Lead Backend Engineer (C++) — AI-Driven, Hybrid Solihull

Big Red Recruitment; Metropolitan Borough of Solihull; Hybrid; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working hours

Company pension

24 days annual leave

Own projects time (10% of working time

Job summary

Big Red Recruitment is seeking a Lead Backend Engineer on behalf of Solihull-based technology firm to own and evolve the backend platform. You’ll lead a small engineering team, shape architecture, and drive best practices while remaining hands-on with C++.

You’ll design APIs, optimize performance, mentor engineers, and collaborate with Product, Architecture, Frontend and QA. Hybrid work 2–3 days onsite, with strong focus on scalable, secure backend services and AI-enabled tooling.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading backend engineers in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong knowledge of C++ STL and modern C++ standards.
• Experience designing scalable backend architectures and APIs.
• Experience with databases and AI/ML-powered solutions is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and evolution of scalable backend systems.
• Taking technical ownership of backend projects from planning through to delivery.
• Designing, developing and maintaining APIs and backend services.
• Driving improvements across performance, scalability, reliability and observability.
• Identifying bottlenecks and optimising database queries and system performance.
• Evaluating and implementing AI-powered tools and solutions.
• Working closely with Product, Architecture, Frontend and QA teams.
• Leading and mentoring backend engineers, promoting strong coding standards and engineering best practice.
• Supporting sprint planning, technical decision-making and continuous improvement.

Skills

C++

Backend architecture

Leadership

API design

Databases

Tools

Git

Docker

Job description

Big Red Recruitment is seeking a Lead Backend Engineer on behalf of Solihull-based technology firm to own and evolve the backend platform. You’ll lead a small engineering team, shape architecture, and drive best practices while remaining hands-on with C++.

You’ll design APIs, optimize performance, mentor engineers, and collaborate with Product, Architecture, Frontend and QA. Hybrid work 2–3 days onsite, with strong focus on scalable, secure backend services and AI-enabled tooling.