Head of Product & Engineering Operations

Posted 3 Days Ago
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London, Greater London, England, GBR
Hybrid
Entry level
Fintech • Machine Learning • Sharing Economy • Social Impact • Big Data Analytics
Building the place where small businesses get the funding they need to win.
The Role
Lead the operating model for Product, Engineering, and Design, establishing leadership rituals, product reviews, calibration sessions, release gates, and continuous improvement practices. Embed AI-driven tools and automated workflows into the product development lifecycle, coordinate regulatory and compliance checks, and hold senior leaders accountable for improving how teams build and ship products.
Summary Generated by Built In
We’re on a mission to back the UK’s small businesses like no one else 🚀

Small businesses are the backbone of the economy, and we’re here to help them win. We’ve built a platform that uses clever data to get them the funding they need in minutes, not weeks.

At Funding Circle, we have the restless energy of a fintech start-up with the stability of a public company. It’s a unique mix that gives Circlers the autonomy to take ownership and the scale to make an impact that truly counts.

We’re a high-performing team that chooses to lift each other up. We challenge, we champion, and we have each other’s backs - because we know that when we stand together, we move faster and build better.

The impact is real: Last year alone, the businesses on our platform generated £7.2bn for the UK economy 📈 Come and join a mission that matters!

[Read our Impact Report] | [See our Trustpilot]

The role ⚡

📍 London (Hybrid) | 🤝 3 days in the office | 💰 Competitive Salary + Benefits

As our Head of Product & Engineering Operations, you will design, install, and run the engine across product, engineering, and design. You will help us find a better way by transforming our work into one unified, high-performing build process.

This role owns the ‘how’ we build. You install the operating model across product, engineering and design, and drive product, design and engineering leaders to run it. You have real influence with the CTO down.

You’ll work closely with product, engineering and design teams, and make the operating model work in practice. You’ll be the executive operator on the AI-native lifecycle programme already in motion, turning it from an initiative into the default way our teams build.

You know what great looks like because you’ve done it. You could build the product, but would prefer to build the team who build the product.

What you'll actually do:
  • Establish and run core builders leadership rituals, cross-line product reviews, calibration sessions, and go/no-go release gates.

  • Partner directly with stakeholders across all three disciplines, such as our VP Product, VP Engineering, and Design Leadership, to raise the bar on what and how we build.

  • Take small steps fast through hands-on piloting of new frameworks, running early iterations personally before handing them off to squad leads and ensuring they become permanent habits.

  • Embed AI-driven build tools and automated workflows across all three functions to modernise our Product development lifecycle and processes.

  • Convene the Product, Design and Engineering leadership team to ensure continuous improvement of how we build great products at Funding Circle.

  • Integrate regulatory and compliance checks seamlessly into the core delivery path without slowing down shipment cycles.

What we’re looking for 🌱
  • Operational Track Record: You are a builder and innovator, with proven experience scaling Product Development Lifecycles inside complex product organisations, operating as an embedded leader rather than an external consultant.

  • Cross-Functional Fluency: Strong background in Product Management, Engineering, and Design, with the credibility to challenge leadership and bring teams together across all three disciplines.

  • AI Ownership & Efficiency: The ability to take ownership of redesigning departmental workflows, and being up to date on how to use AI to build great products. You’ve built with Claude Code, Codex, or similar, and you’re excited about helping a whole organisation to build that way.

  • Executive Stakeholder Management: Confidence and credibility to hold MDs, VPs, and senior directors accountable to continuous improvements in how we build.

  • Regulated Industry Awareness: You understand that we are a regulated business and that means doing things right. It’s a bonus if you’ve worked alongside Risk and Compliance.

What would be great:
  • Familiarity with fintech, lending, or financial services compliance requirements.

  • Evidence of having installed an operating model at a comparable inflection point.

  • Product thinking and design sensibility.

  • Deep fluency in how modern software teams build, combined with a ‘builder’ background.

We’re building a place where everyone truly feels they belong. Even if your past experience doesn't align perfectly with every requirement, we'd still love to hear from you.

Why join us? 💜

We back you to build an incredible career and by joining us, you'll be part of one of The Sunday Times Best Companies to Work For 2026! As a flexible-first employer, we use a "best of both" approach. We’ll see you in our London office to collaborate – with barista coffee and subsidised Just Eat lunches on us!

Our Circler Proposition focuses on five areas:

  • Flexibility: We provide a benefit allowance you can tailor to your own life and family.

  • Health: This includes private medical and dental, health assessments, and access to a digital GP.

  • Wealth: We offer life assurance, share schemes, and financial coaching.

  • Development: You get a dedicated annual learning allowance to help you level up.

  • Lifestyle: We have electric car and cycle-to-work schemes, plus season ticket loans.

We also have award-winning parental leave policies. We're here to support you through the big life moments, from fertility treatments to new additions to the family.

Ready to join a mission that matters? We’d love to chat!

Skills Required

  • Proven experience scaling Product Development Lifecycles within complex product organizations
  • Strong background across Product Management, Engineering, and Design
  • Experience redesigning departmental workflows and using AI to improve product development
  • Hands-on experience building with Claude Code, Codex, or similar AI development tools
  • Executive stakeholder management experience with MDs, VPs, and senior directors
  • Ability to operate as an embedded leader and drive cross-functional accountability
  • Awareness of regulated-industry requirements and risk and compliance practices
  • Fintech, lending, or financial services compliance experience
  • Experience installing an operating model at a comparable organizational inflection point
  • Product thinking and design sensibility
  • Deep understanding of modern software development teams and a builder background
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The Company
HQ: London
900 Employees
Year Founded: 2010

What We Do

Over the past ten years, Funding Circle has built a machine learning and technology platform that is changing the way small businesses access the financing they need to grow. Business owners can complete a loan application and receive a decision in a matter of minutes, enabling them to get funding quickly at an affordable rate. When small businesses succeed, they create jobs, support local communities, and drive the economy forward - that’s why we care about helping them win. To us, nothing is more important.

Why Work With Us

The traditional banking system is broken, so we’re building a better one. We’ve never been ones for the status quo. We believe in questioning convention, experimenting, innovating, and finding a better way. We believe in those made to do more, and that includes our employees. We seek and hire the best by providing great benefits, perks, and pay.

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