Principal Software Engineer (m/w/d)

Job Description

At OVO, we are on a mission to solve one of humanity's biggest challenges, the climate crisis. And we know it takes all of us to change the world. That's why we need diverse people from all abilities, gender identities, ethnicities, ages, sexual orientations, life experiences and backgrounds to join us.

Teamworking for the planet

Everything we do here spins around Plan Zero. So, naturally, the team you'll be joining plays a gigantic role in making that happen.

This role in a nutshell

As a Principal Mobile/Web Engineer, you will be the technical authority driving OVO's mobile and web strategy. You'll define long-term frontend vision, shape architecture and design systems, and ensure our apps deliver exceptional user experiences at scale. You'll mentor senior engineers, influence cross-company technology adoption, and represent OVO as a thought leader in the industry. You'll also play a key role in driving the Mobile/Web Community of Practice, shaping hiring strategies to attract top talent, and building a strong pipeline of future engineering leaders.

Your key outcomes will be

• Define and drive the long-term technical vision for OVO's mobile and web platforms.
• Establish and evolve frontend/mobile architecture including design systems, shared libraries, and cross-platform strategies.
• Mentor and guide senior engineers, fostering technical excellence and consistency across teams.
• Influence API and BFF design to optimise client-server communication.
• Ensure performance, accessibility, and scalability across mobile and web applications.
• Represent OVO externally as a thought leader in mobile and web engineering.

Within your first 6 months month you'll

• Be recognised as a trusted advisor in mobile/web strategy across multiple teams.
• Lead architectural reviews and set standards for frontend development.
• Establish measurable performance and accessibility benchmarks for apps and web platforms.
• Build strong relationships with product, design, and backend teams to ensure alignment.
• Contribute to OVO's engineering community through internal talks, workshops, and mentoring.
• Play a key role in hiring top talent into the mobile/web engineering teams.
• Lead the Mobile/Web Community of Practice, fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing across the organisation

You'll be a successful Principal Mobile/Web Engineer at OVO if you...

• Bring deep expertise in mobile/web engineering, including TypeScript/Javascript, React.js, React Native, Swift and/or Kotlin..
• Have a track record of technical leadership, influencing cross-team architecture and strategy.
• Are passionate about performance, UX, and accessibility, setting high standards and holding teams accountable.
• Are an excellent communicator and mentor, comfortable influencing stakeholders at every level.
• Thrive in innovation, exploring and applying emerging frontend technologies.
• Are hands-on, actively contributing to design, code, and architecture while leading by example.

Let's talk about what's in it for you

We'll pay you between ??121,000 and ??174,000, depending on your specific skills and experience.

We keep our pay ranges broad on purpose to give us, and you, flexibility to match your experience to our zero carbon mission.

You'll be eligible for an on-target bonus of 15%. We have one OVO bonus plan that focuses on the collective performance of our people to deliver our Plan Zero goal.

We also offer plenty of green benefits and progressive policies to help you feel like you belong at OVO...and there's flex pay. We'll give you 9% Flex Pay on top of your salary - 4% of this is auto enrolled into your pension, and the remaining 5% is yours to do what you like with. You can use this to buy from our extensive range of flexible benefits, including our green benefits which we've put at the heart of our offering, add to your pension or even take it as cash.

Here's a taster of what's on offer:

For starters, you'll get 34 days of holiday (including bank holidays).

For your health
With benefits like a healthcare cash plan or private medical insurance depending on your career level, critical illness cover, life assurance, health assessments, and more

For your wellbeing
With gym membership, travel insurance, workplace ISA, will writing services, dental insurance, and more

For your lifestyle
With extra holiday buying, discount dining, home & tech loans, and supporting your favourite charities with give-as-you-earn donations

For your home
Get up to ??400 towards any OVO Energy plan, plus great discounts on solar, smart thermostats and EV chargers

For your commute
Nab a great deal on ultra-low emission car leasing, plus our cycle to work scheme and public transport season ticket loans

Want to hear about our full range of flexible benefits and progressive people policies? Our People Team can tell you everything you need to know.

For your Belonging

To find better ways to support our people, we need to listen to each other's experiences and find ways to build a truly inclusive and diverse workplace. As part of this, we have 8 Belonging Networks at OVO. Led by our people, for our people - so when you join OVO, you can play a part - big or small - with any of the Networks. It's up to you.

Oh, and one last thing...

We'd be thrilled if you tick off all our boxes, yet we also believe it's just as important we tick off all of yours. And if you think you have most of what we're looking for but not every single thing, go ahead and hit apply. We'd still love to hear from you!

If you have any additional requirements, there's a space to let us know on the application form; we want to make the process as easy and comfortable for you as possible.