Principal Engineer

Who you are

• Proven experience leading the delivery of technology solutions to business areas in complex production environments, with ownership of business outcomes
• Extensive knowledge and hands-on experience of solutions architecture, software engineering and business process automation
• Strong hands-on experience with agentic coding and/or coworking technology and ecosystem (e.g. Claude Code and/or Cowork, OpenClaw, GitHub Copilot)
• Strong understanding of operational processes and risk management (Financial Services preferred)
• Ability to influence stakeholders and guide teams through ambiguity, translating productivity opportunities into clear technical direction and MVPs
• Expertise in knowledge management, enterprise ontology and knowledge graph technology
• Business process optimisation experience (e.g. Business Process Modelling, Lean Six Sigma)
• Experience with applied research / experimentation
• Advanced degree (MSc, PhD) in computer science, artificial intelligence or a related subject

What the job involves

• We are looking for Principal Engineers to join our new AI Productivity Lab. The purpose of the Lab is to accelerate internal AI-driven employee productivity and process automation using the latest agentic co-working technologies
• You will provide hands-on technical leadership for building domain-specific agents and tooling, and for developing internal knowledge and skills repositories that enable safe, repeatable automation aligned to business area operating procedures
• Working with the Head of the Lab, you will execute agentic coworking initiatives with targeted business areas, partnering with line-of-business champions to embed agents into team processes, SOPs and tooling and to realise and measure benefits
• You will be working within the Data & AI Unit of the Chief Technology Office (CTO), where we define and lead the Group’s Data and AI technology strategy, serve as the Group’s design authority for Data and AI, and inspire, develop and incubate new AI-driven products, capabilities and ways of working through applied research and product discovery
• Lead the engineering of coworking solutions (agents, tools and automations) for priority business areas, taking designs from prototype to operational MVP
• Design and build reusable capabilities for the Lab’s coworking platform and repository (skills, tools and operating procedure assets) with a clear path to adoption
• Apply hands-on experience of agentic coding and/or coworking tools and the open-source ecosystem to evaluate options, recommend approaches and accelerate delivery
• Partner with business stakeholders and line-of-business champions to shape use cases, embed solutions into SOPs and measure outcomes
• Coach and mentor engineers through technical leadership, code review and constructive feedback, and engage senior stakeholders on technical direction

The application process

• End Date: Monday 07 September 2026

Benefits

• Flex cash: This is 4% of your basic salary and can be used to spend on the benefits of your choice, or you can choose to take it as a cash top up in your monthly salary.
• A generous holiday allowance: You’ll be eligible for a minimum of 22 days holiday (excluding bank holidays), rising to 30 days based on length of service and grade.
• A flexible way of working: Whether you want flexibility over your location or when you log on, together we can create an approach that works for you and for the business.
• Family leave: Up to 63 weeks of maternity or adoption leave. Statutory maternity or adoption pay is available for 39 weeks, and 20 weeks will be enhanced to the equivalent of full pay. Partners can have six weeks of fully paid paternity leave.
• Health insurance: Our company funded Private Medical Benefit provides all colleagues with access to good quality medical care, including accommodation, nursing care and specialist advice.
• Colleague Offers: Get discounts on everything from electrical items to cinema tickets and weekly food shopping. You can share this benefit with up to ten family members or friends.
• Financial products: Take advantage of our great financial products, some at a discounted rate, including current accounts, home and car insurance and loans.
• Share plans: Participate in Sharematch and receive matching shares of up to £45 a month from the company, and you can choose to participate in Sharesave, our combined savings and share option plan.
• Pension: We offer a generous pension plan, with all joiners being automatically enrolled in our 'Your Tomorrow' scheme. You can decide how much you save and get a say in where your contributions are invested.