Head of Platform

Digital Gurus; Greater Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Digital Gurus in Manchester is seeking a Head of Platform to lead its software engineering function through rapid growth. You’ll own infrastructure, DevOps, backend services and APIs, the web platform and mobile apps, reporting to the CTO.

You’ll manage a team of 6–7 engineers across the UK and US, shape the platform roadmap, ensure resilience and security, and guide AI tooling adoption with a bias toward quality and uptime.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading multiple engineering teams delivering a unified product roadmap.
• Experience managing a cloud platform with AWS preferred (Azure/GCP OK).
• Strong understanding of modern platforms: containers, serverless, APIs, CI/CD, observability.
• Exposure to AWS, MongoDB, React/TypeScript, Terraform, GitHub Actions, Grafana.
• Excellent stakeholder management and ability to translate business needs into engineering priorities.
• Pragmatic, commercially-minded with focus on shipping and iterative improvement.
• Forward-thinking view on AI and its role in engineering teams.
• Startup or scale-up background with willingness to wear many hats.

Responsibilities

• Lead the platform engineering function, managing the front-end, back-end and mobile leads, plus a wider team of 6-7 engineers across the UK and US
• Shape and own the platform roadmap with the CTO and business unit owners, balancing day-to-day delivery against strategic priorities
• Lead the platform through rapid growth, making sure infrastructure, data handling and services stay resilient, performant and ready to scale
• Own the security of the platform environment, including pen-testing partners, and support upcoming ISO and SOC 2 certification
• Define how the team adopts AI tooling to improve productivity while protecting quality and uptime
• Drive engineering standards, documentation and operational best practice across the teams
• Coach and develop engineers, building a culture of ownership and accountability
• Help build out a dedicated DevOps function from next year
• Represent the platform across the business, working with founders, sales, innovation and department heads
• Manage key technology vendor relationships and contracts

Skills

Leadership

AWS

Cloud architecture

React/TypeScript

Tech stack exposure

Stakeholder mgmt

Pragmatic mindset

AI in engineering

Startup/scale-up

Tools

Terraform

GitHub Actions

Grafana

MongoDB

React/TypeScript

Job description

Location: Deansgate, Manchester (hybrid, 1 day a week in the office)

We’ve partnered with an established, fast-growing data and SaaS business that is seeking a Head of Platform to lead its software engineering function through a period of significant growth. As demand for its connected technology accelerates, so do its data volumes and platform needs. Reporting to the CTO, you’ll own everything software related: infrastructure, DevOps, backend services and APIs, the web platform and the mobile apps. It’s a friendly, fast-moving business where decisions are made quickly, and the platform you lead sits at the heart of what customers buy.

Responsibilities

• Lead the platform engineering function, managing the front-end, back-end and mobile leads, plus a wider team of 6-7 engineers across the UK and US
• Shape and own the platform roadmap with the CTO and business unit owners, balancing day-to-day delivery against strategic priorities
• Lead the platform through rapid growth, making sure infrastructure, data handling and services stay resilient, performant and ready to scale
• Own the security of the platform environment, including pen-testing partners, and support upcoming ISO and SOC 2 certification
• Define how the team adopts AI tooling to improve productivity while protecting quality and uptime
• Drive engineering standards, documentation and operational best practice across the teams
• Coach and develop engineers, building a culture of ownership and accountability
• Help build out a dedicated DevOps function from next year
• Represent the platform across the business, working with founders, sales, innovation and department heads
• Manage key technology vendor relationships and contracts

Skills & Experience

• Proven experience leading multiple engineering teams that deliver an interrelated digital product and roadmap
• Experience managing a cloud platform, with AWS strongly preferred (Azure or GCP considered)
• Broad understanding of how modern platforms fit together: containers, serverless, APIs, CI/CD and observability
• Exposure to AWS, MongoDB, React/TypeScript, Terraform, GitHub Actions and Grafana
• Strong stakeholder management skills, and the ability to turn business needs into engineering priorities
• A pragmatic, commercial mindset that values shipping and iterating over chasing perfection
• A considered, informed view on AI and its role in engineering teams
• Startup or scale-up experience, or a genuine appetite for ownership and wearing many hats