Head of Engineering

Hands-On Technical Lead / Head of Engineering (Full-Stack Focus)

I'm working exclusively with an exciting, high-growth commercial group that's seriously disrupting flexible urban stays across Europe.

They're building a brand-new engineering function and need a pragmatic, sleeves-rolled-up Technical Lead / Head of Engineering who lives and breathes code while steering technical strategy and scaling a team. This isn't a pure management role — they want someone who stays close to the keyboard, leads by example through hands‑on contributions, and has the leadership chops to grow a talented full‑stack team over the coming years.

What you'll be doing day-to-day (very hands‑on):

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• Jump straight into the codebase — building new features, crushing bugs, and optimizing performance on a full‑stack booking & guest platform (heavy React frontend + .NET/C# backend on Azure).
  
• Own and evolve a robust microservices architecture — designing for scale, resilience, and easy maintenance as traffic and features grow fast.
  
• Architect and lead complex integrations with third‑party systems (think payments gateways, channel managers, CRM tools, analytics/marketing platforms).
  
• Code alongside and mentor your engineers — delivering high‑quality work, running code reviews, championing automated testing, observability, and best practices.
  
• Shape the technical roadmap — balancing quick wins for business growth with sustainable architecture, while making smart trade‑offs on tech debt vs. speed‑to‑market.
  
• Collaborate tightly with Product, Design, Commercial, and Ops teams to ensure engineering delivers real business impact (higher conversions, better guest journeys, etc.).
  
• Recruit, onboard, and grow the team — hiring top talent, setting engineering standards, and fostering a high‑performing, collaborative culture as the headcount expands.
  

You’ll thrive here if you bring:

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• Deep, current full‑stack expertise — especially strong in React (frontend) + .NET / C# (backend), with real production experience on Azure.
  
• Proven hands‑on track record designing/running microservices at scale.
  
• Experience building or scaling consumer‑facing platforms (bonus points for travel, hospitality, e‑commerce, or high‑volume booking systems).
  
• Comfort wrangling tricky third‑party APIs and integrations without breaking a sweat.
  
• A history of leading/growing full‑stack teams while staying technical yourself — mentoring juniors, setting standards, and keeping your hands dirty.
  
• Pragmatic decision‑making — you know when to ship fast vs. when to invest in quality, and you use data + business context to guide choices.
  
• A collaborative, kind, and clear leadership style that inspires engineers in a fast‑paced environment.
  

Why join (beyond the tech challenge)?

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• Join at the perfect time — help shape and scale a greenfield‑ish engineering culture in a profitable, expanding business.
  
• Competitive package with strong benefits (flexible/hybrid working, generous holidays, health cover, pension match, performance bonuses, amazing staff stay discounts for you + friends/family, cycle‑to‑work, learning support, and more).
  
• Real impact — your code and decisions will directly drive revenue and guest love in a booming sector.
  

If you're a hands‑on full‑stack wizard who also gets excited about growing teams and owning big‑picture tech direction, this could be your next big move. xcfaprz Apply Now for more.