Staff Engineer - Comparison Capabilities

Compare The Market Limited; Peterborough; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Compare the Market is seeking a Staff Engineer to shape the technical foundations for rapid development and scaling of customer products across the platform estate. You will own end-to-end technical outcomes, drive architecture and engineering standards, and partner with product and business leaders to turn strategy into robust solutions that deliver value at pace.

This role sits at the intersection of technology and business, offering scope to mentor engineers, introduce new technologies, and

Qualifications

• Extensive hands-on software engineering experience delivering scalable platforms.
• Strong experience defining platform architectures, shared services, APIs and integration patterns.
• Proven experience owning technical outcomes across multiple teams and domains.
• Deep understanding of software architecture, cloud-native tech, reliability and security.
• Experience designing platforms that support rapid product innovation and growth.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and make sound technical decisions.
• Experience applying AI-assisted tooling and Spec Driven Development.
• Experience establishing engineering standards, governance and guardrails.
• Strong stakeholder management, influencing senior leaders.
• Contributed to organisation-wide technology standards and communities.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end technical outcomes for new product platforms and shared capabilities.
• Define and communicate target architectures, roadmaps and guardrails.
• Champion Spec Driven Development and AI-assisted tooling.
• Design platform capabilities, services, APIs and integration patterns.
• Lead technical discovery and architectural decisions for opportunities.
• Drive initiatives to simplify the technical estate and increase adoption.
• Take end-to-end accountability for major technical decisions.
• Act as escalation point for complex platform or delivery challenges.
• Evaluate new technologies and approaches to support growth.
• Mentor senior engineers and grow architectural thinking.
• Partner with managers, architects to align tech with business outcomes.
• Contribute to engineering standards and communities of practice.

Skills

Hands-on software engineering

Platform architectures

Technical ownership

Software architecture

Platform design for innovation

Ambiguity navigation

AI-assisted tooling

Engineering standards

Stakeholder management

Tech standards contributions

Job description

Staff Engineer - Comparison Capabilities

Function: Technology

Location: London/ Peterborough

Curious about what's next?

So are we. Join Compare the Market and help to make financial decision making a breeze for millions.

At Compare the Market, we're a purpose-driven business powered by tech and AI. We're building high-performing, results-driven teams with the skills, mindset, and ambition to deliver outcomes at pace. Every role here plays a part in driving our mission forward, and we create an environment where you can bring your authentic self, grow a truly characterful career, and see the direct impact of your work on the lives of our customers.

We've carved a meerkat-shaped niche and we're looking for ambitious, curious thinkers who thrive in a fast-moving, high-impact environment. If you love accountability, embrace challenge, and want to make a real difference, you'll fit right in.

We'd love you to be part of our journey.

We'd love you to be part of our journey.

As a Staff Engineer, you will play a pivotal role in shaping the technical foundations that enable the rapid development and scaling of new customer products and propositions across Compare the Market. You'll define and drive the architecture, standards, and engineering practices that underpin our product platforms, ensuring they are scalable, secure, resilient, and designed for long-term growth.

Operating as a force multiplier across multiple engineering teams, you will partner closely with product, engineering, architecture, and business leaders to turn strategic opportunities into robust technical solutions. You'll help accelerate the delivery of new customer experiences by building reusable capabilities, shared services, and platform components that empower teams to innovate quickly and safely.

We work agentically, with Spec Driven Development as our pattern of choice: clear specifications drive how we design, build, and verify software alongside AI-assisted tooling. You'll help shape and scale this way of working across our product platform estate.

What you'll be doing

• Own and deliver end-to-end technical outcomes for new product platforms and shared capabilities, ensuring alignment with business objectives and long-term strategic goals.
• Define, evolve, and communicate technical strategy, target architectures, domain roadmaps, and engineering guardrails that support the rapid creation and scaling of new products.
• Champion and scale our agentic, Spec Driven Development operating model, leveraging specifications and AI-assisted tooling to improve engineering quality, consistency, and delivery speed.
• Design and implement platform capabilities, services, APIs, and integration patterns that enable product teams to build and launch new customer propositions efficiently.
• Lead the technical discovery and definition of emerging product opportunities, helping teams navigate ambiguity and make informed architectural decisions.
• Drive initiatives that simplify the technical estate, reduce duplication, increase platform adoption, and create reusable building blocks across the organisation.
• Take end-to-end accountability for significant technical decisions, balancing customer value, engineering quality, scalability, speed, cost, and risk.
• Act as a technical leader and escalation point for complex platform, architecture, or delivery challenges.
• Evaluate and introduce new technologies, frameworks, and approaches that support innovation, experimentation, and future business growth.
• Raise engineering capability by mentoring senior engineers and supporting the development of architectural thinking, technical leadership, and decision-making.
• Partner closely with engineering managers, product leaders, architects, and stakeholders to align technical direction with strategic business outcomes.
• Contribute to organisation-wide engineering standards, best practices, and communities of practice, influencing through expertise and leadership.

What we'd like to see from you

• Extensive hands-on software engineering experience, with a strong track record of designing and delivering scalable platforms, products, or complex distributed systems.
• Strong experience defining platform architectures, shared services, APIs, integration patterns, and reusable capabilities that enable multiple teams to deliver efficiently.
• Proven experience owning technical outcomes across multiple teams, programmes, or domains, influencing strategic direction beyond direct reporting lines.
• Deep understanding of software architecture, cloud-native technologies, distributed systems, reliability, observability, security, and performance engineering.
• Experience designing platforms that support rapid product innovation, experimentation, and scalable growth.
• Strong ability to navigate ambiguity and make sound technical decisions within evolving business and product environments.
• Practical experience applying AI-assisted tooling and agentic ways of working, ideally with Spec Driven Development or a comparable specification-led approach, alongside a clear perspective on scaling these practices effectively.
• Experience establishing engineering standards, governance, and technical guardrails whilst empowering teams to move quickly and independently.
• Strong stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence senior leaders and align technical strategy to business priorities.
• Demonstrated contribution to organisation-wide technology standards, architectural direction, and engineering communities of practice.

Why Compare the Market?

We're a business built for pace and performance. Here, you'll be encouraged to think differently, act boldly, and deliver brilliantly in a culture that values results and rewards progress.

We believe diverse teams make better decisions, and we're committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels empowered to grow, contribute, and thrive.

If you're ready to stretch yourself, raise the bar, and grow with a team that's serious about performance, innovation, and purpose, we'd love to hear from you.