API Platform Lead
FDM is a global business and technology consultancy seeking a API Platform Lead to work for our client within the Financial Services sector. This is initially a 6-12 month contract with the potential to extend and will be a hybrid role that will be based in Edinburgh.
Our client is seeking a Platform Engineering Lead to own the strategy, engineering, governance, and operation of critical enterprise platforms, with a particular focus on API and integration capabilities.
This role will lead the evolution of a global API platform, enabling secure, scalable, and reusable services across multiple product and engineering teams. The successful candidate will combine deep technical expertise with strong engineering leadership experience and a proven track record of delivering enterprise-wide platform transformation initiatives.
Responsibilities:
Platform Ownership
- Own the strategic direction, roadmap, and operational performance of the enterprise API platform.
- Lead the design, build, operation, and continuous improvement of scalable, resilient, cloud-native platforms.
- Ensure platform capabilities are reusable and consumable across global engineering teams.
- Drive platform adoption, developer experience, engineering standards, and governance across the organisation.
- Establish platform reliability, security, scalability, and disaster recovery standards.
API Platform Leadership
- Lead the enterprise API platform strategy and operating model.
- Own API lifecycle management including design, development, governance, security, versioning, monitoring, and decommissioning.
- Define and implement API standards, design patterns, and best practices across multiple engineering teams.
- Build and maintain API management capabilities including developer portals, API gateways, security controls, and consumption frameworks.
- Enable federated API development across engineering teams while maintaining enterprise governance standards.
Engineering Leadership
- Lead globally distributed software engineering teams and engineering managers.
- Build high-performing engineering teams through coaching, mentoring, and leadership.
- Drive modern engineering practices including DevOps, CI/CD, Infrastructure as Code, automated testing, and Agile delivery methods.
- Manage relationships with third-party suppliers, technology partners, and offshore delivery providers.
- Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, continuous improvement, and engineering excellence.
Stakeholder Management
- Partner with senior technology and business stakeholders to align platform strategy with organisational priorities.
- Influence architecture, technology strategy, and digital transformation initiatives.
- Communicate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.
- Manage competing priorities while delivering measurable business outcomes.
About You
- Significant experience leading Enterprise Platform Engineering, Platform Operations, or API Engineering functions.
- Proven experience owning and managing a large-scale enterprise API platform.
- Hands-on experience with Azure API Management (Azure APIM), including platform design, governance, lifecycle management, security, developer enablement, and platform operations.
- Strong Azure cloud experience and delivery of cloud-native platforms.
- Experience establishing API strategies, standards, governance models, and reusable platform capabilities across large engineering organisations.
- Demonstrable experience delivering digital transformation and platform modernisation programmes.
- Strong understanding of:
- API Architecture
- Microservices Architecture
- Integration Platforms
- Middleware Technologies
- Cloud Technologies
- Platform Engineering
- Identity & Access Management
- Experience leading globally distributed engineering teams.
- Strong stakeholder engagement and executive communication skills.