Principal Engineer: AI Scale-up Leader (Hybrid, Manchester)

Morson Human Resources Limited; England; Hybrid; GBP 126,000 - 154,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work Manchester

20% bonus

Global AI scale-up

Leadership development

Collaborative culture

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Morson Human Resources Limited in Manchester is seeking a Principal Engineer (Scala or Java) to help shape the engineering function of a rapidly growing AI technology scale-up. The role blends strategic leadership with hands-on technical excellence, guiding teams across software, data and product to deliver world-class AI solutions.

Based in Manchester with a hybrid working pattern, you will mentor engineers, set technical direction, drive best practices, and partner with leadership to scale

Qualifications

• Experience leading and developing software engineering teams.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
• Strategic mindset balanced with hands-on understanding of modern software development.
• Experience working within high-growth technology businesses, ideally within a scale-up environment.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor a software engineering team.
• Define and execute the engineering strategy.
• Drive the delivery of high-quality, scalable software solutions.
• Champion engineering excellence, modern development practices and continuous improvement.
• Collaborate with Product, Data and Leadership teams to shape product direction and technical priorities.
• Support recruitment, succession planning and capability development as the organisation scales.
• Ensure operational resilience, security and performance across engineering platforms.

Skills

Team leadership

Stakeholder management

Strategic mindset

Scale-up experience

Job description

Morson Human Resources Limited in Manchester is seeking a Principal Engineer (Scala or Java) to help shape the engineering function of a rapidly growing AI technology scale-up. The role blends strategic leadership with hands-on technical excellence, guiding teams across software, data and product to deliver world-class AI solutions.

Based in Manchester with a hybrid working pattern, you will mentor engineers, set technical direction, drive best practices, and partner with leadership to scale