Job Description:
Head of R&D
Kahootz are a leading provider of secure collaboration software to a range of clients including in the central government, healthcare and defence domains. The software is cloud based and designed to help teams improve their efficiency through closer collaboration, enabled by a comprehensive toolset include file sharing, discussions forums and dynamic databases.
The software sits at the core of a number of nationally significant, but classified, defence programmes and was instrumental in supporting the rapid reaction to the COVID pandemic in the NHS.
POSITION:
The Head of Research and Development at Kahootz will lead our technical efforts, driving the development of our secure cloud solution. This role requires a visionary leader with strong technical expertise and experience in the secure information-sharing landscape. You will oversee and inspire a multidisciplinary R&D team, guiding projects from concept through to prototyping, rigorous testing, and deployment. Your focus will be on implementing cutting-edge technologies, strengthening our platform’s security features, and ensuring compliance with stringent regulatory standards.
In this role, you will lead the engineering, support and dev-ops teams to ensure that the technical roadmap and product delivery aligns with both company goals and client needs. Additionally, you’ll play a key part in engaging with stakeholders from institutions like the NHS, UK MOD, Cabinet Office, and prominent defence companies. This position requires a blend of technical acumen and strategic insight, as well as a deep understanding of emerging trends and threats in the secure collaboration domain. The successful candidate will possess the skills to translate client requirements into innovative solutions, fostering Kahootz’s position as a trusted leader in secure cloud collaboration.
KEY OBJECTIVES:
Lead and manage multiple delivery teams consisting of development, customer support and Dev ops engineers.
Develop and execute software development project plans, including defining project scope, milestones, and deliverables.
Foster a culture of continuous improvement and software development best practices, including agile development, continuous integration and deployment, and automated testing.
JOB RESPONSIBILITIES:
Product Development
Take an active role in product development, leading the engineering team and ensuring high quality output to time and budget.
Manage and prioritize feature team workload to ensure efficient use of resources.
Ensure adherence to software development standards, policies and procedures.
Hire, train, and mentor software development team members.
Operational Infrastructure
Provide support and guidance to the dev ops and infrastructure teams to ensure secure and resilient service delivery.
Hire, manage and mentor infrastructure team members.
Oversee the infrastructure approach, including partnership arrangements and long term cloud strategy.
Customer Support
Provide active assistance to the 1st Line Customer Support team. Responding to customer tickets, diagnosing issues and sign-posting to customer success, sales and professional service teams.
Hire, manage and mentor CS team.
JOB QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE:
Proven experience managing and/or leading a software team.
Extensive background experience in Software Development or QA.
Experience and deep understanding of working in an Agile delivery team (preferably Scrum) is desirable.
Good knowledge of software development best practice.
Experience in designing and delivering presentations.
Experience of coaching other members of staff.
Technical Experience
The following are beneficial but not essential:
BENEFITS
Life Assurance 4x base salary
Vitality Private Health Insurance
Medical Health Insurance
Cashplan
Personal Travel Insurance
Cycle to Work scheme
Electric/Hybrid Vehicle scheme
Discounted gym membership
My Premier Benefits (discounted high street retailers)
ENHANCED BENEFITS
25 days annual leave
10 days rolling sick plan, including extended illness pay
Pension 5% EE and 4% ER (increases after 3 years to a max of 6%)
MUCH MORE THAN A BENEFIT
Career progression and individual career path support
Internal Learning & Development programmes
Annual awards ceremony and Company event (JABAs)
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Mental Health First Aiders to support you
Refer a friend scheme – up to £4,000 for each successful referral
Join communities and collaborate with your colleagues through our internal networking events
OUR DEIB COMMITMENT
Our people define us and, at Jonas, we believe that diversity in all its forms enriches our organisation and drives innovation. We actively seek to create an environment where all employees feel valued, heard, and empowered to contribute their best work. We do not discriminate on the basis of any protected characteristic and are dedicated to providing equal opportunities for all. Come and be part of a team where your unique background and experiences are celebrated!
FLEX WORKS CULTURE
Here at Jonas Software UK & Europe, we see flexibility as a game-changer. We truly believe that working flexibly together helps to increase our innovation, growth and productivity, as well as supports our employees’ wellbeing and helps to provide great places to work.
For most roles, the following types of flexibility are usually possible: working location, number of hours/days worked, different start and finishing times, flexible lunch break arrangements, agreed core hours, flexible hours, an element of working from home, compressed hours.
Many of our employees work flexibly in many different ways, including part-time. Please talk to us at interview about the flexibility you need. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want, but we do promise not to judge you for asking.
For this role we are open to discussing the possibility of reduced hours, remote working, flexible start and finish times, or compressed hours.
Business Unit:
Kahootz
Scheduled Weekly Hours:
37.5
Number of Openings Available:
1
Worker Type:
Regular
Career Site:
More About Jonas Software:
Jonas Software is the leading provider of enterprise management software solutions to the Country and Golf Clubs, Foodservice, Construction, Fitness & Sports, Attractions, Salon & Spa, Education, Radiology/Laboratory Information Systems, and Product Licensing industries. Within these vertical markets, Jonas is made up of over 65 distinct brands, which are respected and leaders within their own domain.
Jonas’ vision is to be the branded global leader across the aforementioned vertical markets and to be recognized by customers and respective industry stakeholders as the trusted provider of ‘Software for Life’ and as an ambassador for technology, product innovation, quality, and customer service.
Jonas Software is the valued technology partner of over 60,000 customers worldwide in more than 30 countries. Jonas employs over 2,000 skilled individuals consisting of a cross-section of industry experts and technology professionals. Jonas is headquartered in Canada and also operates offices throughout North America, the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia New Zealand and Africa. Jonas is a 100% owned subsidiary of Constellation Software Inc., headquartered in Toronto and traded on the S&P/TSX 60.
IS THIS YOU?
