Head Of Development / Development Manager

Smile Digital; Minsterley; Hybrid; GBP 55,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

A growing digital firm in Minsterley seeks a Head of Development to lead their development team while actively contributing to coding and architecture. This role blends hands-on development and strong leadership, requiring experience in PHP and WordPress. Ideal candidates will have over 7 years in web development and a passion for mentoring. The position offers a hybrid working model and aims to promote sustainable practices within the industry.

Qualifications

• 7+ years' experience in web/software development, including coding, architecture, and solution design.
• Strong leadership experience with a passion for developing and mentoring others.
• Deep technical expertise across PHP, WordPress and CMS platforms.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and comfortable with complex technical challenges.

Responsibilities

• Act as a senior technical authority, delivering high-quality code across projects.
• Lead, mentor, and grow the Development team, fostering a collaborative culture.
• Manage the Development P&L, software stack, and resource planning.
• Ensure projects are delivered to scope, on time, and to a high standard.

Skills

PHP

WordPress

Leadership

Problem solving

Job description

Job Overview

Head of Development / Development Manager - Shropshire, Hybrid - £55k-£65k

Head of Development who can balance strong technical ability (PHP, WordPress) with strong leadership skills is required by a growing client, who is looking to add to their Senior Leadership team. This role is ideal for someone who still loves rolling up their sleeves and diving into code, while also having the vision and people skills to lead a department, be client facing when needed and join the "heads of" team across the business working on the vision and goals.

Your role will be approximately split 60% of your time hands on with development, architecting solutions, writing high quality code, and guiding the team, shaping the technical direction, 40% will focus on leadership, strategy, and team development. This is a great opportunity for a senior developer or technical lead ready to step up, or an established Dev Manager who enjoys remaining hands on and leading from the front.

Hands on technical lead (60%)

• Act as a senior technical authority, delivering high quality code across projects.
• Architect solutions, review code, set development standards, and guide best practices.
• Work closely with the team to solve complex technical challenges.
• Lead on major builds, troubleshoot issues, and support project delivery with practical, hands on involvement.
• Evaluate and adopt new tools and technologies that elevate the technical offering.

Strategy and leadership (40%)

• Lead, mentor, and grow the Development team, fostering a collaborative and high performance culture.
• Oversee recruitment, progression planning, and performance management.
• Set clear departmental KPIs and ensure alignment with broader business objectives.
• Manage the Development P&L, software stack, and resource planning.
• Own the annual development roadmap, shaping new services and improvements.
• Champion sustainability, ethical practices, and B Corp values across the department.
• Develop data driven development strategies, supported by market and competitor research.
• Build departmental budgets and ensure efficient resource allocation.
• Maintain strong relationships with partners, suppliers, and internal teams.
• Ensure projects are delivered to scope, on time, and to a consistently high standard.
• Oversee team utilisation, billable time, and productivity.
• Maintain quality and consistency across all development outputs.

Reporting & Process

• Ensure accurate, timely reporting and compliance with SLAs and internal processes.
• Manage time logging and workflow visibility across the team.
• Promote a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
• Oversee server management and client facing technical communications.

Requirements

• 7+ years' experience in web/software development, including coding, architecture, and solution design (PHP, WordPress)
• Strong leadership experience with a passion for developing and mentoring others.
• Deep technical expertise across PHP, WordPress and CMS platforms.
• Excellent problem solving skills and comfortable with complex technical challenges.

If you are someone who loves to code and enjoys being in the thick of it, but also is keen to lead, manage and grow a team then apply now for immediate consideration.