Head of Engineering

Old Mutual Limited

. Lead the development, modernisation and maintenance of applications, systems and platforms .

Posted 9/17/2026full-timeJohannesburg • South AfricaLeadWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

Use this summary to align your resume positioning with the role.

Demonstrates expertise in leading software engineering teams, managing complex delivery environments, and implementing AI-assisted development tools. Proven ability to balance delivery speed, production stability, and quality while driving modernization and governance in engineering practices.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Software Engineering LeadershipAI-Augmented DevelopmentCloud Services (Azure, AWS, Google Cloud)Microservices ArchitectureAgile or Scrum Certification

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

Software DevelopmentApplication Software RoadmapsPlatform EngineeringData EngineeringQuality EngineeringSecurity EngineeringDevOpsAI/ML ImplementationAutomationComplex Systems Integration

Soft Skills

Problem-SolvingCommunicationCollaborationLeadershipMentorship

Tools & Technologies

AI Coding AssistantsInternal Developer PlatformsMetrics-Driven Engineering ToolsGitHub CopilotClaude CodeCursor

Certifications & Qualifications

Agile CertificationScrum Certification

Industry Keywords

Digital TransformationGovernanceRegulated EnvironmentData Protection (POPIA, GDPR)AI Regulation

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

AWSAzureCloudMicroservices

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Lead the development, modernisation and maintenance of applications, systems and platforms
Translate technology strategy into stable, secure, resilient, cost-conscious systems supporting digital, data and AI-enabled business outcomes
Lead software and product engineering, platform/infrastructure and DevOps, data engineering and analytics, AI/ML and automation, security engineering, quality engineering and SRE
Improve delivery speed and quality while maintaining production stability, security and governance across legacy platforms and complex integrations
Set engineering standards, establish delivery discipline, build engineering capability and hold teams accountable for measurable outcomes
Develop and maintain quality procedures, engineering standards, testing, certification of technology processes and quality controls
Manage major engineering programmes and take accountability for business-critical projects
Collaborate on the digital roadmap and lead execution of workflows, processes and enablers for rapid delivery while maintaining legacy applications and IT operations
Grow engineering and digital talent through development plans, coaching, mentoring and improved employee experience
Identify opportunities to improve digital products, services and user experiences
Document current-state and target-state processes and define migration changes
Translate function strategy into team actions and motivate people to deliver business goals
Set objectives, manage performance, hold individuals accountable and take corrective action
Define the business impact of security incidents and drive prevention recommendations with security and risk stakeholders
Manage departmental budgets and ensure cost-conscious, value-led delivery and modernisation choices
Assess capability gaps, prioritise development, implement development frameworks and strengthen the engineering talent pool
Oversee complex existing and new applications and ensure they meet customer and business requirements
Define and maintain application software roadmaps and prioritise engineering work
Provide specialist advice to senior managers on policy, projects and change initiatives
Drive organisation-wide adoption of AI-assisted development tools and measure impact on delivery speed, quality and engineering capacity
Build and scale a self-service internal developer platform with golden paths, reusable components and automated guardrails
Embed responsible AI, model risk management and data governance controls into engineering delivery
Establish and report delivery and reliability metrics, including DORA metrics and SLOs/error budgets
Establish and lead a Chapter operating model across Software Engineering, Data Engineering, Platform and DevOps, Quality Engineering and SRE, Security Engineering, and AI/ML
Maintain competency frameworks and career ladders, close skills gaps, and monitor engagement, attrition, internal mobility and time-to-competency
Ensure Chapter Leads drive AI-assisted tools and practices and measure their impact across engineering disciplines

Requirements

What you’ll need

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Software Engineering or a related field
At least 8 years of general technology or software engineering experience, with significant exposure to complex delivery environments
At least 7 years of managerial experience, including leadership or mentorship of software engineering teams
Experience leading cross-functional development teams and delivering complex, business-critical projects
Strong understanding of software development across front-end, back-end, integration and platform technologies
Experience defining and maintaining application software roadmaps aligned to business priorities
Proven ability to balance delivery speed, production stability, security, risk and quality
Excellent problem-solving, debugging, communication, collaboration and leadership skills
Commitment to staying current with emerging technology trends, including cloud, microservices, automation, data, AI and AIagentic engineering tools
Demonstrated experience leading AI-augmented software engineering organisations, including adoption of AI coding assistants and agentic development tools at scale
Working knowledge of platform engineering, internal developer platforms and metrics-driven engineering culture
Preferred: Experience with cloud services such as Azure, AWS or Google Cloud
Preferred: Experience with microservices architecture and modern integration patterns
Preferred: Agile or Scrum certification and familiarity with project management and delivery tooling
Preferred: Experience modernising mission-critical legacy systems
Preferred: Experience moving AI, GenAI or automation capabilities from pilot to production with appropriate governance
Preferred: Experience operating in a regulated or high-control environment where audit, resilience and evidence matter
Preferred: Hands-on familiarity with AI coding assistants and agentic tools (e.g. GitHub Copilot, Claude Code, Cursor) and their governance in an enterprise setting
Preferred: Exposure to LLMOps/MLOps practices and modern data architectures such as data mesh or lakehouse
Preferred: Experience with cloud FinOps and cost optimisation for engineering and AI workloads
Preferred: Awareness of emerging AI regulation and data protection requirements (e.g. POPIA, GDPR, EU AI Act) relevant to a regulated financial services environment
Required education: Bachelor of Computer Science (BCoSc)

Benefits

Comp & perks

Employment Equity Plan appointment from the designated group in line with Old Mutual South Africa and the specific business unit