Software Development Lead (SC Clearance)

At CGI we help deliver complex mission-critical technology that supports some of the UKs most important Space Defence and Intelligence programmes. As a Software Development Lead youll play a key role in shaping and delivering innovative solutions on one of our largest and longest-running projects. Combining hands-on engineering with technical leadership youll take ownership of high-quality software delivery guide a talented team and solve challenging technical problems. Youll have the freedom to influence engineering decisions explore better ways of working and make a meaningful impact supported by a collaborative community of experts committed to your development and success.

CGI was recognised in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work List 2025 and has been named a UK Best Employer by the Financial Times. We offer a competitive salary excellent pension private healthcare plus a share scheme (3.5% 3.5% matching) which makes you a CGI Partner not just an employee. We are committed to inclusivity building a genuinely diverse community of tech talent and inspiring everyone to pursue careers in our sector including our Armed Forces and are proud to hold a Gold Award in recognition of our support of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant. Join us and youll be part of an open friendly community of experts. Well train and support you in taking your career wherever you want it to go.

Due to the secure nature of the programme you must already hold UK Security Clearance (SC). This is a hybrid position based in Leatherhead requiring on-site attendance for part of the week and occasional travel to locations along the M3/M4 corridor.

Key responsibilities include:

Lead & Inspire: Provide technical leadership coaching and day-to-day guidance to a team of approximately 10 Software Engineers.
Develop & Deliver: Remain hands-on with Java and C development delivering enhancements fixes and new capabilities.
Drive Engineering Excellence: Champion code quality peer reviews automated testing CI/CD and DevOps best practices.
Solve & Innovate: Investigate complex technical challenges troubleshoot issues and develop pragmatic effective solutions.
Plan & Coordinate: Work with Project Managers to estimate prioritise and deliver development work packages while managing risks and dependencies.
Collaborate & Align: Partner with the Design Authority Test Infrastructure and other engineering teams to ensure solutions align with wider programme objectives.
Mentor & Develop: Support recruitment onboarding technical development and knowledge sharing to build a high-performing engineering team.
Improve & Optimise: Identify opportunities to enhance development processes maintain technical documentation and continuously improve software delivery.

Technical Leadership: Proven experience leading or providing technical direction to software engineering teams including mentoring and coaching developers.
Java & C Development: Strong hands-on programming experience in both Java and C with the ability to review and guide complex implementations.
Database Technologies: Practical experience working with SQL databases.
CI/CD & DevOps: Strong experience with continuous integration deployment pipelines and development tools such as Git and Jenkins.
Software Development Lifecycle: Comprehensive experience across software design development integration testing and defect resolution.
Problem-Solving: Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills with experience resolving complex software and system issues.
Engineering Best Practices: Proven ability to promote code quality automated testing peer reviews and continuous improvement.
Stakeholder Collaboration: Excellent communication skills and experience working with Project Managers technical authorities and cross-functional engineering teams.
Delivery Focus: Ability to balance hands-on development with team leadership manage competing priorities and adapt to evolving technical requirements.
Security Clearance: Must already hold UK Security Clearance (SC).
Location & Flexibility: Ability to work on-site in Leatherhead for part of the week with occasional travel along the M3/M4 corridor.

#LI-JK1

• C
• Java
• Leadership
• System testing
• Team Collaboration

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Life at CGI is rooted in ownership teamwork respect and belonging. Here youll reach your full potential because

You are invited to be an owner from day 1 as we work together to bring our Dream to life. Thats why we call ourselves CGI Partners rather than employees. We benefit from our collective success and actively shape our companys strategy and direction.

Your work creates value. Youll develop innovative solutions and build relationships with teammates and clients while accessing global capabilities to scale your ideas embrace new opportunities and benefit from expansive industry and technology expertise.

Youll shape your career by joining a company built to grow and last. Youll be supported by leaders who care about your health and well-being and provide you with opportunities to deepen your skills and broaden your horizons.

That same commitment to fairness extends to how we use technology. To support our recruitment team AI tools may be used to help assess applications though they never replace human judgement. All hiring decisions remain entirely in the hands of our recruitment professionals.

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