Software Engineering Manager, AI Platform

Job Title: Software Engineering Manager, AI Platform 

How have you helped a team deliver complex technical work while balancing quality, speed, and reliability? 

How do you support engineers in their growth and create an inclusive, collaborative team culture? 

Location : Hybrid role, UK or Amsterdam based 

About the Team 

The AI Platform team builds shared AI capabilities used across multiple products. Our goal is to help teams safely and effectively integrate generative AI without needing to build core systems from scratch. 

We create reusable services, tools, and platform solutions that support scalability, security, and reliability, while enabling teams to move efficiently. 

About the Role 

We are looking for a Software Engineering Manager to support engineering teams within the AI Platform. You will help guide delivery, support team growth, and ensure alignment across a complex and evolving environment. 

This role combines people leadership, delivery coordination, and technical oversight. While not focused on day-to-day coding, you will bring technical judgment, contribute to design discussions, and offer support when needed. 

Key Responsibilities: 

Team Leadership & Delivery 

• Support one or more engineering teams with clear goals and priorities 

• Partner with technical leaders to deliver reliable and high-quality outcomes 

• Monitor progress and help address risks, blockers, and dependencies 

Planning & Alignment 

• Collaborate with product, engineering, and stakeholders to set priorities 

• Balance immediate delivery needs with long-term sustainability 

• Encourage alignment across teams and shared platform goals 

Technical Oversight & Strategy 

• Partner with Technical Leads and senior stakeholders to shape engineering strategy and platform direction 

• Support strong technical standards through design and code reviews 

• Help teams balance speed, quality, reliability and delivery 

• Provide hands-on support during critical periods when needed 

Operational Excellence 

• Promote practices in testing, delivery pipelines, and system reliability 

• Track and improve key indicators such as delivery, stability, and maintainability 

• Drive continuous improvements in engineering processes, developer experience, and platform reliability.  

Communication & Collaboration 

• Encourage open and clear communication across the wider team 

• Share progress, challenges, and trade-offs transparently 

• Participate in planning, roadmap discussions, and cross-team coordination 

• Influence decisions beyond the immediate team through collaboration and engineering leadership.  

People Management & Development 

• Support inclusive hiring and onboarding practices 

• Support career development - Provide coaching, feedback, and growth opportunities 

• Foster a collaborative, respectful, and supportive team environment focused on continuous improvement 

• Partner with technical leaders to maintain strong engineering practices 

• Experience working in Agile or Kanban teams, collaborating across functions  

Skills & Experience: 

• Deep experience in software engineering and team leadership or mentorship within engineering 

• Ability to manage and work in evolving technical environments and manage priorities 

• Knowledge of backend systems, distributed architectures, or cloud platforms 

• Experience collaborating across teams and with technical stakeholders 

• Ability to review code and provide constructive feedback (Python is a plus) 

• Strong communication and organisational skills 

Nice to Have 

• Experience with AI/LLM tools or modern backend frameworks (e.g., LangChain, LangGraph) and backend service frameworks (e.g., FastAPI) 

• Familiarity with cloud-native technologies (e.g., Kubernetes) 

• Experience supporting platforms used by multiple, downstream consumer teams 

• Experience managing teams working on internal developer tools or shared platforms 

If you are interested in the role, please apply with a cover letter and CV. 

Work in a way that works for you 

We promote a healthy work/life balance across the organisation. With an average length of service of 9 years, we are confident that we offer an appealing working prospect for our people. With numerous wellbeing initiatives, shared parental leave, study assistance and sabbaticals, we will help you meet your immediate responsibilities and your long-term goals. 

• Working in a hybrid way from both the office and at home 

• Working flexible hours - flexing the times you work in the day 

Working with us 

We are an equal opportunity employer with a commitment to help you succeed. Here, you will find an inclusive, agile, collaborative, innovative and fun environment, where everyone has a part to play. Regardless of the team you join, we promote a diverse environment with co-workers who are passionate about what they do, and how they do it. 

Working for you 

• At Elsevier, we know that your wellbeing and happiness are key to a long and successful career. These are some of the benefits we are delighted to offer: 

• Generous holiday allowance with the option to buy additional days 

• Health screening, eye care vouchers and private medical benefits 

• Wellbeing programs 

• Life assurance 

• Access to a competitive contributory pension scheme 

• Long service awards 

• Save As You Earn share option scheme 

• Travel Season ticket loan 

• Maternity, paternity and shared parental leave 

• Access to emergency care for both the elderly and children 

• RE CARES days, giving you time to support the charities and causes that matter to you 

• Access to employee resource groups with dedicated time to volunteer 

• Access to extensive learning and development resources 

• Access to employee discounts via Perks at Work 

About Us