Head of Development

MRJ Recruitment; Manchester; Remote; GBP 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a rapidly growing SaaS scale-up as the Head of Development. You'll lead the engineering team, shape product delivery, and innovate on a modern platform. This role offers the chance to make a significant impact on the company's growth and development efforts in a collaborative environment.

Benefits

Exciting growth opportunities

Collaborative culture

Flexible work environment

Qualifications

• Deep experience in full-stack development.
• Strong understanding of cloud platforms (AWS/Azure).
• Experience building and scaling engineering teams.

Responsibilities

• Lead a growing team of engineers, driving continuous improvement.
• Define platform architecture to support scalability.
• Implement Agile practices and ensure reliable releases.

Skills

Full-stack development

Leadership

Communication

DevOps practices

Agile development

Tools

Node.js

React

TypeScript

AWS

Azure

Job description

Job Description

Ready to Lead the Future of a VC-Backed SaaS Scale-Up?

Role: Head of Development

Location: Remote-first (Team meetups in Manchester every fortnight)

Salary: Up to £85k + perks

We’re once again partnering with one of the North West’s most exciting SaaS scale-ups — fresh off the back of finalising new VC investment and on the cusp of a transformative new chapter.

With big product plans on the horizon and a rapidly growing user base, the business is now searching for a Head of Development to lead their engineering team into this next phase of scale and innovation.

This is your opportunity to take the reins on architecture, product delivery, and team growth in a collaborative, mission-driven environment where you’ll help shape both the product and the culture.

The Opportunity

As Head of Development, you’ll be the technical heartbeat of the business, guiding strategy, scaling the engineering function, and ensuring best-in-class delivery across a modern SaaS platform.

You’ll be responsible for leading a growing team of engineers, owning technical decisions, driving continuous improvement, and working hand-in-hand with Product, Design, and Customer Success to turn ideas into impactful solutions.

This isn’t a role for the sidelines we’re looking for someone ready to roll up their sleeves, set a high bar, and build a high-performing engineering culture.

Key tasks include:

• Lead & Scale: Build, mentor, and inspire a growing team of engineers, fostering a collaborative and high-performance environment.
• Set Direction: Define and evolve the platform’s architecture to support scalability, performance, and innovation.
• Drive Delivery: Implement and improve Agile development practices, CI/CD pipelines, and QA processes to ensure reliable releases.
• Collaborate Cross-Functionally: Partner closely with product and design to translate big ideas into beautiful, functional experiences.
• Champion Quality: Lead by example through code reviews, testing best practices, and a focus on maintainability.
• Innovate: Stay at the forefront of emerging tech and guide how it’s used to drive the business forward.

Head of Development: Core skills needed:

• Deep experience in full-stack development with Node.js, React, and TypeScript.
• Strong understanding of cloud platforms (AWS/Azure), DevOps practices, and modern engineering principles.
• Experience building and scaling engineering teams in a startup or high-growth SaaS environment.
• Natural leadership and mentoring skills — with a track record of hiring and developing top talent.
• Confident roadmap ownership, prioritisation, and technical strategy alignment with business goals.
• Excellent communicator – you know how to bring people with you, whether technical or non-technical.

Why Join?

Join a fast-growing, forward-thinking SaaS company that's not just pushing boundaries – it's setting new ones. Here, you'll have the opportunity to shape the future of AI in SaaS, work with talented teams, and make a lasting impact on the company and industry.