First Engineering Manager - Shape & Scale AI Team

LinuxRecruit; Greater London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

LinuxRecruit is partnering with an early stage AI startup to hire its first Engineering Manager in the UK. You will shape how the engineering team grows, hire and develop people, and own delivery as the business scales with the CTO and founders.

You'll balance hands-on input with building a scalable playbook, ensuring teams stay autonomous while introducing the right structure. You’ll apply AI tooling thoughtfully to improve code review, testing, planning, and quality without writing production

Qualifications

• Moved from software engineering into management and led a meaningful growth phase.
• Comfortable in an early stage environment with autonomy and fast-moving work.
• Developing people, hiring decisions, and technically credible.
• Uses AI tools actively to shape engineering work.

Responsibilities

• Shape how the engineering team operates, from hiring to delivery as the business scales.
• Own realistic delivery commitments and help CTO gain confidence in progress.
• Create an environment where engineers can do their best work without unnecessary process.
• Identify gaps, shape hiring decisions, and build out the team thoughtfully.

Tools

Coding agents

Job description

LinuxRecruit is partnering with an early stage AI startup to hire its first Engineering Manager in the UK. You will shape how the engineering team grows, hire and develop people, and own delivery as the business scales with the CTO and founders.

You'll balance hands-on input with building a scalable playbook, ensuring teams stay autonomous while introducing the right structure. You’ll apply AI tooling thoughtfully to improve code review, testing, planning, and quality without writing production