Santander Auto Software is building a brand-new, state of the art global software platform and product suite that is being rolled out across Europe. The business is 100% enabled by modern software technology and the organisation is comprised of skilled software builders distributed across Europe.
The leadership team is made up of experienced individuals with accomplished backgrounds working with global tech players.
We are looking for an experienced Engineering Manager to lead our Data & Platform engineering teams. Join us if you are looking for an opportunity to work with a Tech company mindset and lead software development in Product Lines building impactful technology solutions that serve thousands of international customers. This role is likely to be a good fit if you relish a large scope of ownership and the opportunity to build high performing software teams in partnership with experienced product managers, technical program managers and software developers.
Santander is proud of being an organisation where there are equal opportunities regardless of gender identity, culture and disability. Our mission is to contribute to help more people and businesses prosper.
WHAT YOU WILL BE DOING
You will manage a world-class team of typically 14 Engineers across Data & Platforms to define, drive and execute on the business vision. Working as a part of a team of engineering leaders, you will run and help to evolve our engineering practices. As a manager you will develop a team of highly motivated and talented individuals that can collaborate effectively with people in a variety of roles across the organisation. You facilitate the design, build and support of software features and capabilities that empower and delight our customers.
We need someone like you to help us achieve excellence in different ways:
Be responsible for the overall development life cycle of the solution and manage complex projects with significant bottom line impact
Partner with Product Managers in developing a road map to provide compelling capabilities that helps us succeed in our business goals
Work with senior engineers to assess feasibility and develop the best technical design and approach for new product development
Instil best practices for software development and documentation, assure delivery meet requirements, and delivers the intended quality of work on tight schedules
Facilitate growth and progression of direct reports
Monitor and improve team performance using metrics, feedback and continuous learning
Partner with HR and technology peers to ensure our ways of working are aligned with the key needs of the wider Santander organisation.
EXPERIENCE
Running agile and/or lean software delivery processes with consistency. Project management experience as useful plus.
Disambiguating and assessing technological feasibility of product and technological priorities
Delivering software in a fast-paced working culture
Determining the minimum appropriate scope of work required to meet a business need and delivering
Software engineering experience as a programmer, preferably up to a senior level
Experience working with the fundamentals of our tech stack: Reactive frontend, Java and Kotlin micro services with RESTful APIs, Containerisation with Kubernetes, PostgreSQL, event-driven architecture with Kafka, Cloud infrastructure (AWS)
Fintech / B2B2C experience useful
SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE
We expect you to be competent and confident with the following:
Being self-motivated, self-accountable and comfortable working in a fast-paced and sometimes ambiguous environment
Communicating concisely and effectively both verbally and in writing to different audiences (in English)
Building a driven, collaborative and trusting team culture that strives for excellence and learning from mistakes
Taking ownership of technical problems and driving solutions in partnership with your engineers
Thinking about the importance of delivering business value and using data to inform your decisions
Building a team culture with a focus on collaboration rather than autonomy
EDUCATION
Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or another related field. Or equivalent work experience.
Skills Required
- Experience managing engineering teams (people management, coaching, performance management)
- Proven experience running Agile and/or Lean software delivery processes
- Software engineering background as a programmer, preferably at senior level
- Experience with Java and/or Kotlin microservices and RESTful APIs
- Experience with containerisation and Kubernetes
- Experience with PostgreSQL
- Experience with event-driven architectures and Kafka
- Experience with cloud infrastructure (AWS)
- Ability to assess technical feasibility and define appropriate technical designs
- Strong written and verbal communication in English
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Systems, or equivalent experience
- Project management experience
- Fintech / B2B2C experience
- Experience with reactive frontend technologies
Santander Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Santander and has not been reviewed or approved by Santander.
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Retirement Support — A dollar‑for‑dollar 401(k) match up to 6% of eligible pay and immediate vesting are highlighted as core strengths, supporting long‑term savings. This is reinforced by company‑paid disability and life/AD&D coverage that bolster financial security.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Paid time off typically ranges from 18–30 days in the U.S. with 11 paid holidays, plus dedicated volunteer and development time; the UK features a minimum of 25 days with buy/sell options. Some roles also use self‑managed PTO, offering additional flexibility depending on team norms.
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Parental & Family Support — U.S. parental benefits include 8 weeks paid for all parents and a total of 16 weeks paid for birth mothers, with flexibility for reduced hours around childbirth. Caregiver leave and dependent‑care programs add further family support.
Santander Insights
What We Do
Banco Santander (SAN SM, STD US, BNC LN) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain and one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. The group’s activities are consolidated into five global businesses: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Wealth Management & Insurance and Payments (PagoNxt and Cards). This operating model allows the bank to better leverage its unique combination of global scale and local leadership. Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way. Santander is building a more responsible bank and has made a number of commitments to support this objective, including raising €220 billion in green financing between 2019 and 2030. In the first quarter of 2024, Banco Santander had €1.3 trillion in total funds, 166 million customers, 8,400 branches and 211,000 employees.
