Head of Engineering | Voice

DeepL; England; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading technology company in the United Kingdom is seeking a Head of Engineering for Voice to build and lead the engineering organization responsible for scaling their voice technology. This role requires proven experience in managing engineering teams, strategic product oversight, and technical credibility in Voice AI or real-time communications. Candidates should have a strong focus on customer experience and be capable of fostering a high-performance culture.

Qualifications

• Proven experience scaling a product engineering organisation through high growth phases.
• Ability to influence company-level objectives through product and business acumen.
• Deep understanding of Voice AI or real-time communications is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead the product engineering organization for Voice.
• Own the business and product strategy for the Voice track.
• Define technical vision and ensure reliability of real-time systems.
• Foster a culture of accountability and high performance.

Skills

Manager of Managers experience

Strategic Product Acumen

Technical Credibility (Voice/Real-Time)

Customer Experience focus

Job description

Head of Engineering | Voice

Join to apply for the Head of Engineering | Voice role at DeepL

Speak About Quality and Innovation

Our journey is built on the foundation of DeepL, a name synonymous with world‑class translation quality. The trust we have cultivated with millions of users and leading enterprise customers globally is a testament to our commitment to breaking down language barriers with precision and nuance.

Leading our next chapter is the Voice Track. Our technology is proven and ready to scale aggressively. We are a dynamic, multi‑disciplinary organisation bringing together teams across Research, Product Engineering, and Design to define the art of the possible for real‑time voice interpretation.

Having launched our first successful customer‑facing features, we are now at a critical inflection point. We are scaling rapidly to build applications for major meeting platforms, real‑time communication channels, and a powerful Public API. We need a seasoned engineering leader to build the high‑performance organisation that will power this expansion and get this "magic" into the hands of millions more customers, faster.

Your Mission

As the Head of Engineering for Voice, your mission is to build and lead the entire product engineering organisation that will scale DeepL Voice into a major pillar of our business. You will be the senior‑most engineering leader for this track, accountable for translating executive strategy into a high‑velocity execution engine and owning the business outcomes that get us to 10M ARR and beyond.

Core Responsibilities

• Build and Scale a "Manager of Managers" Organisation: Hire, develop, and lead Engineering Managers and senior ICs across multiple product engineering teams. Design the organisation, ensure team health, and implement a career development framework that allows us to scale effectively.
• Own the Business & Product Strategy: Serve as senior engineering partner to the Head of Product for Voice. Move beyond roadmap execution; shape company‑level objectives, challenge assumptions, and ensure the organisation builds the right things to drive customer adoption and business growth.
• Define and Drive the Technical Vision: Own the long‑term technical strategy and architecture for the entire Voice domain. Ensure reliability, scalability, and performance of our real‑time systems, making tough technology and trade‑off decisions to meet aggressive growth goals.
• Foster a High‑Performance Execution Culture: Cultivate a "builder" culture of empowerment, accountability, and ownership. Drive clarity, eliminate roadblocks, and hold managers and teams accountable for delivering results.

What We Look For

• Proven "Manager of Managers" Experience: Demonstrable track record of scaling a product engineering organisation through a high‑growth phase (e.g., growing from one team to many, or from 5 to 20+ engineers). Experience hiring and developing other managers.
• Strategic Product & Business Acumen: Think like a General Manager. Deep product acumen and history of partnering with senior product and design leaders to influence company‑level objectives, not just manage a backlog.
• Deep Technical Credibility (Voice/Real‑Time): Technical depth to lead senior engineers and managers, guide architecture at scale, and earn credibility. Direct experience or deep understanding of Voice AI, Speech, NLP, or real‑time communications is a major bonus.
• A "Builder" Who Thrives on Accountability: Not a maintenance‑mode leader. Thrive on urgency, pressure, and accountability of a growth‑stage product and be motivated by owning critical business outcomes.
• An Obsession with the Customer Experience: Proven history of owning a business‑critical, customer‑facing product where reliability, low latency, and a seamless user experience were paramount.

We are an equal opportunity employer

You are welcome at DeepL for who you are—we appreciate authenticity here. Our product is for everyone, and so is our workplace. The more voices we have represented and amplified in our business, the more we will all succeed, contribute, and think forward! So bring us your personal experience, your perspectives, and your background. It’s in our diversity that we will find the power to break down language barriers in the world.

Seniority level: Director

Employment type: Full‑time

Job function: Information Technology

Industries: Software Development

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