Software Development Manager - Preston

We're looking for an experienced Software Engineering Manager to lead, develop, and support a growing team of engineers working across a modern digital platform landscape.

This is a people-first leadership role focused on building a high-performing engineering culture, driving quality, and supporting engineers to grow and succeed. You won't own delivery roadmaps directly-instead, you'll ensure the engineering capability behind them is strong, scalable, and sustainable.

You'll act as a trusted leader, mentor, and escalation point, working closely with cross-functional teams including Product, Delivery, DevOps, QA, and Architecture. What You'll Be Doing

?? People Leadership & Development

• Line manage engineers across multiple teams and platforms
• Run regular 1:1s, performance reviews, and development planning
• Support career growth, coaching, and progression pathways
• Foster an inclusive, high-performance engineering culture
• Act as a safe and trusted escalation point

?? Engineering Quality & Standards

• Champion best practices in coding, testing, and delivery
• Promote strong engineering discipline (CI/CD, code reviews, etc.)
• Balance delivery pressures with long-term technical health
• Identify and mitigate quality risks early

?? Capability Building

• Coach engineers to deepen technical expertise and judgement
• Identify skill gaps and drive learning initiatives
• Support mentoring and knowledge sharing across teams

?? Resource & Capacity Management

• Manage team capacity and allocation across platforms
• Support hiring, onboarding, and scaling efforts
• Align engineers to work that supports both delivery and development

?? Collaboration & Stakeholder Engagement

• Partner with cross-functional teams to support delivery
• Work with third-party and nearshore teams where needed
• Represent engineering in planning and prioritisation discussions
• Escalate risks with clear context and solutions

?? Governance & Performance

• Ensure consistent application of engineering standards and processes
• Maintain documentation around performance and team structure
• Encourage accountability, ownership, and feedback culture
• Lead with calm, structured, evidence-based decision making

? Essential Experience

• Strong background in modern software engineering practices
• Proven experience managing and coaching engineers
• Solid understanding of software quality, testing, and CI/CD
• Ability to balance people, delivery, and technical priorities
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
• Experience working in cross-functional delivery environments

? Desirable

• Experience in platform-led or capability-based models
• Exposure to scaling teams or organisational growth
• Familiarity with cloud and DevOps environments
• Experience working with third-party or offshore teams
• Understanding of architecture and long-term system design