Head of Platform Engineering

Role: Head of Platform Engineering (DevOps/SRE)

Location: Birmingham, UK (Hybrid)

Salary: £140k-£145k + 7k car allowance and 25% bonus

Are you a strategic leader with a passion for building scalable, high-performing platform solutions? We're looking for an experienced Head of Platform Engineering to lead the development, implementation, and optimisation of our platform infrastructure. This role is key to ensuring the reliability, security, and efficiency of our cloud-based systems while enabling our development teams to deliver world-class software solutions.

What You'll Be Doing:

Platform Strategy & Leadership

• Develop and execute a platform engineering strategy aligned with business goals.
• Drive best practices in CI/CD, DevSecOps, SRE, and cloud-native technologies.
• Provide technical leadership, mentoring, and strategic direction to the team.
• Foster a data-driven culture focused on operational excellence and continuous improvement.

Site Reliability Engineering (SRE)

• Implement SRE methodologies to enhance system performance, reliability, and availability.
• Develop robust monitoring, observability, and incident response strategies.
• Lead automation efforts to reduce toil and enhance efficiency for development teams.
• Oversee 24/7 IT support operations, ensuring quick and effective issue resolution.

CI/CD & DevSecOps Implementation

• Design, build, and optimise CI/CD pipelines to accelerate software delivery.
• Enhance automation in build, test, and deployment processes to improve efficiency.
• Embed security best practices throughout the software development lifecycle.
• Implement tools for automated security testing, compliance, and vulnerability scanning.

Cloud Infrastructure & FinOps

• Lead the architecture and management of AWS cloud environments to ensure scalability and reliability.
• Champion the adoption of cloud-native tools and technologies for operational efficiency.
• Optimise cloud resources, implementing cost management strategies to drive financial accountability.

Collaboration & Vendor Management

• Support DevOps teams by providing the tools, frameworks, and infrastructure needed for efficient delivery.
• Work closely with product management to align technical solutions with business priorities.
• Establish and maintain strong relationships with cloud providers and platform suppliers.
• Oversee vendor management to ensure seamless integration of third-party solutions.

What We're Looking For:

Essential:

• Proven experience leading platform engineering, SRE, or DevOps teams in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong background in CI/CD pipeline development and automation tools.
• Expertise in AWS cloud services and cloud-native architectures.
• Deep understanding of SRE principles and experience improving system resilience at scale.
• Experience embedding security practices into software development lifecycles.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
• Analytical mindset with a data-driven approach to decision-making.

Desirable:

• Experience in the telecoms or networking industry.
• Hands-on experience with Kubernetes, Terraform, Ansible, and container orchestration.
• AWS certifications (e.g., AWS Solutions Architect, AWS DevOps Engineer) or relevant DevSecOps/SRE certifications.
• Experience working closely with product teams to align platform engineering with business needs.
• Vendor management experience.

This is a fantastic opportunity to play a key role in shaping the future of our technology platforms while leading a talented and dynamic team. If you're ready to take on a high-impact leadership role, we'd love to hear from you!