Lead Full-Stack Software Engineer

Role Title: Lead Full-Stack Software Engineer Location: Glasgow, UK Employment Type: Inside IR35 Contract We are looking for a professional with 8 to 12 years of experience, this Lead Full-Stack Software Engineer role focuses heavily on architectural ownership, cross-functional technical leadership, and enterprise-scale platform transformation. At this seniority level, you are expected to operate autonomously to design resilient solutions, shape the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC) strategy, mentor engineering teams, and pioneer the safe, effective adoption of enterprise AI-assisted development tools. Primary Skills Deep, current expertise in Java alongside modern frontend frameworks (React, Vue, Svelte, Angular, or equivalent). Strong command of modular and microservices architectures. Proven experience designing and deploying scalable, resilient cloud-native applications on AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. Strict discipline in unit, integration, and end-to-end testing. Hands-on familiarity with modern frontend build tools (Vite, Turbopack, Webpack). Experience implementing and working with design systems (Material, Fluent, Carbon, Radix, Bootstrap, or equivalent) in close partnership with UX/UI design teams. Autonomous capability to manage, troubleshoot, and resolve highly complex technical challenges involving multiple teams and stakeholders. Hands-on experience utilizing and validating enterprise AI coding tools. Strong understanding of responsible AI use, data sensitivity, and secure handling of inputs/outputs in engineering workflows. Secondary Skills Prior experience delivering engineering solutions within Financial Services or highly regulated technology environments. The ability to navigate and manage the risk and controls agenda across a broad technology portfolio. Experience executing engineering delivery utilizing modern frontend SDLC frameworks and agentic practices. Strong ability to partner with design teams to seamlessly translate style guides into modern, accessible web standards. Job Responsibilities: (this is more to explain a typical day/week in the work life of the selected person (again no skills to be included here, this is more to appreciate what is the actual job expectation) Lead frontend deliverables across the Research Platform from discovery to production. Architect platform-first solutions that balance the needs of external clients, internal stakeholders, and partner teams. Shape SDLC practices, delivery mechanisms, and scalable UI frameworks. Evaluate emerging tools to evolve the team’s overall technology strategy. Drive the team's use of enterprise-authorized AI-assisted tools for code reviews, refactoring, test acceleration, and root-cause analysis while establishing strict validation standards for security and correctness. Mentor engineers to foster a culture of continuous learning and innovation. Uphold disciplined engineering standards, ensuring testing, accessibility, and compliance are built in by default. Partner directly with product managers and other engineering teams to translate complex business requirements into robust technical solutions.