both a technology strategist and hands on technical leader. They will be excited by the opportunity to help shape a growing business, work closely with founders and clients, and build technology that solves meaningful problems. This role would suit someone who enjoys variety, can move confidently between board level conversations and technical detail, and wants to play a key role in scaling a modern digital product and venture studio. Apply now for immediate consideration - client is ready to interview.
CTO (Chief Technology Officer) - Remote in Clerkenwell employer: Smile Digital
Join a dynamic and fast-growing digital venture studio that champions innovation and collaboration, offering a remote working environment with occasional client visits in vibrant cities like London, Southampton, and Bournemouth. As a CTO, you will not only lead the technical direction but also have the opportunity to mentor a high-performing team, drive impactful technology solutions, and shape the future of digital products while enjoying a culture that values creativity, growth, and meaningful contributions.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land CTO (Chief Technology Officer) - Remote in Clerkenwell
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at Smile Digital or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to Smile Digital.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like Smile Digital.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like Smile Digital that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace CTO (Chief Technology Officer) - Remote in Clerkenwell
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at Smile Digital.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Smile Digital and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at Smile Digital
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If Smile Digital uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
