Head of Software Engineering

Head of Software Engineering - Bedford

Introduction

Saab UK is part of Scandinavia's largest defence company, bringing together the best of Swedish and British innovation. Saab offers world-leading solutions and services in defence, aviation, space, and civil security to keep people and society safe. Our UK presence has been growing at pace, meaning we can offer a wide range of opportunities for personal fulfilment and career growth. We currently employ over 600 people across eight sites in the UK, and our specialisations include software engineering, underwater robotics, radars, AI, and armed forces training.

The Role:

The Head of Software Engineering is the focal point for software engineering capability within BlueBear a Saab company and is accountable for the performance, development and growth of the Software Engineering function. You will be responsible for ensuring the effective delivery of software solutions across research, product development and customer programmes, encompassing mission systems, embedded software, autonomy-enabling technologies, DevOps capabilities and supporting engineering infrastructure.

The role will provide strategic, technical and people leadership to ensure the business develops and delivers high-quality, innovative and secure software systems. Working closely with Engineering, Product, Programme and Saab stakeholders, the role is responsible for defining software strategy, developing engineering capability, improving engineering maturity and fostering a high-performing engineering culture.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the Software Engineering function to ensure successful delivery of projects and products to agreed cost, schedule, quality and performance targets.
• Define and execute the Software Engineering strategy in alignment with business objectives and future product roadmaps.
• Provide leadership, governance and technical direction across all software engineering activities.
• Support the definition and execution of the organisation's long-term technical vision.
• Promote a culture of innovation, collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement throughout the engineering organisation.
• Stay current with emerging technologies, industry trends and software engineering best practices.

Engineering Capability & Delivery:

• Oversee software development activities across R&D programmes, product development and customer-funded projects.
• Ensure effective planning, prioritisation and utilisation of software engineering resources.
• Establish and maintain software engineering metrics and performance indicators.
• Lead software delivery reviews and ensure effective management of technical risks, dependencies and issues.
• Work collaboratively with Project Managers and Technical Leads to achieve successful project outcomes.
• Support software-related customer demonstrations, trials and technical reviews.

Architecture, Quality & Engineering Excellence:

• Establish and maintain software engineering standards, processes and governance.
• Ensure appropriate architectural oversight across software products and technology platforms.
• Champion best practices in software design, testing, configuration management and release management.
• Drive continuous improvement in software quality, reliability, safety and security.
• Promote the adoption of automated testing, CI/CD, DevOps and modern software development practices.
• Manage technical debt and ensure long-term maintainability of software products and frameworks.

People Leadership:

• Lead, coach, mentor and develop the Software Engineering team and individuals technical growth.
• Build organisational capability through recruitment, succession planning and skills development.
• Conduct performance management, objective setting and career development activities.
• Foster an inclusive, collaborative and high-performing engineering culture.
• Work