Head of Software Engineering

Skills

Job Specifications

Head of Software Engineering – London Market

Location: London (Hybrid)

Reporting to: Chief Technology Officer

Bateman Collins are partnering with a leading specialist insurance provider in the London Market to appoint a Head of Software Engineering. This organisation operates across complex commercial and specialty risks and is widely regarded as a high-performing and forward-thinking market participant. With strong executive sponsorship and significant investment in modern technology, the business is focused on delivering innovative, scalable and resilient digital solutions to support continued growth.

The Opportunity

This is a senior leadership role within a value-driven and collaborative technology function. As Head of Software Engineering, you will lead the evolution of the software engineering capability, driving best practice, innovation and delivery across a portfolio of critical business platforms and integrations. You will work closely with senior stakeholders across technology, product and the wider business to deliver measurable commercial value and improve operational efficiency.

You will be responsible for shaping the future direction of the engineering function, including organisational design, hiring strategy, capability development and budget ownership. The role will involve leading and developing a growing, distributed team of engineers across multiple locations, fostering a high-performance culture and supporting ongoing transformation initiatives.

This role will suit a strategic yet hands-on technology leader who is passionate about modern engineering practices, continuous improvement and enabling teams to deliver high-quality, customer-focused outcomes.

Key Responsibilities

Provide strategic and technical leadership across the software engineering function, ensuring high-quality and reliable delivery
Contribute to the broader technology and business strategy as a member of the leadership team
Partner with Product and Business leaders to align engineering capability with business priorities and value streams
Own organisational design, hiring, retention and development of engineering talent
Line manage senior engineering leaders and drive performance, engagement and succession planning
Establish and embed engineering standards, governance and best practices aligned to industry trends
Support modernisation initiatives, including cloud adoption and legacy platform transformation
Promote innovation and the use of emerging technologies, including AI and automation
Oversee the controlled and risk-aware deployment of change into production
Manage key technology vendors and delivery partners
Ensure appropriate risk, security and operational resilience frameworks are in place
Represent the function within senior governance forums and leadership groups

Skills & Experience

Proven experience leading high-performing software engineering teams within complex, regulated environments
Strong technical background across modern software development, cloud architecture and DevSecOps
Experience delivering large-scale transformation programmes with measurable business impact
Track record of building engineering capability, culture and organisational structure
Experience operating in agile, product-led environments
Ability to communicate effectively with both technical teams and senior business stakeholders
Experience managing legacy systems and leading modernisation initiatives
Commercial awareness and strong stakeholder management
Knowledge of the insurance sector or London Market is advantageous but not essential

Personal Attributes

Strategic thinker with a pragmatic, delivery-focused mindset
Confident and articulate communicator
Collaborative and empowering leadership style
High emotional intelligence and strong interpersonal skills
Passion for innovation, continuous improvement and team development
Comfortable operating in fast-paced, evolving environments

This is an excellent opportunity to join a well-established and growing organisation at a pivotal stage of its technology journey, with significant scope to shape engineering strategy and build a high-performing function.

About the Company

Bateman Collins connects organisations with exceptional senior leaders through tailored people and talent search services. We specialise in identifying and placing leaders who drive growth, inspire change, and align perfectly with your organisation's culture and strategic goals. With decades of experience, we’ve placed senior leaders in key roles across Financial Services, FinTech, Insurance, FMCG, Legal, and Energy/Utilities, partnering with some of the UK and Ireland’s most respected organisations. We follow a collaborat... Know more

Related Jobs

Company Name

SoCode Recruitment

Job Title

Head of Software Engineering

London, United kingdom

On site

Full Time

21-01-2026

Company Name

HCLTech

Job Title

Engineering Technical Lead

London, United kingdom

On site

Full Time

21-01-2026