Overview

Engineering Manager (Parental Cover - 9 months) — £75,000 + (pro-rata) plus benefits (Work Level 4). Temporary (9-month fixed-term contract). Manchester city centre (hybrid).

We’re open to flexible working arrangements, including condensed hours, shorter working days, or a 4-day week. You’ll also benefit from hybrid working, with occasional travel to our Manchester office for team days, meetings, and events.

Please note: We’re looking for someone who can step into the role quickly, so if you’re available to start soon, we’d love to hear from you

About this role

We’re looking for an Engineering Manager to join us on a 9-month parental cover contract. In this role, you’ll manage, coach, and mentor up to 10 engineers across multiple teams and disciplines. You’ll guide their technical and professional development, and collaborate with leaders across Co‑op to help build more value for our customers, colleagues, and member-owners.

Why this role matters

At Co‑op, digital is a core part of our strategy. As an Engineering Manager, you’ll play a big part in shaping the future of our engineering community. You’ll lead and support a diverse, talented group of engineers – helping them to grow their skills and careers while making sure we continue to deliver high-quality, impactful digital solutions across the business. This is a great opportunity to influence our digital direction and make a real difference in a business that puts people and communities at the heart of everything we do.

What you’ll do

• Lead and mentor a group of up to 10 engineers across different specialities and teams
• Support engineers in their technical and professional development
• Help grow and shape our engineering community
• Collaborate with other engineering managers, technical leaders, and product managers
• Support recruitment activities including interviews, assessments, and onboarding
• Represent our engineering community externally through various partnerships and events

What you’ll bring

• Experience managing or coaching large, multi-disciplinary teams within a matrix environment
• Solid knowledge of at least one programming language (e.g., Java, C#, Python, JavaScript)
• Or experience with infrastructure as code tools (e.g., Terraform, Puppet, Chef) or cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, GCP)
• Or a background in quality assurance, such as agile testing or quality coaching
• Strong communication skills, and the ability to build positive, collaborative relationships

Why Co‑op?

At Co‑op, we’re owned by our members. And because we’re owned by you, we can do right by you. So when you join us, you’re not just taking a job, you’re joining a movement. We’re an organisation that puts people and communities first, and we’re powered by purpose. We want this to be a place where you can thrive, so you’ll also receive:

• Private healthcare
• 28 days holiday pro-rata plus bank holidays
• A pension with up to 10% employer contributions
• 30% discount on Co‑op products and 10% off other brands
• Wagestream – early access to a percentage of your pay as you earn it
• Virtual healthcare including GP appointments, mental health support, nutrition and fitness advice
• 24/7 colleague support service
• Training and support for your development and career progression
• Cycle-to-work scheme

A place you’ll belong

We’re building diverse teams that reflect the communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone, and our support centre is an inclusive environment where all our colleagues can thrive.

If you have a disability, we’ll make reasonable adjustments to support you through the recruitment process. We’re also proud to be part of the Disability Confident scheme — if you’re disabled and you meet the minimum criteria for this job, we’ll guarantee you an interview.

Learn more about our recruitment process. Learn more about our commitments to diversity, inclusion and wellbeing.