Lead Frontend Architect (React/Next.js)

Digital Waffle; Cardiff; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

Digital Waffle is seeking a Senior Frontend Engineer to lead the design and delivery of customer-facing React/Next.js applications. You’ll shape frontend architecture, mentor engineers, and drive performance, accessibility and reliability improvements.

You’ll work with product, design and research teams to translate user needs into robust technical solutions while promoting continuous learning and engineering excellence.

Qualifications

• Strong commercial experience building and operating React / Next.js applications.
• Excellent understanding of frontend architecture, component design and modern development practices.
• Proven experience improving web performance and frontend scalability.
• Strong systems-thinking and problem-solving skills.
• Experience mentoring engineers and influencing technical decisions across teams.
• A customer-focused mindset with a commitment to accessibility and user-centred design.
• Experience working with cloud platforms such as GCP, including consideration of cost and performance.
• Understanding of SRE principles, monitoring and production support.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to bridge technical and non-technical perspectives.
• A proactive approach to learning, experimentation and continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

• Lead customer-focused delivery, prioritising incremental value and a test-and-learn approach.
• Mentor and coach engineers, raising technical quality and engineering standards.
• Design and evolve scalable React / Next.js applications and shared component libraries.
• Define frontend architecture, technical direction and development standards across teams.
• Drive improvements in performance, scalability, accessibility, security and reliability.
• Monitor and optimise frontend performance, bundle sizes, rendering and client-side health.
• Improve state management and component architecture across large-scale applications.
• Champion modern engineering practices, including AI-assisted development and agentic workflows, with appropriate code review and quality controls.
• Work closely with product, design, research and engineering teams to translate user needs into effective technical solutions.
• Support production services, diagnose complex issues and improve system resilience and stability.
• Contribute to SDLC, testing, quality standards and across engineering teams.

Skills

React

Next.js

Frontend architecture

Web performance

Mentoring

Cloud platforms (GCP)

Accessibility

Communication

SRE concepts

Tools

Shared component libraries

Job description

Digital Waffle is seeking a Senior Frontend Engineer to lead the design and delivery of customer-facing React/Next.js applications. You’ll shape frontend architecture, mentor engineers, and drive performance, accessibility and reliability improvements.

You’ll work with product, design and research teams to translate user needs into robust technical solutions while promoting continuous learning and engineering excellence.