Head of Engineering

Lemon.io, a prominent player in the global talent marketplace space, is seeking a strategic and technical leader to step into the role of Head of Engineering. This position offers an opportunity to shape the technical future of a company that has successfully streamlined the hiring process for senior engineers, moving from weeks to mere hours. As a fully remote organisation, this role is ideal for a South African engineering lead looking to make a global impact while working in an asynchronous, high-growth environment.

About the role

In this position, you will take full ownership of the engineering function. Working closely with the founder, you will act as a bridge between high-level business objectives and technical execution. The role requires a "hands-on" approach; you won't just be managing people, but actively participating in architectural decisions and the prioritisation of the product roadmap.

Success here is measured by the velocity and quality of the output. As the company facilitates over $16M in annual gross merchandise value (GMV), the engineering team must remain agile, robust, and capable of solving complex problems related to intelligent matching and automated vetting systems.

You will be responsible for the end-to-end technical lifecycle, ensuring that every line of code serves a specific business purpose. Your primary focus will involve:

• **Technical Stewardship:** Steering the product roadmap and making decisive calls on whether to build, defer, or abandon specific technical features.
• **Team Leadership:** Mentoring and scaling an engineering department, fostering a culture defined by high individual ownership rather than administrative layers.
• **Operational Excellence:** Driving the engineering team to ship features rapidly and iterate based on real-world market feedback.
• **Strategic Collaboration:** Partnering with product stakeholders to define success metrics before any development work begins, ensuring alignment with the company’s broader mission.
• **Innovation:** Utilising modern technology, including AI and machine learning tools, to refine the platform’s core matching algorithms.

What they're looking for

The ideal candidate is a seasoned engineering manager who has navigated the challenges of a startup or high-growth business environment. Lemon.io requires a leader who understands the complexities of distributed teams and the nuances of an async-first workflow.

• **Proven Leadership:** Extensive experience leading engineering teams ranging from 5 to over 30 developers.
• **Technical Depth:** A strong background in modern tech stacks and a demonstrated ability to implement AI/ML-driven solutions at scale.
• **Startup Mindset:** An ability to thrive in a fast-paced setting where bureaucracy is minimal and personal accountability is paramount.
• **Scalability Expertise:** A track record of solving technical bottlenecks and improving delivery speed in a high-volume marketplace environment.

For South African applicants, this role represents a top-tier opportunity in the global remote-first market. Roles of this calibre—Head of Engineering or VP of Engineering in a global marketplace—frequently offer competitive international remuneration, often benchmarked in USD, which is highly advantageous in the local economy. Transitioning into a role like this often serves as a massive career accelerator, as it demands the ability to manage cross-border teams and deliver against international growth metrics. Candidates coming from the local tech startup ecosystem or established digital product houses will find their skills highly transferable to the demands of this organisation.

• Proven experience leading engineering teams (5–30+ people) in a startup or high-growth environment.
• Hands-on experience with modern tech stacks and AI/ML tooling.
• Experience working in a distributed, async-first team.