“We are on a mission: to transform the future of online grocery through cutting-edge technology innovation.”

Ocado Technology is changing the way the world shops using advanced Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Robotics, Big Data, Cloud and IoT. We develop the innovative software and hardware systems that power Ocado.com, as well as the unique ‘Ocado Smart Platform’ which is being implemented by ambitious retailers across the world from Europe to America, Asia and beyond.

We’re in need of a driven and passionate person to join our mission as a Senior Technical Authority, and help contribute to the next phase of development in our wireless technology space.

About our team…

For a quick introduction, check out our short video of the technology we use.

Our Automated Storage & Retrieval Systems (ASRS) teams are at the cutting-edge of our technology engineering business. From the design and manufacture of the most state-of-the-art products in the business, to their delivery into our multi-million pound Customer Fulfilment Centres (CFCs) across the globe, our bespoke electrical and mechanical development projects are pushing the boundaries of innovation and automation.

Within ASRS sits our Grid development teams, which exist to deploy bold, stable, innovative products that we fully understand and meet our client and customer needs.

How you’ll spend your days…

We are looking for a Technical Leader to act as the expert in the Grid products, who will collaborate closely with our Project Leaders. The Project Leader is accountable for the delivery of the project and the Technical Authority is accountable for the engineering and so it falls to you to devise and execute the strategy for ensuring that new products are correctly and comprehensively engineered. You might get involved with;

  • Provide direction and oversight of engineering projects
  • Provide and grow engineering expertise and capability of the department
  • Becoming the Grid stream technical expert and help to drive innovation and generate intellectual property in technology areas relevant to Ocado.
  • Supporting and growing engineering expertise and capability of the department by becoming an expert in your technical field, and propel new initiatives or ideas from your constant research.
  • Balancing multiple technical projects in the product portfolio as business priorities shift.
  • Presenting to project teams, management and board level; real data culminating in technical decisions and recommendations to enable commercial decisions.
  • Reviewing technical proposals and publications in order to make recommendations on how to proceed.
  • Collaborating with key stakeholders both technical and non-technical to ensure they have sufficient levels of knowledge in critical technical fields to enable then to be comfortable in making commercial decisions.
  • Supporting Product Managers with capital expenditure requests by providing them with technical information.

You will work on projects and products associated with the Grid and you will be the technical expert in a particular engineering discipline, expected to provide guidance on all matters of a technical nature to the project team.

Additionally you will draw on the support of the team and your supplier base to supplement your technical knowledge gaps. Projects vary in scale from small proof of concept studies and individual work packages to full end to end technical authority for a new product development.

About You:

  • A strong technical background with a proven track record in complex problem solving and technology evaluation.
  • A skilled technical expert and you aspire to be a multi-skilled technical expert.
  • An effective communicator to technical, non-technical and senior management audiences.
  • Able to provide clear and concise updates on results and progress.
  • Passionate about for investigating and solving problems, and driven to get into the detail.
  • Able to identify key facts and select the right data from a variety of sources.
  • Rationalise challenging problem sets into project tasks.
  • Able to define and deliver work package content to stage gated programmes.
  • Able to define technical resource requirements to deliver work packages.
  • An effective stakeholder and customer manager.
  • A relevant engineering degree, physics or science degree – preferably MEng, MSc or PhD qualified.

This would make you stand out from the crowd:

  • Experience in our domain, i.e. structural analysis, systems engineering mechanical/electrical design engineering.
  • Knowledge of materials science.
  • Experience with product verification and product certification, and the identification and application of engineering standards.
  • Knowledge of safety certification and CE marking.
  • Experience in technical project management.

Please don’t worry, this is not an exhaustive list! If you feel you’d be a good fit for the role there are some things we can teach you, so we would still love to hear from you.

What we offer you…

Our employee benefits are designed for you, we care about people and we’ve ensured we have a wealth of benefits that focus on your well-being. We regularly review our benefits to ensure we are supporting our employees appropriately. Currently, we offer technically stretching work, a competitive salary and;

  • A Work from Home policy that sees you in the office typically 40% of your time.
  • 30 days ‘working from anywhere’ policy
  • Equity Plan (10-15% of salary) for eligible roles
  • Wellbeing support through Apps such as Unmind and an Employee Assistance Programme
  • 25 days annual leave, rising to 27 days after 5 years service (plus optional holiday purchase)
  • Pension scheme (various options available including employer contribution matching up to 7%)
  • Private Medical Insurance
  • 22 weeks paid maternity leave and 6 weeks paid paternity leave (once relevant service requirements complete)
  • Train Ticket loan (interest-free)
  • Cycle to Work Scheme
  • Free shuttle bus to and from Welwyn Garden City Train Station to the Welwyn Garden City offices
  • Opportunity to participate in Sharesave and Buy as You Earn share schemes
  • 15% discount on Ocado.com and free delivery for all employees
  • Income Protection (can be up to 50% of salary for 3 years) and Life Assurance (3 x annual salary)

We also have regular divisional socials, sports clubs not to mention the Ocado Technology Academy for a packed schedule of courses, conferences and events. If you think you have what it takes to make a difference, please submit your application below.

Join our talent community!

Our Talent Community is a great way to stay up-to-date with our latest career opportunities, as well as news and relevant careers insights. Register today, and be the first to be notified when a role we think you’d be perfect for becomes available.

Be bold, be unique, be brilliant, be you. We are looking for individuality and we value diversity. We are an equal opportunities employer and we are committed to treating all applicants and employees fairly and equally. We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to provide a positive, barrier-free recruitment process and supportive work environment. If you have any support or access requirements, we encourage you to advise us at the time of application.

We are thrilled to welcome applicants from across the world. Whilst we are able to offer visa sponsorship, please note that we are only able to cover costs relating to the Certificate of Sponsorship and the Immigration Skills Charge only. For all employment offers made for UK roles, it is expected that you will be based in the UK in commutable distance, ready for your first day of work, so please keep this in mind. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Due to the energising nature of Ocado’s business, vacancy close dates, when stated, are indicative and may be subject to change so please apply as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. If you have applied and been rejected for this role in the last 6 months, or applied and been rejected for a role with a similar skill set, we will not re-evaluate you for this position. After 6 months, we will treat your application as a new one. All benefits information is subject to change and the terms of the individual arrangements. Please assume you have been unsuccessful if you haven’t heard from us within 4 weeks.

Location

About Ocado Group

When our journey started, we were all about changing the way people shop for groceries. 20 years later, we’re developing our own ground breaking technology, opening multiple sites at an accelerating rate and engaging in exciting new business partnerships around the world!

Transforming an industry also means transforming the way we do business. As we continually develop new technologies and customer propositions, we’re looking for the Everyday Pioneers to lead us into the next stage of our evolution: enhancing our capabilities, inspiring our teams and developing new ways of working.

Changing the way the world shops, for good.