Head, Software Development at Alfred & Victoria Associates

Overview of the Role

• Head, Software Development is accountable for development and delivery of viable software products and integration services for the company based on the approved technology vision and product roadmap; in collaboration with the Innovation Lead, Project Manager, Product Manager and other stakeholders, while meeting the expectations of the target market, customers and business stakeholders.
• The position of Head, Software Development entails planning, directing, and coordinating all activities associated with creating, acquiring and implementing software solutions across multiple customer segments or target markets.
• As the, Head, Software Development you will research, review, and analyze the effectiveness and efficiency of existing software development technologies, frameworks and tools; to develop a blueprint for enhancing them based on emerging trend and best practice.

Key Responsibilities
Strategy & Planning:

• Provide strategic vision, plan and roadmap for all software development and integration activities.
• Participate in the strategic decisions about technology, definition, and implementation of software solutions.

Stakeholder Engagement & Collaboration:

• Collaborate with product innovation stakeholders in conceptualizing, scoping, estimating and prioritizing the development of new software programs and application services.
• Collaborate with project sponsor, project manager and other stakeholders to determine project scope and vision.
• Work effectively with the innovation lead, product manager/owner, business analyst, project manager and other stakeholders to ensure project delivery against agreed priorities, within timeline and budget.

Technology Leadership & Innovation:

• Research the external environment, and where appropriate identify and recommend technologies, tools and external partners for the delivery of best in class and viable products.
• Establish standards for software development and integration with respect to best practices.
• Understand the use cases (and/or user stories) in order to oversee the design of the architecture for the products to be built.
• Develop and continuously review system architecture while applying best practices that are consistent with and supportive of our product strategy and roadmap.
• Ensure solution and service delivery are consistent with agile processes across the teams.
• Implement mechanisms to monitor, manage and provide progress on all software development.
• Be accountable for the on-time and quality delivery of software development projects.
• Enable and support a culture of engineering excellence, collaboration, team, execution, and
• continuous improvement.
• To keep up to date and brief the management on the latest software development technologies and methodologies for potential leverage.

Software Development & DevOps:

• Oversee all aspects of the product development lifecycle, including product definition, usability testing, UI/UX, backlog management, documentation, release planning, project schedule management and DevOps.
• Help define “gold standard” for technologies, tools, libraries, frameworks, and/or coding
• techniques that enable and streamline secure software development.
• Write and maintain clean, maintainable, reusable, well-tested, secure and future-proof codes.
• Ensure the development teams are practicing the core agile principles of collaboration, prioritization, team accountability, and visibility.

Team and Capacity Building:

• Build and manage a technical team with the right blend of skills and experience required to optimally deliver on our technology strategy and product development roadmap.
• Establish an effective training plan and mentoring for each team member towards their professional development and our strategic requirements.
• Communicate the technology vision and product roadmap with the development team and collaborate to ensure top-quality execution.
• Collaborate and keep the team adequately engaged, challenged and motivated for optimal productivity and high staff retention.

Reporting and Communication:

• Consistently articulate the company’s technological vision, opportunities, achievement and
• challenges to the team and stakeholders.
• Provide clear and concise communication regarding feature development status to the
• management team.
• Responsible for your team’s work planning against objectives set in agreement with the Executive.
• Management. Your work plans must be based on clearly defined and measurable work packages.
• Collaborate with the HR lead to set and track KPIs for quarterly, bi-annual and annual appraisal of your team.
• Prepare and share your team’s weekly reports and periodic performance reviews as at when due.

Business Development:

• To participate in management meetings and contribute regularly to discussions regarding customer acquisition, client engagements, revenue generation, process improvements and strategic initiatives.
• To support business development and pre-sale activities with technical inputs as might be required for technical proposal, demos, trainings, application support services etc.

Position Requirements
Formal Education & Certification:

• A Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Technology, or a related field is required.
• Advanced degrees (e.g., MBA, MSc, or Ph.D.) can be beneficial.

Knowledge and Experience:

• Minimum of 10 years of experience in a senior technology leadership role, preferably as a Head of software development or VP of Technology.
• Knowledge of backend stack- Java/Phthon, frontend stack- react.js/next.js
• Proven track record of successfully managing large-scale technology projects and leading technology teams.
• Deep knowledge of software development, system architecture, cloud computing, cybersecurity, and data management.
• Strong leadership and team management abilities, with experience in mentoring and developing technical talent.
• Excellent strategic thinking and problem-solving skills, with the ability to drive innovation and change.
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to present complex technical concepts to a diverse audience.
• Proven ability to collaborate effectively with executive leadership, stakeholders, and external partners.
• Understanding of how technology drives business value and supports strategic goals.
• Experience with budgeting, financial planning, and cost management related to technology investments.
• Visionary thinking and a proactive approach to identifying and leveraging new technologies.
• Adaptability and resilience in navigating fast-paced and evolving environments.
• Lead, mentor, and manage the technology team, including software developers, engineers, IT staff, and other technical professionals.

Personal Attributes:

• Leadership and mentorship
• Visionary thinking
• Technical expertise
• Business acumen
• Team building
• Project management
• Ethical judgement
• Customer orientation/

Work Conditions:

• Occasional evening and weekend work to meet deadlines.
• Physically able to participate in sessions, presentations, and meetings.
• Some travel may be required for the purpose of offsite client/partner engagements and/or project support.