Head of Systems Engineering, Gill Group, Lymington, Hampshire (Hybrid)

Berwick Partners; Southampton; On-site; GBP 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Gill Group, a British engineering business, seeks a Head of Systems Engineering to establish and lead the systems engineering function across the organisation.

Reporting to the VP of Global Engineering, the role covers software, electronics and mechanical disciplines, driving architecture, requirements management, verification & validation and reliability processes to ensure coherent, system-led product development from customer needs through testing and support.

Qualifications

• Experience leading systems engineering activities across the full product lifecycle.
• Strong technical background in software, electronics or mechanical engineering, with ability to operate across all three disciplines.
• Proven experience delivering complex products to market.
• Expertise in systems architecture, requirements management and verification & validation.
• Track record of improving reliability, root cause analysis and engineering governance.
• Experience building teams, developing capability and influencing stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Leading and developing the systems engineering capability across the business.
• Defining and governing product and system architectures.
• Owning requirements management, verification and validation activities.
• Improving reliability engineering, root cause analysis and product performance.
• Introducing scalable systems engineering processes and governance frameworks.
• Supporting the effective use of outsourced engineering and development partners.
• Acting as the technical authority across multidisciplinary engineering programmes.

Skills

Systems leadership

Systems architecture

Requirements management

Verification & validation

Reliability engineering

Team building

Stakeholder influence

Job description

Berwick Partners is delighted to be partnering with Gill Group to appoint a Head of Systems Engineering.

Gill is an independent British engineering business with more than 40 years of experience developing high-performance sensing, measurement and environmental monitoring technologies used across the world. The Group has built an enviable reputation for technical innovation, quality and reliability, serving markets including renewable energy, meteorology, marine, defence, industrial automation and transportation.

In 2025, Gill was recognised with the King's Award for Enterprise in International Trade, reflecting both the quality of its technology and continued international growth.

As part of its continued investment in engineering capability and new product development, Gill is seeking to appoint a Head of Systems Engineering to establish and lead the systems engineering function across the business.

The Role

Reporting to the VP of Global Engineering, this newly created position will provide ownership of systems architecture, requirements management, verification and validation, reliability engineering and technical governance across Gill's product portfolio.

Operating across software, electronics and mechanical engineering disciplines, the successful candidate will ensure products are developed through a coherent systems-led approach, from customer requirements and architecture definition through to testing, launch and ongoing support.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading and developing the systems engineering capability across the business
• Defining and governing product and system architectures
• Owning requirements management, verification and validation activities
• Improving reliability engineering, root cause analysis and product performance
• Introducing scalable systems engineering processes and governance frameworks
• Supporting the effective use of outsourced engineering and development partners
• Acting as the technical authority across. multidisciplinary engineering programmes

The Person

This role will suit a hands-on systems engineering leader who enjoys solving complex technical challenges, developing capability and creating structure within a growing engineering organisation.

You are likely to bring:

• Experience leading systems engineering activities across the full product lifecycle
• A strong technical background in software, electronics or mechanical engineering, with the ability to operate across all three disciplines
• Proven experience delivering complex products to market
• Expertise in systems architecture, requirements management and verification & validation
• A track record of improving reliability, root cause analysis and engineering governance
• Experience building teams, developing capability and influencing stakeholders
• The ability to balance strategic thinking with practical delivery
• Experience within an SME or mid-sized engineering environment would be particularly attractive, especially where pace, pragmatism and collaboration are critical to success.

The Opportunity

This is a rare opportunity to establish and lead a systems engineering function within a highly respected British technology business.

The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in shaping product development capability, engineering maturity and future growth, whilst enjoying significant visibility, influence and autonomy within the organisation.

Package and benefits will be discussed during conversations with Berwick Partners.