Lead Software Engineer - AI

PIE Recruitment; Haverhill; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Share scheme

Job summary

PIE Recruitment is seeking a Head of Engineering for our Haverhill, Suffolk HQ on site. You will lead the multimodal AI avatar platform, own technical delivery, and shape architecture.

Reporting to the CTO, you will build and scale teams, drive DevOps practices, ensure security and compliance, and partner with executives on roadmap and client deployments.

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading engineering teams in a fast-paced, product-led environment.
• Hands-on expertise with LLM integration and model-agnostic AI architectures.
• Experience shipping production-grade AI or real-time systems.

Responsibilities

• Own technical architecture of the platform and document key decisions.
• Lead the engineering team and shape architectural standards.
• Define and adopt AI model integration strategies and DevOps practices.
• Deliver client deployments with realistic timelines and risk management.
• Act as deputy for the CTO and grow into the CTO role as the business evolves.

Skills

Leadership

LLM integration

Cloud platforms

API design

Team management

Production AI

Job description

Role: Head of Engineering

Location: Haverhill (Suffolk) Office - ON SITE

Reporting to: Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

Role Type: Full-time, Permanent

Package: Competitive salary and share scheme

ROLE OVERVIEW

This is a pivotal leadership role at the heart of one of the most innovative AI and creative technology businesses.

The product is a pioneering consumer engagement tool, deployed in retail, heritage, Leisure, travel and many other industries, not only wowing customers but plugging into work flows for un precedented value and possibilities.

The business has started to grow at pace, with live product in UK and international locations, we are helping to grow the team with highly talented individuals to be part of the future.

As Head of Engineering, you will be the founder / CTO's right hand: owning the day-to-day technical delivery of our multimodal AI avatar platform, leading the engineering team, and shaping the architectural decisions that define how we build and scale.

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

• Proven experience leading engineering teams in a fast-paced, product-led environment, ideally in AI, SaaS, or deep-tech.
• Hands-on expertise with LLM integration and model-agnostic AI architectures.
• Strong cloud infrastructure skills across Azure, AWS or GCP.
• Deep knowledge of enterprise API design, workflow engines, queuing systems, and backend integrations.
• Experience managing multidisciplinary technical teams.
• Track record of shipping production-grade AI or real-time systems.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES TECHNICAL LEADERSHIP & ARCHITECTURE

• Own technical architecture of the platform.
• Make and document key architectural decisions.
• Evaluate and integrate emerging AI models.
• Define engineering standards.
• Act as escalation point for complex technical problems.

TEAM MANAGEMENT & CULTURE

• Manage the engineering team.
• Hire, onboard and retain talent.
• Foster a culture of ownership and curiosity.
• Partner with the CTO as the team scales.

DELIVERY & PRODUCT EXECUTION

• Own technical delivery of client deployments.
• Translate requirements into technical solutions.
• Ensure realistic timelines and risk management.
• Maintain oversight of active projects.

PLATFORM & INFRASTRUCTURE

• Own cloud infrastructure.
• Champion DevOps and automation best practices.
• Ensure enterprise integrations meet production standards.
• Support compliance and security requirements.

DEPUTISING FOR THE CTO

• Act as technical decision maker in CTO absence.
• Represent technical team at board and client level.
• Contribute to business strategy and roadmap.
• Grow into CTO role as business evolves. KPIs

• 99.9%+ platform uptime.
• Predictable sprint delivery.
• Strong team retention and development.
• Successful client integrations.
• Architecture readiness for growth.
• Security and compliance standards maintained.