Staff Engineer (Python/Artificial Intelligence/Agentic AI)

ABOUT XCEPTOR

Data is at the heart of everything we do: Xceptor has been designed around data manipulation in its broadest sense. We source data from wherever it flows. We curate, normalise, validate, repair, and enrich that data so it reaches its destination in a reliable and consistent format. Data coming out of Xceptor is data our clients can trust.

We are recognised as an expert in the Financial Services vertical, which strongly aligns with Business Users in Middle and Back-Office teams. We enable these users to solve their data challenges by themselves, rather than through a technology-led project.

Our People are subject matter experts. We understand our client’s challenges and we’ve got the experience and knowledge to solve them. Our talented team has a deep understanding of the unique challenges of the industry - we can empathise, engage, and speak the same language as our clients.

Our Vision is to be the leading platform for automating data flows.

Our Mission is to empower business users within Financial Institutions to build automated processes that deliver trusted data.

Our Values were created by our people, and speak to both who we are, and who we aspire to be. Ambition is in our DNA, and we embrace any opportunities ahead. Our curiosity and desire to grow drives us to learn from our customers and those around us. Our people are empowered, accountable, and deliver. We pull together, step up and focus on outcomes. The brilliance of our people makes a positive difference.

Business area and role

The development team is responsible for building the Xceptor platform and products.  We create innovative features and great user experiences that help our users within Financial Institutions to build automated process that deliver trusted data. Our development teams are in The United Kingdom (Guildford) and South Africa (Cape Town).

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Staff Engineer to lead our AI and Agentic AI initiatives. You will have a deep understanding of AI technologies and governance frameworks and implementations, a passion for innovation, and the ability to drive complex AI projects from concept to completion, while being a hands-on solution developer.  You will play a critical role in driving technical excellence across Tribes

Key Responsibilities

Technical Excellence

• This individual will be a deep subject matter expert and a trusted advisor for AI and Agentic AI domains, with an expert understanding of how AI technology areas are and can be implemented in our products and services.
• You will be responsible for AI and software engineering best practices, frameworks, and policies and contribute to the Architecture Group, where you will help establish and coordinate our AI and software technical architecture. As such, you will have a significant impact on the technical direction and overall success of multiple Squads and Tribes.
• This role requires both independent execution (hands-on design and build of AI and conventional software solutions) and the ability to lead and deliver through others. Rather than directing work, you will leverage influence, technical credibility, and collaboration to drive outcomes. You will foster a high-performance engineering culture by mentoring, coaching, and enabling others to succeed.

Leadership & Collaboration

•  Project Leadership: Drive software development projects to success, ensuring timely delivery
•  Mentorship & Growth: Inspire and guide engineers on AI technologies and technical strategies, fostering their professional development. Cross-Tribe Collaboration:
• Work closely with product management and design team to align software development with business objectives.
• Cross-Function Collaboration: Guide product teams by clearly articulating technical feasibility, cost implications, and solution viability, ensuring alignment between engineering capabilities and product strategy
•  AI-Driven Engineering: Integrate AI at the heart of everything you do, be responsible for realigning the SDLC to handle GenAI (and broader) AI capabilities
• Continuous Innovation: Stay ahead of the curve by integrating the latest technologies into the development process

Operational Use of AI

• Clear Technical Design: Create clear technical design documentation that can be fed into AI tools to accelerate delivery of implementations and outcomes
• Automated Code Generation: Leverage AI tools like GitHub Copilot to accelerate coding and enhance productivity.
• Efficient Debugging & Error Detection: Utilize AI-powered tools like SonarQube to swiftly identify and fix bugs.
• Automated Testing: Utilise AI testing frameworks to automate repetitive tasks, boosting accuracy and reducing manual effort.
• Innovation: Continuously research, trial and evangelise AI tools and techniques across engineering to increase effectiveness and move faster, while upholding quality

Education & Experience

• Minimum 5 years+ experience designing and building AI solutions
• Demonstratable experience architecting, designing, building and integrating with Agentic AI systems and AI workflows for real world customer use cases
• Experience designing and implementing AI governance solutions or integrating with AI governance tools and frameworks
• Experience in applying DevOps-style thinking to data workflows (DataOps) and working collaboratively with data teams
• Highly proficient in API-first architectures
• Experience of cloud data/ML platforms like Databricks, SageMaker, etc
• Foundational experience with agentic orchestration and workflows (e.g. LangGraph, N8N or AutoGen)
• Foundational experience and skills maintaining quality code whilst using tooling like Cursor, Kilo to expedite development velocity
• Minimum 5 years+ experience within C# Software Engineering
• Strong academic background, including a degree in a STEM subject discipline.
• Proficiency in using AI tools to streamline coding processes and improve productivity.
• Logical and analytical problem-solving skills.
• Evidence of taking responsibility for a solution from specification through to implementation and deployment, while ensuring the highest level of quality and intuitive software design.
• Passion for cutting-edge technologies, and a strong desire to expand current knowledge through research and learning.

Technical Requirements

• Functional Suitability: Ability to gather and analyse requirements to ensure solutions meet functional needs, along with proficiency in implementing features aligned with user and business goals.
• Performance Efficiency: Expertise in optimizing code for response time, throughput, and resource usage, with experience designing scalable systems.
• Compatibility: Knowledge of interoperability between systems and environments, including SaaS vs. on-premises portability and configuration management.
• Usability: Strong focus on user-centric design, accessibility, and effective error handling to ensure smooth user experiences.
• Reliability: Ability to design fault-tolerant systems with rigorous testing and validation to ensure stability.
• Security: Secure coding best practices, vulnerability assessment, and robust data protection measures.
• Maintainability: Commitment to writing clean, maintainable, and well-documented code, with experience in refactoring and improving code quality.
• Documentation: Creation of user enablement resources and technical administration guides for system installation, configuration, and maintenance.
• Observability: Proficiency in implementing structured logging, defining key metrics, and using distributed tracing techniques to monitor system health and performance.

Competencies required (Xceptor competencies)

• Teamwork
• Customer Centricity
• Communication with Impact
• Strategic Orientation
• Results Driven
• Change & Innovation

#LI-GL1 #LI-Hybrid

This is a great opportunity to join an innovative, fast-paced, highly collaborative, and forward-thinking organisation, during a significant growth phase. Xceptor is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of society and does not discriminate on grounds of race, religion, or belief, ethnic or national origin, disability, age, citizenship, marital, domestic, or civil partnership status, sexual orientation, or gender identity or any other basis as protected by applicable law.

Please note:

• Xceptor works with clients in financial services and our offers of employment are subject to the satisfactory completion of background checks, which includes criminal record checks, and credit reference checks.
• If you have any employment gaps exceeding three months within the last six years, we will request additional information and evidence to clarify those periods.