Head of Engineering

Zürich/Hamburg, hybrid

At DEPT, we blend creativity, technology, and data to craft end-to-end digital experiences. As we continue to grow across the DACH region, we're looking for a Head of Engineering who's not only a strategic thinker and team leader, but also a trusted technology partner to our clients.

This is a key leadership position focused on building, leading, and developing a high-performance team of frontend engineers. You are responsible for the personal and professional growth of your 7-9 direct reports, the operational excellence of your department, and the consistently high quality of our frontend implementations. Your leadership is key to scaling our capabilities and securing our position as a technology leader.

• Lead, manage, and mentor a department of talented frontend engineers and Team Leads.

• Take responsibility for their career development through regular 1-on-1s, feedback, and performance reviews.

• Foster a positive, inclusive, and high-performance team culture by establishing department rituals and driving initiatives to increase employee satisfaction.

• Take ownership of your department's operational performance, being accountable for key metrics such as team utilization and project budgets.

• Manage project forecasting and resource planning in collaboration with the resource management team to ensure successful project staffing.

• Partner with other leaders (Directors, VPs) to ensure your department is aligned with broader business goals and client needs.

• Act as the primary escalation point for all local team, delivery, and quality-related topics within the frontend discipline.

• Define and maintain the standards, processes, and best practices for frontend engineering at DEPT, ensuring consistent, high-quality delivery across all projects.

• Lead the entire hiring process for your department—from needs analysis and role definition to the final hiring decision.

• Significant experience (10+ years) in software development.

• Proven track record (3-5+ years) in direct disciplinary line management in an agency or product-oriented environment.

• A natural leader: empathetic, empowering, and passionate about developing and nurturing talent.

• Deep, hands-on expertise in the modern frontend ecosystem (e.g., React, , Vue, TypeScript, headless architectures, performance optimization). Your technical credibility is the foundation of your leadership.

• A strong operational and strategic mindset, with experience in managing team KPIs and optimizing processes.

• A structured and organized approach to building sustainable teams and systems that enable growth.

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.

• Fluency in both German and English.

Please note that benefits may vary by location.

• Hybrid working policy
• Stay happy and healthy with a contribution to your health through the OpenUp platform, and a multisport programme;
• A reputation for doing good. DEPT has been a Certified B Corp since 2021.
• Awesome clients. Whether big, small, local or global — at DEPT you'll get the opportunity to work with all of them. And we celebrate all of our successes together
• The opportunity for possibility. We want to enable you to do what you do best and help you develop your skills further with training, development and certifications.
• Global annual DEPT Cares Month in which employees come together and donate their skills to support local charities.

WHO ARE WE? 

We are pioneers at heart. What does that mean? We are always looking forward, thinking of what we can create tomorrow that does not exist today. We were born digital and we are a new model of agency, with a deep skillset in tech and marketing. That's why we hire curious, self-driven, talented people who never stop innovating. 

Our culture is big enough to cope and small enough to care. Meaning, that with people across 30+ countries, we're big enough to provide you with the best tools, global opportunities, and benefits that help you thrive. While acting small by investing in you, your growth, your team, and giving you the autonomy to solve our clients problems, no matter where you are in the world.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY & INCLUSION 

At DEPT, we take pride in creating an inclusive workplace where everyone has an equal opportunity to thrive. We actively seek to recruit, develop, nurture, and retain talented individuals from diverse backgrounds, with varying skills and perspectives.

Not sure you meet all qualifications? Apply, and let us decide Research shows that women and members of underrepresented groups tend not to apply for jobs when they think they may not meet every requirement, when in fact they do. We believe in giving everyone a fair chance to shine.

We also encourage you to reach out to us and discuss any reasonable adjustments we can make to support you throughout the recruitment process and your time with us.

Want to know more about our dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion? Check out our efforts here.