Lead Cloud Engineer

Job Type: Permanent Build a brilliant future with Hiscox About the Role The Lead Cloud Engineer will be responsible for ensuring the day-to-day operations of our cloud infrastructure. This role is crucial for maintaining the stability, security, and efficiency of our cloud services. The ideal candidate will partner with product owners, tech leaders, designers, software engineers and delivery professionals to stabilize and improve on the Cloud Platform. In addition to advanced technical expertise and experience, you will bring excellent problem solving, communication and teamwork skills, along with agile ways of working, strong business insight, an inclusive leadership attitude and a continuous learning focus to all that you do. Key Responsibility Areas Cloud Infrastructure Management Oversee the daily operations of cloud infrastructure, ensuring optimal performance and reliability. Architecting and implementing cloud solutions for new and existing workloads. Implement and manage cloud security measures to protect data and applications. Monitoring and analyzing the capabilities and performance of all cloud systems. Troubleshooting issues as they arise. Analyzing cloud usage patterns and identifying opportunities to reduce cloud spending. Setting up cloud virtual networks, firewalls, and network access control lists to secure cloud communication. Implementing security policies, monitoring threats, and ensuring compliance with data privacy regulations. Collaboration and Coordination Work closely with the Head of Cloud Engineering and other key teams to align cloud infrastructure with business needs. Coordinate with other Technology teams to ensure seamless integration and operation of cloud services. Lead and manage junior cloud engineers and DevOps engineers, providing technical guidance, mentorship, and support. Communicating effectively within and across multiple teams including vendors when required. Drive cultural change and increase collaboration levels within the organization: Provide leadership and expertise across the function, while driving performance improvement, building technical capability and developing talent. Drive a culture of continuous improvement that proactively manages resolution of serious and complex problems, identifying underlying causes and performing corrective action appropriately. Continuous Improvement Identify opportunities for automation and process improvement within the cloud infrastructure. Stay updated with the latest cloud technologies and best practices to ensure the organization remains at the forefront of innovation. Lead modernization of existing workloads using cloud best practices. Lead incident post-mortems, capturing key learnings and implementing system improvements. Leverage AI-powered coding and engineering tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Amazon CodeWhisperer, Claude) to accelerate development workflows, code reviews, and infrastructure-as-code authoring. Qualifications Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field. 8+ years of experience in cloud engineering or a similar role. Experience within the Finance / Insurance industry is preferred. Proficiency in cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. Understanding of modern application SDLC best practices. Strong understanding of cloud security best practices. Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work under pressure. Relevant certifications (e.g., AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect) are a plus. Ability to learn new skills and knowledge on an on-going basis through self-initiative and tackling challenges. Believes in a non-hierarchical culture of collaboration, transparency, and trust across the team. Not afraid to ‘roll up the sleeves’ and seeks to go outside comfort zone to learn – pushes the team to do the same. Ability to lead independently with minimal guidance and effectively leverage diverse ideas, experiences, thoughts and perspectives to the benefit of the organization. Able to communicate complex technical information and implications in business-oriented language. Experience with agile development methodologies. Knowledge of business concepts, tools and processes that are needed for making sound decisions in the context of the company’s business. Understanding of foundational cloud services (networking, storage, etc.). Solid understanding of DevOps automation tools, practices & capabilities (continuous integration & continuous delivery) such as Jenkins, GitHub, Terraform, AI-assisted coding tools, or other comparable tools. Experience using AI-assisted coding tools (e.g., GitHub Copilot, Amazon CodeWhisperer, Cursor, or similar) to improve developer productivity and code quality. Ability to evaluate, adopt, and establish best practices for AI-powered engineering tools across teams, including prompt engineering for infrastructure and automation tasks. Work with amazing people and be part of a unique culture