Lead Software Engineer

And Digital; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday + bank holidays

Pension matching

Healthcare cover

Flexibenefit allowance

Life Assurance

Income protection

Eye care

Parental benefits

Job summary

AND Digital is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to join our Birmingham team. You will lead complex development initiatives, mentor engineers, and drive architecture and DevOps practices across squads. Strong Java expertise and hands‑on delivery are essential, along with a collaborative, client‑facing mindset.

You will contribute to rapid prototyping, ensure high quality through TDD and SOLID principles, and help grow a culture of experimentation and learning within multidisciplinary teams.

Qualifications

• Proven experience as Lead Engineer in a commercial development team.
• Expert knowledge of Java preferred, with broader experience across tools and frameworks.
• Strong delivery track record using agile methodologies and scalable, production‑ready systems.
• Ability to balance technical decisions with wider client business concerns.
• Hands-on experience implementing architecture, DevOps, performance or security best practices.
• Solid ownership of approaches such as TDD, SOLID and XP.
• Mentor junior engineers and support Squad Leads on complex initiatives.
• Deep understanding of CI/CD practices and deployments.
• Experience documenting technical work and sharing knowledge.
• Proven ability to develop rapid prototypes to validate solutions and de‑risk delivery.

Responsibilities

• Lead Engineer on commercial development teams delivering complex initiatives.
• Provide technical guidance and inform delivery decisions across teams.
• Apply architecture, DevOps, performance or security best practices with ownership.
• Mentor junior engineers and support Squad Leads to deliver high‑quality work.
• Drive CI/CD implementations and maintain deployment standards.
• Document solutions and contribute to knowledge sharing programs.
• Develop rapid prototypes to validate technical approaches and reduce risk.

Skills

Java

Agile

CI/CD

Mentoring

Architecture

DevOps

TDD

SOLID

XP

Tools

Claude Code

Job description

Lead Software Engineer.

Who We Are:

We’re on a mission to close the world’s tech skills gap.

We help organisations navigate the future of technology, combining human expertise, emerging tech and AI to deliver better outcomes, faster.

Since 2014, we’ve worked side-by-side with clients to solve complex challenges, build high-performing teams, and create lasting capability. As technology continues to evolve, we believe the most successful organisations will be those that combine the best of both: human ingenuity AND intelligent technology.

That belief is embedded in everything we do. We call it the genius of the AND: deep expertise AND practical delivery, innovation AND responsibility, ambitious work AND sustainable careers.

Through our Guide, Build and Equip approach, we help organisations embrace change, deliver meaningful impact, and develop the skills they need to thrive in an increasingly agentic world.

About you:

• You care deeply about producing high-quality work that delivers real value
• You’re comfortable navigating ambiguity and solving complex problems collaboratively
• You bring strong expertise in your craft, alongside a willingness to keep learning
• You communicate clearly and build trust quickly with clients and teammates
• You’re pragmatic, adaptable and outcome-focused
• You enjoy sharing knowledge and helping others grow
• You value low-ego collaboration and enjoy working as part of multidisciplinary teams

What you’ll bring to the table:

• Proven experience working as a Lead Engineer in a commercial development team, ideally with expert knowledge of Java but we will consider candidates with wider experience across different tools and frameworks.
• Provides recognised technical expertise that informs delivery decisions and supports capability development across teams.
• Commercial experience working with agile methodologies and delivering scalable, production-ready systems that meet business requirements.
• Ability to consider wider client business concerns when making technical decisions and managing stakeholder challenges.
• Experience implementing architecture, DevOps, performance or security best practice, with a strong understanding and ownership of approaches such as TDD, SOLID and XP.
• Comfortable mentoring junior engineers and supporting Squad Leads, providing technical guidance as the most senior engineer on a project and ensuring the team delivers complex initiatives that achieve agreed business and technical outcomes while maintaining quality standards.
• Solid understanding of CI/CD practices and deployments.
• Experience writing effective documentation and sharing knowledge, with the ability to translate technical expertise into learning programmes and knowledge-sharing practices.
• Experience developing rapid prototypes to validate technical solutions and de-risk delivery.
• Proven experience using an AI coding assistant, e.g. Claude Code.

Why join AND Digital?

We’re building a culture where talented people can do meaningful work, continue growing, AND enjoy the journey along the way.

Our model is designed to build belonging and connection: we’re organised into regional ‘Clubs’ of no more than 80 people, so you (and our clients) get the benefits of that small company feel while also being connected to a larger whole.

Our Practice Areas act as a ‘second home’ for our ANDis - a place where you can innovate and learn with like‑minded experts who care deeply about their craft, support each other generously, and believe the best ideas come from collaboration, not hierarchy.

Our culture is rooted in our values of Wonder, Share and Delight, and shows up through five traits that we celebrate and nurture in all our ANDis: we value curiosity, ambition and a growth‑mindset. We are deeply client‑centric. Most important of all we are human - we create an inclusive environment where people feel trusted, supported and able to be themselves.

By joining AND, we’ll provide:

• 25 days bookable holiday + flexible Bank Holidays
• Pension: 6% of salary paid by AND Digital with a further 2% paid by you (can be increased by choice).
• Aviva healthcare cover (including pre‑existing condition cover) for you.
• Flexibenefit: £1000 assigned to you via our benefits portal to select or upgrade the benefits that suit you the most. Any unused allowance from the £1000 can be taken as cash.
• Life Assurance.
• Income Protection.
• Eye test + first pair of glasses.
• Parental Benefits: Generous Enhanced Maternity and Enhanced Partner (Paternity) Leave.

Equal Opportunities Statement

Diversity and inclusion are hugely important to us, and we’re committed to providing equal opportunities for all. We’re actively recruiting for a diverse and inclusive workforce so want to ensure we do everything we can to support your application.

We want you to feel safe and empowered to let us know if you need any adjustments to be made to your application or interview process, so please speak to our recruitment team.

AI Statement

We champion tech that helps people work smarter, but we want to get to know you! If you use AI to assist with your application or interview prep, please ensure all information submitted remains an accurate, truthful representation of your personal achievements and capabilities rather than generating false or misleading information. We may reject applications where AI is used inappropriately at any stage of the recruitment process.