Head of Web Development

Hybrid; West of England; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Central Bristol location

£25 monthly wellbeing allowance

Learning & development annual hours

Enhanced maternity/paternity leave

Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)

Calm app subscription

Company events & socials

Free weekly breakfast deliveries

On-site bike storage & showers

Job summary

Hybrid is seeking a Head of Web Development to lead our web delivery function for higher education clients worldwide. You will own the technical direction, manage a distributed team, and shape how we build and deliver university websites.

This senior role blends hands-on technical oversight with leadership, client engagement, and strategic input into our product and service offering.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading web development teams in an agency/consultancy.
• Deep expertise in at least one enterprise CMS (Drupal preferred).
• Experience managing distributed/offshore teams and client-facing interactions.
• Ability to translate technical concepts for non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the web development team across onshore and offshore locations.
• Own the technical architecture and standards for web projects (CMS platforms).
• Oversee full project lifecycle from scoping to launch with cross-functional teams.
• Drive best practices in front-end/back-end, accessibility, performance, and security.
• Support platform strategy and DevOps practices including hosting relationships.

Skills

Leadership

Distributed teams

Client-facing

Delivery mindset

Web architecture

WCAG & security

CMS knowledge

Tools

Drupal

Squiz

Sitecore

AWS

CI/CD (GitLab/Bitbucket)

Looker Studio/GA4

Job description

Location: Bristol, BS1 4HX | hybrid working

We’re looking for a Head of Web Development to lead our web delivery function across the business. You’ll own the technical direction of our web projects, manage a high-performing distributed development team, and play a key role in shaping how we build and deliver websites for higher education clients worldwide.

This is a senior leadership position that blends hands‑on technical oversight with team management, client engagement, and strategic input into our product and service offering.

About Hybrid:

Hybrid is an award-winning global marketing agency specialising in higher education. With six offices worldwide and more than 16 years of experience, we’ve launched successful campaigns with universities and education brands across the globe.

Today, we’re a leading name in the sector, with a strong share of the university market and over 40% year‑on‑year growth. As part of EAB; a worldwide leader in education services, we’re continuing to build on that success, expanding our digital solutions and capabilities to offer even more to the education sector.

What you’ll do:

• Lead and manage the web development team across onshore and offshore locations, ensuring quality delivery, capacity planning, and professional development.
• Own the technical architecture and standards for web projects, with a focus on CMS platforms, including Drupal, Squiz, DXP, and Sitecore.
• Oversee the full project lifecycle from scoping and estimation through to launch, working closely with project managers, designers, and account teams.
• Drive best practice in front‑end and back‑end development, accessibility, performance, and security across all client builds.
• Contribute to business development activity including RFP responses, technical proposals, and client presentations.
• Collaborate with the Director of Technology on platform strategy, tooling decisions, and technology roadmap.
• Support the ongoing development and integration of Hybrid’s Intelligence Hub products within client web estates.
• Manage hosting and infrastructure relationships (e.g. Pantheon, AWS, Acquia) and ensure robust DevOps practices.
• Champion continuous improvement in development workflows, CI/CD pipelines, code review processes, and QA standards.
• Stay current with trends in higher education digital services, CMS technology, and web development practice, feeding insights back into the team and wider business.

What we’re looking for:

• Significant experience in web development, with a strong track record of leading development teams in an agency or consultancy environment.
• Deep expertise in at least one enterprise CMS platform (Drupal strongly preferred), with working knowledge of others.
• Experience managing distributed or offshore development teams and navigating the challenges that come with that.
• Comfortable with client‑facing work, translating technical concepts for non‑technical stakeholders and hold your own in a pitch.
• Strong grasp of web accessibility standards (WCAG), performance optimisation, and security best practice.
• Experience with hosting platforms, cloud infrastructure (AWS), and CI/CD tooling (GitLab, Bitbucket, or similar).
• Familiarity with analytics tools (GA4, Looker Studio, BigQuery) and how they integrate with web platforms.
• A pragmatic, delivery‑focused mindset; understanding how to balance technical ideals with commercial reality.

What’s in it for you:

• Central Bristol location - just off King Street and a 10-minute walk from Temple Meads
• £25 monthly wellbeing allowance - spend it on your physical or mental wellbeing
• Investing in your development - grow your career with a dedicated annual allowance of learning hours, regular training sessions and support from our in‑house Director of Learning and Performance
• Supporting life beyond work -enhanced maternity and paternity leave
• Health and wellbeing - access free support and advice via our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and a subscription to the Calm app
• Festive time off - enjoy a company‑wide break between Christmas and New Year
• Company events and socials – take time out as a team with regular away days plus Summer and Christmas parties
• Office perks – free weekly breakfast deliveries and fresh fruit
• Commuter-friendly facilities – secure bike storage and showers on‑site

What makes Hybrid different:

We don’t just run campaigns; we create work that makes a difference.

It’s our people that make it possible. At Hybrid, you’ll work alongside smart, supportive colleagues who value different perspectives, encourage new ideas and give you the space to do your best work. You’ll have the opportunity to work on meaningful projects for leading education brands, while continuing to develop your skills and experience.

Hybrid Media is proud to be an equal opportunities employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and believe that a diverse team brings richer perspectives, stronger creativity, and better outcomes for our people and our clients.