About us
Securing Energy for Europe GmbH (SEFE GmbH) is a major European energy company focused on maintaining the security of supply and generating commercial value in Europe. Its main business areas include supplying energy to customers, energy trading, gas transportation and the operation of gas storage facilities. SEFE GmbH is an internationally operating group consisting of around 50 companies in 16 countries in Europe, Asia and North America. The SEFE Group employs approximately 1,500 employees, around 200 of whom work at its Berlin headquarters.
SEFE Marketing & Trading Limited (SM&T) is an integral part of the SEFE Group. Headquartered in London, SM&T is an agile multi-commodity trader and trading partner. With deep experience in derivatives, digital and analytics and ready for the opportunities arising from the energy transition, we seek to create value, both on a proprietary basis and for its partners, in all key European gas, LNG, power and environmental products markets.
Our culture is defined by our people. Through living our values every day, we continue to create a culture that enables us all to succeed. We work as one team with our customers, our parent company and each other in order to understand each other’s needs. With an unstoppable passion for excellence, growth and learning, we’re committed to creating an environment that fosters the development of knowledge, skills and experience, so that our people can thrive and prosper in their careers with us. We believe that we have the best team in the industry which makes us a trusted partner across international capital and energy markets. Our diverse employee base, with a wealth of expertise, knowledge and experience makes SM&T a truly exciting place to work. We encourage new ideas and initiatives as innovative thinking is central to how we do business. Most importantly, we are a growing and developing business where inspired individuals can make a difference and help shape our future.
Role objectives
- To lead and manage the Trading IT Software Development team to design, build and deliver high-quality, robust, flexible, and fit-for-purpose systems to provide the solutions to business problems.
- To own, define and execute appropriate strategies for all aspects of software delivery to meet the vision and strategy of Trading IT.
- To create a professional, high-performing team that focuses on excellence and provides a differentiator for SM&T.
Duties & Responsibilities
- Lead and manage the software development function of team leads and software engineers.
- Create a team that values high quality software engineering, based on strong business knowledge, to provide a competitive advantage for SM&T; a team that can deliver on the most difficult of problems.
- Recruit, retain, inspire, motivate, coach and performance manage that team to create a high performing group
- Provide highly capable resources for IT led projects to design, build and deliver systems to achieve the solutions to business problems.
- Provide resources for third line support of currently operational systems and deliver fixes to meet SLAs
- Build and maintain high quality throughout solution delivery
- Deliver those solutions, through projects or small change, on time and on budget. Enable smooth delivery of all projects and support issues
- Operate as chief software engineer with emphasis on solid engineering foundation of data models and components; provide final escalation on software engineering discipline
- Seek and create an environment that enables efficiency, consistency, and pragmatism in software development delivery
- Seek and create an environment that enables innovation within the bounds of successful project delivery; promote and allow directed creativity using the ‘art’ of software engineering whilst still keeping to deadlines and budgets
- Own, communicate and execute appropriate strategies for the following; Strategies which provide vision and roadmaps, principles and philosophies, that drive efficiency, consistency and improvement to create right-practice over best-practice
- People: Recruitment and retention; learning and development
- Software engineering: discipline, foundation, techniques, standards
- Software delivery: methodologies, deployment, policy, and processes
- Technology: Right-practice, roadmaps, adoption, use
- Outsourcing: Reason, benefits, roadmaps, use
- Build strong links with other IT functions including architecture, QA, service delivery and DevOps for the purpose of increasing effectiveness of delivery.
- Keep up to speed with new developments in software engineering and seek to proactively apply new ideas and options made available by new technologies where appropriate
- Maintain a strong knowledge of the businesses of SM&T and promote development of that knowledge throughout the team
- Key member of Trading IT Leadership team and other decision-making groups such as Group Solution Review Board and Change Advisory Board.
Skills & Competencies
- A senior software developer with strong and successful technical lead experience
- Extensive experience of leading a team of developers towards high performance
- Advanced level (knowledge and experience) of programming languages and methodologies
- Passionate about effective software delivery with wide experience of managing, directing, and motivating staff to deliver projects with stretching scope and objectives.
- Highly numerate and literate, with the ability to communicate concisely and with high quality.
- Ability to explain deep technical issues to non-technical stakeholders and credibility to communicate appropriately at all levels of the organisation
- Ability to understand and apply the nuances of motivating and inspiring a development team; to recognise and optimise the different ways software engineers achieve; to bring all into your vision
- Ability to create innovation within the bounds of successful project delivery; to use the ‘art’ of software engineering whilst still keeping to deadlines and budgets
- Proactive and highly organised, with strong time management and planning skills.
- Able to meet tight deadlines and remain calm under pressure.
- Strong leadership skills, professional attitude, leading by example
- Bright, highly self-motivated and driven
- Ability to solve problems quickly and completely
- Ability to multi-task and stay organised in a dynamic work environment.
- Analytical and inquisitive, with excellent attention to detail.
- Innovative and creative, with a concise, precise, and effective approach to problem solving and the ability to develop, deliver and evaluate brilliant ideas founded on rock-solid strategic thinking.
- Personable and approachable, with an enthusiastic and motivational nature and an overall passion for excellence.
