Head Of Development

The thing that makes your position so important in Equator, is that you are an experienced people manager capable of directing and motivating the development team to create better work than they thought they were capable of.Main Responsibilities: LeadershipDevelop close, trusting relationships with the Business Unit Leaders, senior team and other heads of department and ensure the principles of Development excellence are integrated into our process and our outputCreate a model for success and quality within the team, ensuring that all team members understand their role and contribution to creating successful outcomes for our client and the businessEvaluate emerging technologies and trends to evolve and develop our service offering, utilising research activities as a mechanism to encourage innovative thinking within the teamEstablish a training plan to help key team members develop transformation consultancy skillsPromote our services and capabilities through thought leadership outputsEnsure that the quality of the team outputs meets the brief, exceeds the client’s expectations and meets best practices at all timesPresent findings, insights and suggestions to company directors, other senior managers and/or clients when appropriateDiscover and implementing innovative ways to improve the way we workMotivate and drive the development team to succeedPerformanceDefine, share, and monitor personal performance targets for all team members (quality, billability, adherence to estimates etc)Create and maintain a robust team structure that provides appropriate levels of oversight and supportEnsure that appropriate tooling and processes are in place to deliver secure and robust solutions for our clientsWork directly with our Compliance, Legal and IT teams to ensure issues and problems are escalated swiftly, for example; security incident, breaches, and vulnerability management activitiesPlan, manage and support Disaster Recovery testing activities and reportingEnsure that appropriate actions are taken to maintain our departmental and business certifications (OWASP, ISO27001, ISO9001, ISO14001, ISO45001 and PCI-DSS)Ensure that a department plan is in place to obtain partnership status as defined by our strategic roadmap and that all training requirements are obtained and refreshedEncourage and advocate ownership of outputs with an emphasis on efficient, timely delivery without compromising quality and securityAdopt an ongoing evaluation of capabilities versus industry trends and that appropriate training and certification is in place to ensure that our capabilities are current and competitive, for example OWASP and Privacy by Design PrinciplesWork with our operations and client-facing teams to understand forecasts and develop resource plansEnsure that appropriate recruitment, contractor, and partner programs are in place to meet capacity demandsWork with Head of Compliance and Head of IT to ensure the maintenance of our Information Security Management System meets the expectations of the business and external stakeholdersMonitor team annual leave to ensure that appropriate team capacity and capability is available to the business year-round.Support Business Development in pre-sales and pitchingDeliver maximum profitability by ensuring a high level of performance and quality ManagementManaging a team of 35 Software Engineers, Testers and ArchitectsMentor, motivate and support your team to reach their full potentialManage recruitment for your department with sign-off and support from the relevant Business Unit LeaderManage your team, ensuring praise is given where it is due and non-conformance is dealt with clearly and swiftlyCreate Personal Development Plans for our team and support your team member to achieve theseConduct regular appraisals and one to one’s with your direct reportsSet clear, transparent measurable goals and objectives for your team that can be continuously reviewed throughout the year and at appraisal timeSupport your direct reports and Heads of Department on team management including appraisals, one-to-ones, objective setting and performance issues Develop the skills and expertise of your team in line with business objectives ensuring we strive for the bestEnsure that all team members are completing daily timesheetsAnalyse team billability and productivity and ensure that designated targets are being met or exceeded.Support our new business team through the pitch process by providing ballparks, proposal documents and presenting our capabilities to clientsThe Ideal CandidateExperience in growing teams including extension and expansion to accommodate new capabilities and offeringsProven track record in delivering transformative business systems to customersTrack record of reviewing and onboarding new technologies in line with strategic directionExperience in growing and evolving department systems and processes with clear KPIs and outcomesQuality focussed approach including experience managing and evolving an integrated QA teamExperience dealing with senior stakeholders within business and with clientsSkills and experience to pitch to prospective clientsTeam performance management experience - creating smart objectives for team members and department