Head of Engineering & Data
Macs Adventure
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
Macs Adventure, a scaling tech-enabled travel company, seeks a Head of Engineering & Data in Glasgow. You will own the technical architecture, set standards, coach a small team, and collaborate with trusted partners to deliver scalable, secure solutions.
You’ll lead cross-functional squads, drive AI initiatives, and ensure a lean data platform supports marketing tech and customer products while maintaining resilience and security.
Qualifications
- Experience as a senior engineering leader (Head of Engineering, VP Engineering or similar), comfortable being the most senior technologist in the business.
- A compose-not-build instinct: strong judgement in choosing and integrating third-party platforms.
- A track record with external development partners, including de-risking or replacing a critical system without breaking the business.
- Technical depth – hands-on enough to challenge partners and get into the detail of cloud, integration and data architecture, without needing to write the code yourself.
- Personal ownership of a data platform and BI estate as well as engineering – for us, this is one job, not two.
- The drive to push AI forward across people, processes and product – with measurable results.
- Solid security, compliance and resilience fundamentals.
- A habit of writing things down, and the standing to hold architecture decisions and explain them to leaders, partners and investors alike.
- A coaching style: you build small, senior teams and help people grow, rather than building empires.
Responsibilities
- We work with trusted development partners who build, maintain and support our applications, including the cloud infrastructure behind them.
- Together with our internal specialists, we ensure technology delivers what the business needs.
- As Head of Engineering & Data, you’ll provide technical leadership, set clear standards and guide architecture decisions while coaching your team.
- Lead cross-functional squads with Product, UX and Marketing to solve business problems with technology.
- Strengthen core technology platforms by improving stability and reducing supplier risk gradually.
- Be our architect-of-record: own system map, integration standards and decision log.
- Drive technology selection and integration to connect systems as one product.
- Own our data platform, providing a lean, modern data source for business use and AI needs.
- Set engineering standards with automated testing and consistent ways of working.
Skills
Job description
Location: Glasgow, UK (hybrid – home working plus 3 days per week in our Glasgow hub)
Are you a technology leader who knows how to get the best out of systems, data and development partners? Someone who understands that great technology isn't always about building something new, but about choosing the right solutions, connecting them effectively and making them work brilliantly? If you thrive in a fast-paced, scaling environment and want to shape how technology supports our next stage of growth, we'd love to hear from you.
This is a fantastic opportunity to play a key role in shaping how technology and data support the future of Macs Adventure. We're a tech-enabled travel company, not a software house. We buy and integrate most of our technology, working with external development partners who build, maintain and support our systems. You'll be responsible for ensuring our technology works together, is secure and reliable, and can scale with our ambitions.
Reporting to our Technology & Digital Director, you'll own our technical architecture and engineering standards, grow a small team of specialists and work hand in hand with trusted development partners to turn our technology strategy into practical solutions that support our journey to become the world's leading active travel company.
We’re a scaling adventure tour operator on a mission to be the leading global brand in self-guided, active travel.
Welcoming over 40,000 customers on walking and cycling trips to destinations around the world, we employ over 140 people across the UK, US and Germany who share our purpose to create #macsmoments by leading, advocating & enabling self-guided, active travel as a positive force for people and planet.
We’re an ambitious, forward-thinking business with a bold vision for the future, and our culture reflects these ambitions. We’re an action-oriented, fast-paced organisation and we like to have fun along the way. We’re looking for people who can grow with Macs and grow with us on our journey to become the world’s leading active travel company. It’s not the easy route and we’re looking for people who enjoy challenges, love learning, want to make an impact and align with our core values:
· Love the journey: A Macs trip is all about the journey, not the destination. We are all believers in Macs’ unique brand of self-guided, active travel and shout about it. As more travellers convert to the Macs Way, we accept our business will grow and change. We welcome new connections and embrace new opportunities. Carpe diem!
· Take a different path: We’re not different for different’s sake; but we won’t succeed if we’re just the same as everyone else. We devise creative solutions to problems, find new ways of doing things, and trust colleagues who are doing so too. We are brave and feel empowered to take the initiative. We ask ourselves: is what I’m doing authentically Macs?
· Tread thoughtfully: We are considerate, empathetic and try to put ourselves in our customers’, suppliers’ and each other’s shoes. We support local and find ways of having less negative impact on the planet. We find ways of having positive impact on people and communities. We are fair, and we do the right thing.
· Go the extra mile: We know that creating a perfect #MacsMoment involves going that bit further. We imagine the best feedback we can get and set out to earn it. We take ownership and accountability – it’s yours, not someone else’s, problem. We step up and help our teammates when they need us.
We work with trusted development partners who build, maintain and support our applications, including the cloud infrastructure behind them. Alongside them, we have a deliberately small internal team of engineering and data specialists who bring technical expertise and a deep understanding of Macs. Together, they work as one team to make sure our technology delivers what the business needs.
Our internal specialists work within cross-functional squads alongside colleagues from Product, UX and Marketing. The business defines the problem, and the squad works together to find the best solution. As Head of Engineering & Data, you'll provide the technical leadership that brings this together, setting clear standards and making architecture decisions whilst supporting your team's development through coaching and influence, rather than directing their day-to-day work.
Here’s where you'll make an impact:
- Strengthen our core technology platforms: improving the stability and reliability of our key systems, whilst gradually reducing our reliance on any single critical supplier through planned, manageable changes rather than a disruptive, large-scale re-platforming.
- Be our architect-of-record: own the system map, integration standards and decision log, so every choice is coherent and stands up to investor scrutiny.
- Lead technology selection and integration: guiding the technical evaluation of new systems and working with our squads and development partners to ensure everything connects effectively and works together as one product.
- Own our data platform: ensuring we have a lean, modern data platform that gives the business one trusted source of information, whilst supporting our marketing technology and customer-facing products.
- Drive the use of AI across Macs: identifying and delivering opportunities to use AI across our people, processes and products. From reducing manual work and costs to enabling teams to build their own AI agents and integrating AI into our products, you'll ensure every initiative has clear ownership and measurable targets.
- Set our engineering standards: establishing clear requirements, automated testing and consistent ways of working that help our internal squads and external partners deliver quality solutions predictably.
- Keep our technology secure, compliant and resilient: ensuring we have the right controls in place to protect our systems and data, whilst overseeing our cloud infrastructure and technology suppliers, including their costs.
- Manage our technology partners and suppliers: building strong relationships with our external partners and holding them accountable for the quality and reliability of the services they provide.
- Lead and develop our internal team: growing a small, experienced team of engineering and data specialists, supporting their career development through coaching and technical guidance whilst enabling them to contribute effectively within their cross-functional squads.
- Experience as a senior engineering leader (Head of Engineering, VP Engineering or similar), comfortable being the most senior technologist in the business.
- A compose-not-build instinct: strong judgement in choosing and integrating third-party platforms, building only where it truly sets us apart.
- A track record with external development partners, including de-risking or replacing a critical system without breaking the business.
- Technical depth – hands‑on enough to challenge partners and get into the detail of cloud, integration and data architecture, without needing to write the code yourself.
- Personal ownership of a data platform and BI estate as well as engineering – for us, this is one job, not two.
- The drive to push AI forward across people, processes and product – with measurable results.
- Solid security, compliance and resilience fundamentals.
- A habit of writing things down, and the standing to hold architecture decisions and explain them to leaders, partners and investors alike.
- A coaching style: you build small, senior teams and help people grow, rather than building empires.
- Worked in a consumer digital, e-commerce or travel scale-up.
- Delivered AI with measurable impact – for example AI agents, agent-ready APIs or AI built into a customer-facing product.
- Built or worked with a data platform that brings structured data (bookings, finance, operations) together with unstructured text (documents, reviews, emails), so people and AI agents can perform natural-language queries and get answers drawn from both.
- ERP, CRS or CRM platform evaluation.
- Supported an investor technical due diligence process.
- A genuine love of the outdoors, walking or cycling, and a passion for active travel
The knowledge and skills we’ve listed represent “the perfect candidate”. No one’s perfect and we know the ‘confidence gap’ can stop brilliant people applying. If you love the sound of this opportunity please apply, we’d love to hear from you.
To deliver adventures for more than 40,000 customers we need to build a company that’s reflective of their diversity. We’re building an inclusive workplace that promotes and values difference, where everyone, from any background, can do their best work and be proud to belong.
As well as your salary;
- ANNUAL LEAVE: We want you to be able to take holidays that matter to you, so 8 public holidays are included in your annual leave allowance of 33 days, which increases to 35 days after 5 years’ service.
- BIRTHDAY BOOSTER: An extra day off on your birthday!
- PENSION: We offer a contributory pension scheme.
- DISCOUNTS: Enjoy generous discounts on Macs Adventure trips — you'll get to experience the same self-guided adventures we create for our customers, at a price that makes it easy to say yes. It's a perk built around what we love doing most: getting outside and exploring!
- TRAVEL INSURANCE: We provide you and your spouse/partner/children with annual worldwide travel insurance.
- FLEXIBLE WORKING: A flexible work culture - you’ll be able to work from home as well as coming into our hub office in Glasgow 3 days per week to collaborate with colleagues.
- GETTING TOGETHER: Regular team, management and leadership meetings and retreats.
- CULTURE: An innovative, fast growth, international and solution focused culture, where we work hard to embed our values across the business.
- L&D: We support your self-guided learning journey to make the most of your strengths.
- WELLBEING. We'll support you in looking after your health and wellbeing so you can do your best work.
- TRAVEL: Occasional international travel may be required.
- IMPACT: The opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives and the planet.
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