Principal Native Apps Engineer

Rightmove PLC; City Of London; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading property technology firm in London is seeking a Principal Native Apps Engineer to lead the development of cutting-edge mobile applications. You will provide technical leadership, mentor other engineers, and optimize performance across iOS and Android platforms. The ideal candidate has extensive experience in software development and a passion for innovation in the property market. This role offers a competitive salary, hybrid working, and a suite of employee benefits.

Benefits

Private Medical Insurance

27 days holiday plus paid volunteering days

Hybrid working pattern

Pension contributions

Competitive compensation package

Qualifications

• Experience in leading software engineering teams.
• Hands on experience with iOS and Android applications.
• In-depth understanding of system architecture and data flows.
• Proficient in code reviews and maintaining coding standards.
• Ability to mentor and grow junior engineers.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership and strategic direction for mobile applications.
• Collaborate on design and architecture of complex systems.
• Optimize app performance and resilience.
• Deliver large projects under time pressure.
• Shape long-term platform strategies in partnership with stakeholders.

Skills

Technical leadership

Strong coding standards

Architectural design

Mentoring

AI integration

Education

Relevant technical degree or equivalent experience

Tools

iOS development tools

Android development tools

APIs

Job description

Role: Principal Native Apps Engineer - Consumer - Apps (Core) Location: Soho Square, London Office / Hybrid Reporting to: EM Native Apps

The Role

We are on a mission to be "the app you can’t move without". As the UK’s biggest property app and website, our native apps are a critical touchpoint for millions of home movers every month.

As Principal Native Apps Engineer you provide expert technical leadership and strategic direction across our iOS and Android applications and the services that support them. You work at system level, understanding the end-to-end architecture, data flows and constraints across the Rightmove estate, and translate product strategy into coherent, scalable technical designs. You remain hands on in the most critical work, setting the standard for code quality, testing and observability, and unblocking teams on difficult technical problems. You partner with senior product and engineering leaders to shape long term platform strategy and ensure our native apps continue to be a fast, reliable and delightful way for people to find their next home.

Technology

You lead the design and architecture of complex systems that span multiple apps, services and data pipelines, making clear tradeoffs and documenting decisions so they are easy to understand and evolve. You collaborate with cross discipline teams to map end-to-end flows and ensure designs are resilient, secure and cost effective. You remain hands on in key projects, participating in design, coding, testing and debugging of critical components, and you use your deep knowledge of platform specific features, APIs and performance characteristics to optimise app behaviour. Through rigorous code reviews you uphold coding standards and development best practices, identify risks early and provide clear, constructive feedback that raises the quality of the whole team.

Impact

You are a widely recognised source of technical expertise and a mentor for other engineers. You foster a culture of learning by pairing, running design reviews and sharing knowledge across teams, and you help engineers grow into senior and staff roles. You identify and execute on high leverage opportunities where new or improved technical capabilities can unlock significant user and business value, and you work proactively with product and business owners to build the right roadmaps. You deliver large, complex projects to a very high standard, even under ambiguity or time pressure, and you are quick to spot when work is not moving the needle and help teams refocus. You understand which technical and product levers matter most and how they interact across the organisation.

Continuous Improvement

You provide technical input into product and technical planning, helping to shape initiative scope, estimates and risk assessments, and ensuring we sequence work in a way that enables learning. You continuously seek opportunities to improve performance, reliability and efficiency of our apps and supporting systems, implementing targeted optimisations and monitoring their impact against benchmarks. You push boundaries by generating and implementing innovative ideas that simplify systems, unlock new product possibilities or materially improve developer experience. You encourage experimentation, create psychological safety and champion a growth mindset, while staying current with developments in the mobile and wider technology landscape and bringing relevant ideas back into the team.

Leadership

You provide clear technical leadership for the native apps teams, drive adoption of sound design patterns and architectural principles, and ensure our platforms can scale as usage and product ambition grow. You collaborate closely with Product Owners, Product Designers, QA, Data and Backend engineering to maintain alignment on goals and delivery plans, and you explain complex technical concepts in a way that non technical stakeholders can act on. You partner with senior leadership to define a long term vision that integrates business needs, market context and technical possibilities, and you influence the technical direction of multiple teams to execute that vision. You model a high standard of engineering quality and behaviour, invest time in coaching and mentoring, and help define and evolve the bar for engineering quality and best practices.

Our approach to AI:

At Rightmove we believe software and product are ultimately people problems, and everything we build aims to improve the lives of others. We see AI as a helpful way to create more space for the human side of our work, from understanding real needs to making sure we are solving the right problems in the right way. There is an expectation that you are proactive in exploring how AI can support your own workflow and productivity, and that you approach it with curiosity and an open mind.

About Rightmove

Our vision is to give everyone the belief they can make their move. We aim to make moving simpler, by giving everyone the best place to turn to and return to for access to the tools, expertise, trust and belief to make it happen.

We’re home to the UK’s largest choice of properties and are the go‑to destination for millions of people planning their next move, reading the latest industry news, or just browsing what’s on the market.

Despite this growth, we’ve remained a friendly, supportive place to work, with employee #1 still working here! We’ve done this by placing the Rightmove Hows at the heart of everything we do. These are the essential values that reflect our culture, and include:

We create value…by delivering results and building trust with partners and consumers.

We think bigger…by acting with curiosity and setting bold aspirations.

We care deeply…by being real, having fun, and valuing diversity.

We move together…by being one team – internally collaborative, externally competitive.

We make a difference…by focusing on delivering measurable impact.

What we offer

• Cash plan for dental, optical and physio treatments
• Private Medical Insurance, Pension and Life Insurance, Employee Assistance Plan
• 27 days holiday plus two (paid) volunteering days a year to give back, and holiday buy schemes
• Hybrid working pattern with 2 days in office
• Contributory stakeholder pension
• Life assurance at 4x your basic salary to a spouse, family member or other nominated person in your life
• Competitive compensation package
• Paid leave for maternity, paternity, adoption & fertility
• Travel Loans, Bike to Work scheme, Rental Deposit Loan
• Charitable contributions through Payroll Giving and donation matching
• Access deals and discounts on things like travel, electronics, fashion, gym memberships, cinema discounts and more

As an Equal Opportunity Employer, Rightmove will never discriminate on the basis of age, disability, sex, race, religion or belief, gender reassignment, marriage/civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity, or sexual orientation. At Rightmove we believe that a diverse and inclusive workforce leads to better innovation, productivity, and overall success. We are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for all employees, regardless of their background or identity, to develop and promote a diverse culture that reflects the communities we serve.

Ultimately we care much more about the person you are and how you think and approach things, than a list of qualifications and buzzwords on a CV. Even if you can’t say ‘yes’ to all the above, but are smart, self‑motivated and passionate, then get in touch.