Head of Engineering in London

We're looking for a Head of Engineering to lead one of our cross-functional engineering clusters, driving technical excellence and helping to build the platform that powers Yoto's mission to be the soundtrack of childhood.

About Yoto: Yoto is a screen-free interactive audio platform for kids. We make carefully connected audio players that kids control, with no microphones, cameras or ads. We have a catalogue of audio that inspires creative play and learning with 1,000+ titles in our card store from top creators, publishers and labels – think Disney, Marvel, Roald Dahl and Universal Music. We also create Yoto Originals.

We're on a mission to be the soundtrack of childhood, and help families on their own unique adventures. By creating products that inspire independent play, we help families discover and grow with an inspiring world of audio – and we would like you to help us achieve it!

At Yoto, our Engineering organisation is structured into mission-driven clusters, each made up of cross-functional teams that include engineering, product, design and other key disciplines. These clusters focus on different areas of our platform and products to help us move faster, stay aligned and build with purpose.

This role reports directly to the VP of Engineering where you'll form part of the senior engineering leadership team alongside the other Heads of Engineering, CTO and senior IC leads.

What you’ll be doing:

• Lead multiple cross-functional engineering teams within the Family Experience cluster consisting of ~20 engineers (FE, BE, mobile, QA) and managers.
• Partner with Product, Design and Commercial teams to continuously improve the user experience, performance, conversion and retention of our global store.
• Champion engineering excellence across the cluster – from clean architecture and automated testing to observability, security, accessibility, etc.
• Foster an inclusive, collaborative and high‐performing engineering culture.
• Coach your manager-level reports to strengthen their leadership and help them unlock the full potential of their teams.
• Mentor and support individuals across the Family Experience cluster to help them grow and succeed in their roles.
• Promote Yoto Engineering within the tech community; grow the team by continuing to hire top talent.
• Manage relationships and negotiate with key external partners and vendors.
• Oversee the alignment on technical direction of our eCommerce architecture set by lead engineers.
• Champion the opportunities and guide through challenges of entering the era of AI‐powered coding.

What you’ll bring:

• Proven ability to lead teams of managers and senior engineers across different specialisms.
• Deep technical full-stack expertise in web and mobile platforms (headless architecture, CMS, checkout systems – Shopify or similar).
• Strong understanding of systems design, scaling strategies and performance optimisation.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills and a collaborative approach to problem solving.
• A user‐first mindset and passion for building smooth digital experiences.
• Excellent understanding of programming and SW development paradigms and best practices, up-to-date with latest technologies and frameworks.

Nice to have:

• Experience with international eCommerce, subscription models or digital merchandising tools.

Salary: £110,000 - £130,000 based on experience.

What you can expect from Yoto:

• Flexibility: Hybrid working – expectation of 1 day a week on average, but you are welcome to come in more than this. Take advantage of our 'work from anywhere' policy to work from a different location for up to 6 weeks every year.
• Financial: Generous share option programme, Income Protection, Life Assurance cover, Workplace Pension offering up to 3% employer contributions, and generous employee referral bonus scheme.
• Health & Wellness: Private Medical Insurance, Wellbeing Allowance, access to Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), and Bike to work scheme.
• Time Off: 25 days of holiday per year, plus bank holidays, birthday off, and additional days for long service.
• Helping Families: Variety of family‐friendly leave, including enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption, fertility, pregnancy loss and carers leave.
• People & Planet: Up to 2 volunteer days a year and a Book Allowance of up to £50 a year.
• Fun Perks: You receive your very own Yoto player and starter pack of cards! Regular company socials and celebrations.

At Yoto, we love creating a world where childhood is rich with discovery and joy. We're also passionate about building a workplace where everyone can thrive – both professionally and personally. We value flexibility and give our team the freedom to balance life and work in ways that suit them.

We’re committed to fostering a safe, diverse and inclusive environment where all individuals, regardless of their background, feel valued and supported. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion group holds bi-monthly forums to elevate diverse voices and perspectives.

Please only apply or engage with Yoto jobs posted on our careers page. All correspondence from our Talent team will only come through Teamtailor, our application tracking system.