Head of People & Finance Systems

Aboutus Ft; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous annual leave

Medical cover

Parental leave

Job summary

The Financial Times is seeking a Principal Engineer for Corporate Technology to lead senior engineering efforts across its internal platforms, including People, Finance and Procurement systems. You will define engineering strategy, set ownership, mentor senior engineers and oversee secure, scalable, and well-managed platforms.

You will collaborate with Product, Architecture, Security, Data and People/Finance teams to drive technology roadmaps and large-scale transformations, ensuring lasting

Qualifications

• Extensive background in senior engineering leadership across multiple enterprise platforms.
• Experience with integrating and operating business-critical platforms.
• Experience leading transformation, modernisation or large-scale programmes.

Responsibilities

• Define the engineering vision for Corporate Technology and translate strategy into priorities and roadmaps.
• Provide senior technical direction across enterprise platforms, data flows and integrations.
• Establish standards, patterns and guardrails focusing on security, resilience and cost.

Skills

Senior engineering leadership

Enterprise SaaS ecosystems

Oracle Fusion

Workday

APIs and data flows

Cloud technologies

Transformation programmes

Technical ownership

Reliability and security

Leadership of engineers

Job description

Principal Engineer – Corporate IT

About Us

Globally acknowledged for its trustworthiness, integrity, and accuracy, the Financial Times is a leading news organisation. It aims to offer quality information and services internationally.

At the FT, curiosity flourishes and ambitious thinking is appreciated. Here, you're given the chance to reach millions, create work that matters and deliver impartial journalism in a polarised world.

In our warm, collaborative culture, you'll connect with a diverse community of experts who support your growth, career aspirations and wellbeing.

Your future at the FT will be filled with opportunities that challenge and motivate you. With no set route, you'll uncover new skills and build a career that can lead you anywhere.

Develop a newsworthy career at the FT.

Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We believe in the strength of diverse viewpoints and want every voice in our organisation to be acknowledged, respected and appreciated. A nurturing workplace is one where employees feel free to be themselves and perform at their highest potential. We are dedicated to eliminating obstacles for all, particularly focusing on challenges encountered by underrepresented groups.

The Role

Corporate Technology is part of Internal Products and manages the technology solutions that support several of the FT’s key internal business functions, including People, Finance, and Procurement. This area encompasses significant enterprise platforms like Oracle Fusion and Workday, as well as specialized platforms, integrations, data flows, and in-house developed tools.

As Principal Engineer – Corporate Technology, you will lead senior engineering efforts across this area. You will define the engineering strategy for the domain and collaborate with Engineering Leads and senior engineers. Together, you will ensure our platforms and services remain secure, resilient, scalable, well managed, and adaptable to business needs.

A key part of the role is to establish and enhance a solid engineering leadership approach across Corporate Technology. You will assign clear ownership and accountability to individual platforms. You will also offer technical direction, mentoring, and oversight to maintain a unified and sustainable technology infrastructure.

Partnering with Product, Architecture, Security, Data, and senior participants from People, Finance, and Procurement, you will develop technology strategy and roadmaps. You will find opportunities to simplify and modernise the estate. You will lead engineering for large-scale transformation efforts.

Key Responsibilities

• Define the engineering vision for Corporate Technology covering People, Finance, and Procurement platforms and services, converting FT and Internal Products technology strategy into specific priorities and roadmaps.
• Deliver senior technical direction across enterprise platforms, integrations, data flows, and internally developed capabilities.
• Work with Architecture and Engineering Leads to establish appropriate technical standards, patterns and guardrails, ensuring significant decisions consider security, resilience, scalability, operability, maintainability and cost.
• Recognize systemic technical risks, lifecycle challenges, technical debt, and possibilities to simplify the technology estate, cut down on duplication, and boost interoperability.
• Ensure Engineering Leads have clear accountability for the engineering, operation and continuous improvement of their platforms, with consistent expectations for engineering quality and technical ownership.
• Support complex technical decisions and issues spanning multiple platforms, while creating appropriate autonomy for Engineering Leads.
• Direct and cultivate Engineering Leads and senior engineers, improving technical judgement, platform ownership, succession, and specialist capability across the domain.
• Offer senior engineering direction for key People, Finance, and Procurement technology efforts, ensuring new capabilities are transferred into lasting internal stewardship.
• Support platform selection, implementation and major technology investment decisions, challenging approaches that introduce unnecessary complexity, operational risk or long-term dependency.
• Maintain oversight of operational performance and technology risk, including reliability, observability, incident and change management, disaster recovery and business continuity.
• Ensure platforms meet relevant FT security, data governance, compliance and technology standards.
• Strengthen internal capability and knowledge to reduce unnecessary reliance on individual specialists, vendors and implementation partners.
• Build strong relationships across People, Finance, Procurement, Product and Technology, helping collaborators understand technical trade-offs, risks and investment requirements.
• Collaborate with Architecture, Security, Data, and other engineering leaders on decisions that span organisational or technology boundaries, representing Corporate Technology in relevant FT engineering and technology forums.

Required Skills and Experience

• Extensive background in senior engineering leadership within a complex technology organisation, including management across multiple enterprise platforms, products or technology capabilities.
• Solid knowledge of enterprise SaaS ecosystems and the engineering methods necessary to integrate, operate, and develop business-critical platforms effectively.
• Experience with leading enterprise platforms like Oracle Fusion, Workday, or similar People, Finance, or ERP systems.
• Solid grasp of contemporary integration methods, APIs, data flows, and cloud technologies.
• Experience leading technology through significant transformation, implementation or modernisation programmes.
• Experience establishing clear technical ownership and sustainable operating models for business-critical platforms.
• Solid grasp of reliability, security, operational risk, and technology lifecycle management.
• Experience working effectively with third-party technology vendors, implementation partners and managed service providers while maintaining strong internal ownership.
• Experience leading and developing Engineering Leads, senior engineers or other experienced technical professionals, including coaching leaders and creating clear decision rights and accountability.
• A track record of influencing senior business and technology collaborators and translating complex technical considerations into clear, pragmatic decisions.
• Experience formulating technology strategies and roadmaps spanning multiple platforms or capabilities.
• Strong technical judgement, with the ability to balance longer-term technical direction with delivery and business priorities.

Desirable

• Experience with Oracle Fusion, Workday, and their broader technology environments.
• Experience working with Finance, People, Procurement or other enterprise business capabilities.

What's in it for You?

Our benefits differ depending on the location, but we are dedicated to offering top-tier perks at all our offices. These include generous annual leave, medical cover, inclusive parental leave packages, subsidised gym memberships, and opportunities to contribute to the community. Full details of our benefits are available here.

We currently operate a hybrid model which requires staff to work onsite 50% of the time, subject to role requirements & regular review. While flexible working requests will be considered, not all patterns are suitable for all roles. We believe this balanced approach supports flexibility and protects our culture, making collaboration and communication easier, building stronger relationships and team cohesion, and supporting peer learning. We reserve discretion on reasonable notice to change this approach either generally or for specific individuals or teams.

Accessibility

We are a disability confident employer and Valuable 500 signatory.

Let us know if you require any reasonable modifications or accommodations as part of the application process or to support your participation in an interview. If you want to discuss your needs or have any questions, please email [e-mail] and a member of our team will be pleased to help.

Further Information

At the FT, we value innovation and technology and recognize that candidates might bring AI tools into their application process. You are welcome to harness AI to help with your application. However, it remains important that all details are authentic and accurately describe your skills, experience, and qualifications.

Candidates should be aware that AI may be monitored during the application process to maintain fairness and transparency for everyone involved.