At a Glance
- Tasks: Own complex engineering problems and collaborate with Product and Design to create innovative solutions.
- Company: A leading LegalTech scale-up revolutionising compliance with AI-driven products.
- Benefits: Up to £150K salary, remote-first work, and a supportive team culture.
- Other info: Join a dynamic team focused on autonomy, collaboration, and continuous learning.
- Why this job: Make a real impact in AI development while shaping the future of legal technology.
- Qualifications: Strong full-stack engineering skills and experience with AI-native development tools.
The predicted salary is between 67500 - 82500 £ per year.
An established LegalTech scale-up that's raised £25 million, has hundreds of paying customers and has already processed over £1 billion through its platform. The company builds AI products that automate complex compliance, financial and customer onboarding processes for law firms.
You'll join a small, experienced engineering team where you'll have the freedom to make technical decisions, solve difficult problems and help shape both the product and how software gets built. This is a hands-on technical role with no line management. You'll have the opportunity to influence engineering decisions across the business while continuing to build software.
About the role
You'll take ownership of complex product and engineering problems, working closely with Product and Design to understand what customers need and decide how best to solve them. You'll be involved throughout the full development process, from identifying customer problems and designing solutions through to architecture, testing, deployment and improving products in production. The team uses AI throughout software development, including Claude Code, Codex, spec-driven development, parallel coding agents and automated testing and reviews. The focus is on using AI to build better software, while maintaining strong engineering standards and making good technical decisions. As a Staff Engineer, you'll also help shape technical direction, challenge architectural decisions and support other engineers through collaboration, code reviews and sharing knowledge.
What we're looking for
- True Full-stack engineering: You have strong experience building and delivering complex software across the frontend and backend.
- AI-native development: You already use Claude Code, Codex, Cursor or similar tools regularly, with experience in agentic workflows and spec-driven development.
- Product ownership: You've taken products or complex features from an initial customer problem through to production and understand how to measure their success.
- Technical leadership: You can make architectural decisions, challenge existing approaches and help other engineers improve without needing to manage them.
- Product thinking: You enjoy working directly with Product, Design and customers to understand problems, set priorities and build useful solutions.
- Engineering quality: You understand testing, code reviews, maintainability and how to build reliable systems while moving quickly.
Experience working in an autonomous, collaborative and fast-moving engineering team would be a strong advantage. You don't need to have held a Staff Engineer title before. What matters is the level of technical ownership and product responsibility you've already demonstrated.
Technology
You don't need experience with these exact technologies. Strong full-stack engineering skills and the ability to learn new tools are more important.
What you can expect
- Up to £150K base salary plus benefits.
- Remote-first working across the UK, with a London office available when you want to use it.
- A fully hands-on engineering role with no line management.
- Real influence over product decisions, architecture and technical direction.
- An experienced engineering team that values autonomy, collaboration and sharing knowledge.
- The opportunity to build production AI products using modern agentic development workflows.
- A growing business where you can take on increasingly complex technical challenges.
Interested?
Staff/Principal Software Engineer employer: Tact
TACT is an exceptional employer, dedicated to improving the lives of vulnerable children and young people in care. As the UK's largest fostering charity, we foster a supportive work culture that prioritises employee growth through training and development opportunities, while ensuring that all surplus income is reinvested into our services and staff. Located in the East Midlands, our team is passionate about making a meaningful impact, and we welcome qualified social workers who share our commitment to trauma-informed practice and therapeutic care.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Staff/Principal Software Engineer
✨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 Tact 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 Tact.
✨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 Tact.
✨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 Tact 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 Staff/Principal Software Engineer
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 Tact.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Tact 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 Tact
✨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 Tact 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.
