Lead Engineer

We’re Nominet – a world-leading domain name registry. For over 25 years, we’ve been operating at the heart of internet infrastructure. While we're best known for running .UK domains, we also help protect public services from cyber threat. Our aim is to create a world which is more connected, inclusive and secure. We know that technology has the power to transform lives by creating opportunities and providing support where it’s needed most.
 
As a public benefit company, our work funds the ability to make a positive impact on society. We’ve donated millions to projects that use technology to improve peoples’ lives and have committed to delivering £60m worth of support over the next three years.
 
We understand the impact the Internet has on the environment and are committed to helping the UK reach Net Zero by 2050. We’re already a Carbon Neutral company through offsetting our emissions and will continue to work on reducing our footprint.

About the role:

As a Lead Engineer you will play a pivotal role in contributing to the design and construction of Nominet's cutting-edge DNS Resolver platform which will be critical infrastructure supporting the core of the internet globally. This platform, running on private cloud, will be the cornerstone of our DNS operations and will be responsible for powering our prestigious UK registry, our cyber security product Protective PDNS and more.

You’ll define and lead complex work, both within the Edge Platform team, and across other multi-disciplinary teams and you will partner closely with the DNS and Network subsystem teams to ensure the Edge Platform follows best practice and patterns. You will be one of the leading forces in shaping the platform, joining the business at the ground floor of technology transformation. In time, you will transition from the design & build stage to the managing and operating the platform, replacing outdate services along the way.

You will also support the Engineering Manager & partner with the Product Manager to help ensure work is broken down and prioritised appropriately and you’ll actively collaborate with our Security Team to refine the Edge Platform teams approach to security.

The essential bits:

As our Edge Platform will be built on Private Cloud you will have advanced Linux knowledge that will help us build an efficient platform that squeezes every bit of performance out of the servers the platform runs on. We expect you to have expert knowledge in virtualized environments as well as hands-on experience on Linux/KVM Hypervisors. You’ll have a working knowledge of Open Stack & VM Ware.

It’s crucial that you have experience working with DNS at scale, using DNS software such as Bind, Unbound, PowerDNS or similar. You should also be familiar with some scripting languages like Python, Perl, or Bash.

About you and what you need to be successful:

As well as the technical experience required for the role, you will be someone who can collaborate and work well within a team as we will be expecting you to share knowledge and contribute ideas. You’ll be one of our more senior engineers, so it’s important that you clearly understand the organisation and technical strategy yo help the team align their goals and work to it.

Although you won’t be responsible for managing direct reports, but you should possess strong leadership skills with the ability to motivate your team members. You’ll have a proactive attitude and can drive a project forward. At Nominet, communication is key, so we expect you to be able to convey complex concepts to a range of stakeholders and be able to address concerns clearly.

On top of this, you’ll be a problem-solver that can adapt & learn within an ever-changing landscape who is looking to continuously improve.

What’s in it for you?

We offer a great work life balance with hybrid working, 20% of the time is expected in our office in London. The role has real meaningful impact on not only, national infrastructure but through our public benefit ethos too. The work is technically challenging in a culture where everyone is inspired to do their best.

Pension match to 7%, performance related bonus scheme, private medical insurance, 30 days annual leave, reward portal, support to buy tech equipment tax free, holiday buy scheme, discounted shopping, on-site gym and shower facilities, Medi-cash (claiming cash back on things like optical, dental, inoculations and prescriptions), Employee Assistance Program, Dental Insurance, Health Assessments, Cycle2Work scheme, free- on site car parking, broad range of tools and resources to support your personal and professional development, Nominet Give Hub. We also have an active Social Committee

Salary

We don't advertise salary as we have a degree of flexibility and would rather see all applications on their merit. We appreciate it's a pretty important part of the process and we're happy to have a conversation before you apply. 

Data protection

If you choose to explore an opportunity, and subsequently share your CV or other personal details with Nominet, these details will be held by Nominet for 12 months in accordance with our Privacy Policy and used by our recruitment team and hiring managers in the process to contact you regarding this or other relevant opportunities at Nominet.  If you would like Nominet to delete or update your details at any time, please follow the steps set out in the Privacy Policy describing your individual rights.  If you have any questions about Nominet’s data protection practices, please email: dpo@nominet.uk

Equal opportunities

Cybersecurity is a community effort. That’s why we’re committed to building an inclusive, diverse community that celebrates and welcomes everyone – unless they’re a cybercriminal, of course.

We’re proud to be an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer, and we’d encourage you to join us whatever your background.

We consider everyone equally: your race, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, marital status, nationality, or any other protected characteristic won’t affect your application.

We want to give you every opportunity to show us your best self, so if there are any adjustments we could make to the recruitment and selection process to support you, please let us know.

Security checks

All roles working for Nominet will be subject to a Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) check. Some roles due to the nature of their work, will require additional security clearance.

Due to the volume of applications we receive, we sometimes close our vacancies early. It is therefore advisable to apply as early as possible if you would like to be considered for a role with us.