VP Engineering, AI - Native Engineering - Global Assurance Leader

VP Engineering, AI-Native Engineering | Global Assurance Leader | Remote (UK) Most engineering leaders are talking about AI-native development. This role is for someone who has already done it and wants to do it at scale. Our client is a global leader in assurance, covering certification, inspection, cybersecurity and advisory services for organisations worldwide. It has created a new VP Engineering role with one clear mandate: change how it builds software. You'll lead a Software Engineering and Architecture function of around 30 people through a fundamental shift. That means AI across the whole lifecycle: specification, design, coding, testing, code review and release. It also means moving the function from AI-assisted to agentic engineering as the default way it works. It's a board-backed transformation in a business already using AI with its clients. It needs someone who can lead from the front and in the tools. Why this role stands out

• A real mandate. You won't be fighting for permission. The role exists to make AI-native engineering the way the business builds.
• Hands-on is expected. The best person here still builds and sets the technical bar by example.
• Scale and growth. You'll lead a working, live team, with acquisitions set to expand the function. You'll shape both the engineering and how new teams join it.
• Executive visibility. You'll be the engineering voice at ELT level, working closely with the CDO and CDIO in a global, investor-backed business.
• A domain where it matters. Making agentic engineering safe, secure and auditable in a regulated assurance environment is a genuinely interesting problem. What you'll do
• Embed AI across the full software lifecycle so it becomes how the teams work, not an add-on.
• Build the foundations that make AI work at scale: engineering standards, golden paths, documentation-as-code and reusable scaffolding.
• Reshape team design and roles around what AI changes about building software.
• Drive automation across build, test and release, and deliver a step-change in DORA metrics (deployment speed and stability) and cycle time.
• Set technical and architecture direction across the estate, and lead technical due diligence and integration on acquisitions.
• Modernise the engineering function (including pivoting to product development & bringing in modern practices) You'll recognise yourself here if you've:
• Already embedded AI across a team's whole lifecycle in live delivery. You can show the results and how it progressed towards agentic engineering.
• Built with these tools yourself, recently. You can talk about what you shipped last month and what broke.
• Led multiple engineering teams through senior leaders. That means typically 30 or more engineers, where you changed how they build, not only what they deliver. You'll also bring strong grounding in continuous delivery, CI/CD, cloud and modern architecture. You'll have the credibility to hold your own with engineers and executives alike. Scale-up, global or M&A experience is a real plus. The details
• Fully remote, UK-based (relocation to the UK considered)
• Reports to the Chief Digital Officer
• Competitive base and bonus If you've already changed how a team builds software with AI, and want to do it at scale with full backing, I'd love to talk.