Lead Engineer

Network IT; Milton Keynes; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 67,000; Full time

Job summary

Network IT is recruiting a Lead Engineer in Milton Keynes for a hybrid role (1 day/month onsite). The position combines technical ownership with people leadership and end‑to‑end software delivery in a product‑led environment.

You will guide technical direction, mentor engineers and QA, and collaborate with Product and Design to deliver high‑quality software across its lifecycle.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in a Lead Engineer, Engineering Manager, Technical Lead or similar role.
• Strong track record of end‑to‑end software delivery and product delivery.
• Experience mentoring Software Engineers and QA/Test professionals.
• Excellent technical leadership and ability to guide teams.
• Knowledge of DevOps, CI/CD, automated testing, TDD, cloud‑native development, IaC.

Responsibilities

• Take end‑to‑end ownership of software development across the lifecycle.
• Act as technical lead and SME for a product, guiding standards and decisions.
• Lead and mentor software engineers and testers to grow technically.
• Collaborate with Product, Delivery and Design to align priorities with business goals.
• Oversee architecture, development, testing, deployment and optimisation.
• Promote engineering best practices in coding, testing and DevOps.
• Work with architects to define scalable, secure technical solutions.
• Champion build‑run‑own mindset and production accountability.
• Drive continuous improvement of processes and delivery practices.
• Ensure non‑functional requirements like security, scalability, cost.

Skills

Lead Engineer experience

People leadership

End-to-end software delivery

Mentoring engineers

DevOps

CI/CD

Cloud-native development

Infrastructure as Code

Tools

QA/Test leadership

Job description

Role: Lead Engineer

Location: Milton Keynes (Hybrid – approx. 1 day per month on site)

Salary: £60,000 - £67,000

Role Overview

Network IT are working with a highly respected organisation to recruit a Lead Engineer. This is a senior engineering leadership opportunity, combining technical ownership, people leadership, and end‑to‑end software delivery responsibility within a modern product‑led environment.

You will play a key role in shaping the technical direction of a core business product, working closely with Product, Delivery and Engineering teams to ensure high‑quality software is delivered, maintained, and continuously improved throughout its lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Take end‑to‑end ownership of software development, ensuring products are delivered, operated, supported and continually improved throughout their lifecycle.
• Act as the technical lead and subject‑matter expert for a product, driving engineering standards and technical decision‑making.
• Lead and mentor teams of Software Engineers and Testers, supporting their technical growth and development.
• Collaborate with Product, Delivery and Design teams to align technical priorities with business objectives.
• Oversee the full software development lifecycle, including architecture, development, testing, deployment, support and optimisation.
• Drive adoption of engineering best practices across coding, testing, automation, DevOps and quality assurance.
• Work closely with architects to define scalable, secure and maintainable technical solutions.
• Champion a build‑run‑own mindset, ensuring teams maintain accountability for products in production.
• Lead continuous improvement initiatives across engineering processes, tools and delivery practices.
• Ensure solutions meet non‑functional requirements including security, scalability, stability, performance and cost‑efficiency.
• Manage technical risks, dependencies and delivery challenges across the product lifecycle.

Essential Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in a Lead Engineer, Engineering Manager, Technical Lead or similar role.
• Strong track record of leading end‑to‑end software development and product delivery.
• Experience managing and mentoring Software Engineers and QA/Test professionals.
• Excellent technical leadership skills with the ability to guide engineering teams and influence technical direction.
• Strong understanding of modern software engineering practices, including:
  • DevOps
  • CI/CD
  • Automated Testing
  • TDD
  • Cloud‑native development
  • Infrastructure as Code
• Experience designing and delivering scalable, secure and resilient software solutions.
• Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to communicate technical concepts to non‑technical audiences.
• Experience working within cross‑functional product teams and balancing business and technical priorities.
• Strong knowledge of software architecture, distributed systems, APIs and modern engineering principles.
• Experience operating within a build‑run‑own environment.