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For founders · Role design and search

Head of Engineering

Hire a Head of Engineering for the team you have today.

Define what needs to improve in delivery, technical decisions and the way the team works. Make the hands-on expectations and the relationship with the founder or CTO explicit before starting the search.

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Define the problem

Which engineering problem needs a leader to change it?

A missed release, a stretched CTO and a team without experienced managers can point to different searches. Identify the work that needs to change, the people already in place and the authority the new leader will have to act.

What to assess

The evidence this search should produce.

For each example, separate what the person demonstrated, what they described and what still needs to be tested.

  • A delivery problem they changed

    The team’s starting conditions, the candidate’s decisions and the observable change. Examine how they diagnosed the issue and what they did when the first intervention failed.

  • Leadership in a comparable context

    How they developed engineers, handled performance and distributed responsibility. Understand the team and resources behind their previous results.

  • Technical judgment close to the work

    A decision involving architecture, reliability or product delivery. Ask how they examined options, involved the team and carried the consequences into execution.

Questions to start with

Make the interview specific to your company.

Use your actual product, team and constraints. Follow the answer into the decisions the person made and the work they would do themselves.

  1. Describe a team you inherited. What did you change first, and what did you leave alone?

    Test how they diagnose a team before imposing a structure or process.

  2. Here is how our founder, CTO and engineering team make decisions today. Which responsibilities would you clarify first?

    Surface assumptions about authority and the working relationship this hire expects.

  3. Tell us about a technical decision where the team disagreed. What did you decide, and what happened after?

    Examine how they use evidence, handle disagreement and remain accountable for the outcome.

Where the brief can go wrong

Resolve these before asking candidates to commit.

  • One title carrying several jobs

    Separate the expected coding, architecture, people management and hiring work. Check that one person can realistically carry the scope with your existing team.

  • Leadership without authority to change things

    Agree what the new leader can change in priorities, team structure and performance decisions, including how disagreements with the CTO will be resolved.

  • Experience assessed without its context

    Understand which systems, managers and resources supported past results. Explore what the candidate would do with the team and budget available now.

Bring the context

What to share for an initial search read.

  • Your engineering team structure and who makes technical and people decisions
  • The delivery, quality or team problem that prompted the hire
  • The hands-on work and authority the role will carry
  • The company’s next stage and what success in this role should change

What should change when your Head of Engineering joins?

Share the team, the problem and the decisions this person will own. We will help clarify what the search should test.

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