Who are OnBuy?
OnBuy are an online marketplace who are on a mission of being the best choice for every customer, everywhere.
We have recently been named one of the UK's fastest-growing tech companies in the Sunday Times 100 Tech list.
All achievements we are very proud of, but we don't let that go to our head. We are all laser focused on our mission and understand the huge joint effort ahead of us needed to succeed.
Working at OnBuy:
We are a team of driven and motivated people who thrive when working at pace. To succeed at OnBuy you need to take charge and fully own your responsibilities, rolling your sleeves up when needed to 'get it done'. Working at OnBuy you are surrounded by so much opportunity, but you must possess the ability to stay focused and prioritise ruthlessly. Most importantly, you will thrive in an ever-changing environment as we are constantly evolving.
At OnBuy, you're not just a number or another cog in a machine. We are creating something really special, and you have the opportunity to affect meaningful change and have your voice heard.
We are a close team, who have the opportunity to learn and grow as OnBuy evolves. We work in a flexible way, meaning we can prioritise our health and relationships, but when we are working, we graft.
Job overview:
As Head of Development, your primary responsibility is to ensure OnBuy achieves its growth objectives by delivering high-quality, maintainable, and scalable solutions. You will lead the development function with a strong focus on people, processes, and execution, while enabling the Head of Technology to focus on strategic initiatives.
This is a fast-paced, high-accountability role where a can-do attitude and problem-solving mindset are essential. We’re here to win - and we need someone who thrives on overcoming challenges and driving excellence.
Key Responsibilities
People Leadership
- Team Management: Lead, mentor, and grow a team of Team Leads and developers, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation, and continuous improvement aligned with OnBuy’s mission.
- Talent Development: Identify skills gaps, provide coaching, and create development plans to support individual career growth and elevate team performance.
- Recruitment and Retention: Attract, hire, and retain top technical talent, ensuring a high-performing and engaged team.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration: Work closely with Product, UX, DevOps, and business teams to align development efforts with strategic objectives, facilitating effective communication and shared understanding.
- Performance Management: Set high benchmarks for performance, hold teams accountable, and ensure consistent delivery against expectations.
Process Ownership and Delivery Discipline
- Agile Excellence: Champion agile best practices across all development teams, ensuring sprint discipline, seamless end-to-end delivery, and continuous improvement.
- Process Optimisation: Establish and refine development processes to improve efficiency, transparency, and quality of deliverables.
- Resource Management: Allocate and manage resources effectively to meet project timelines and adapt to evolving business needs.
- Cost Optimisation: Identify opportunities to reduce operational costs through AI, automation, improved processes, and strategic third-party integrations.
- Continuous Improvement: Drive a culture of learning and iteration, incorporating industry best practices and feedback loops.
- Risk Management: Proactively identify and mitigate risks, including technical debt, scalability, and performance concerns.
Execution and Delivery
- Roadmap Execution: Translate strategic goals into executable development plans, ensuring timely delivery of roadmap items.
- Quality Assurance: Maintain high standards in coding, testing, and deployment practices to deliver a stable, reliable platform.
- Performance Metrics: Define and track delivery metrics, using data to drive accountability and course-correct where needed.
- Scalability and Security: Ensure the platform is robust, secure, and scalable, supporting OnBuy’s growth and stability.
- Problem Solving: Lead by example in overcoming delivery challenges, removing blockers, and driving solutions forward.
Essential
- 10+ years in software development, with at least 5 years in a leadership role managing engineering teams.
- Strong background in building and scaling online marketplaces or similar platforms.
- Proven experience with agile methodologies and enforcing delivery discipline.
- Demonstrated ability to lead teams through periods of change and growth.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively across departments.
- Strong technical foundation, with knowledge of modern tech stacks and experience with scalable, high-availability systems.
- Experience in performance management and driving high standards across teams.
Preferred
- Experience with cloud-based infrastructure, microservices, and DevOps practices.
- Background in e-commerce or marketplace environments.
- A passion for innovation and the ability to inspire technical teams to achieve ambitious goals.
The salary on offer for this role is £80,000 to £90,000 per annum, depending on experience.
In return for helping us to grow, we’ll offer you company equity, meaning you own a piece of this business we are all working so hard to build.
