Lead Developer

Reed.ai is looking for a Lead Developer to join their team in Holborn, London.

Reed.ai is building the future of recruitment technology. We're a small, fast-moving, and ambitious team on a mission to transform how people find work and employers discover talent-powered by AI-driven, human-centered technology.

We are looking for a Lead Fullstack Developer to guide, inspire, and work alongside our team of Senior Developers. This is a hands-on leadership role: you'll spend the majority of your time coding (around 70%), while also providing technical direction, mentoring, and ensuring the team consistently ships high-quality software at speed.

If you thrive in a startup-style environment, have proven experience leading technical teams, and want to build something meaningful from the ground up, this is the role for you.

• Lead a team of 5 senior developers, setting technical direction while staying hands-on with coding and problem-solving.

• Own the end-to-end delivery of features, ensuring speed, scalability, and quality are never compromised.

• Architect, develop, and maintain core SaaS platform components across the stack:

  • Backend: Python, PostgreSQL

  • Frontend: TypeScript, NextJS/NodeJS

• Ensure smooth integration of AI tools, APIs, and data pipelines to enhance platform intelligence.

• Champion engineering best practices, including testing, CI/CD, and secure coding standards.

• Conduct regular code reviews and provide technical mentorship.

• Reporting to the Head of AI and Technology to align development priorities with business objectives.

• Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous learning, and high performance.

• Troubleshoot and resolve complex issues quickly, ensuring platform reliability and uptime.

• 10+ years of commercial software development experience, with at least 5 years as a Lead Developer.

• Proven success in leading small, high-performing engineering teams in fast-paced environments.

• Deep expertise in full-stack development with:

  • TypeScript / JavaScript (NextJS, NodeJS, Tailwind)

  • Python (Django, Flask, or FastAPI)

  • PostgreSQL (design, optimization, maintenance)

• Experience building and scaling SaaS platforms in production.

• Strong background in software architecture, microservices, and API design.

• Hands-on experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or GCP).

• Track record of delivering high-quality software under tight timelines.

• Strong communication skills, able to motivate and align technical teams.

• Experience with AI tools, APIs, or ML pipelines is highly desirable.

• Bonus: exposure to containerisation (Docker/Kubernetes), event-driven architecture (Kafka/RabbitMQ), or startup environments.

• Hybrid working as standard

• 25 days annual leave + bank holidays

• Flexible holiday scheme

• Paid time off to move home

• Contributory pension scheme

• Enhanced family leave benefits

• Insurance benefits including life assurance

• Love Mondays events

• Discount scheme including gyms and popular retailers

• Wellbeing and mental health support

• Office in Holborn with countless bars, restaurants, and theatres nearby