Software Architect/CTO

Hrim is an innovation company with a vision to create and power meaningful action across the globe. The organisation delivers its innovation through its Ideation, Design & Build Services. Hrim’s ideation service materialises visions of leaders and companies into standout concepts. The design and build service propels concepts into tangible reality in the form of ventures, initiatives, services etc.

Job Description:

As the Build Lead specialising in Technology at Hrim, paralleling the role of a Head of Technology in a technology startup, your role is critical in translating innovative concepts into real-world technological solutions. This position requires a unique combination of technical mastery, strategic foresight, and leadership skills to take 0-1 build to success. You will be at the helm of developing and executing technology projects from their nascent stages to full-fledged operational status.

In this key role, you will oversee the entire lifecycle of our technology initiatives, spearheading it from concept asset development to market launch. Your responsibilities will be multifaceted, encompassing strategic planning and hands-on management of the technology ventures. Your leadership will be instrumental in evolving the concepts into fully operational, market-ready technologies. 

Key Responsibilities

Project Development from 0 to 1:

• Lead the development of new technology projects at Hrim from conception (0) to launch (1).
• Utilize coding and technical expertise to create robust, scalable assets for the projects
• Oversee the entire project lifecycle, ensuring that technical objectives and timelines are met.

Technical Leadership and Team Management:

• Spearhead  technical build of the concepts and lead the associated team on the project
• Manage resource allocation, project scheduling, and workflow to optimize team performance.

Technology Strategy and Innovation:

• Stay abreast of emerging technologies and industry trends to inform innovation at Hrim
• Collaborate with cross-functional team members to ensure technology alignment with business goals.

Quality Assurance and Best Practices:

• Ensure the highest quality of code and implementation of best practices in software development.
• Conduct code reviews and oversee testing procedures to ensure reliability and efficiency of applications.
• Address technical issues and challenges promptly, ensuring minimal impact on project timelines.

Requirements & Qualifications

Educational Background:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field. Advanced degrees or certifications in technology-related disciplines are a plus.

Technical Expertise:

• Proficiency in one or more programming languages such as Python, Java, C++, JavaScript, or similar, with a strong understanding of software development principles.
• Demonstrated experience with full-stack development, including both front-end and back-end technologies.
• Knowledge of database management and experience with SQL or NoSQL databases.
• Familiarity with cloud computing platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, Google Cloud) and understanding of scalable architecture design.

Experience in Project Development:

• 5 years of experience in technology development, with a significant portion dedicated to building projects from concept (0) to launch (1).
• Demonstrated ability to lead technology projects and oversee all stages of development, from ideation to deployment.
• Proven track record in delivering complex software projects on time and within budget.

Leadership and Team Management:

• Strong leadership skills with experience managing and mentoring a team of software developers and engineers.
• Ability to foster a collaborative environment and demonstrate innovation and creativity. 
• Experience in resource planning, project scheduling, and agile methodologies.

Problem-Solving and Innovation:

• Excellent problem-solving skills with a focus on innovative solutions and continuous improvement.
• Ability to anticipate challenges and proactively address potential issues in the development process.
• A knack for translating complex technical concepts into practical, real-world applications.

Communication and Collaboration:

• Strong communication skills, capable of effectively articulating technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams, including product managers, designers, and business analysts.
• Ability to clearly document and present project progress and outcomes.

Adaptability and Continuous Learning:

• Commitment to staying up-to-date with emerging technologies and industry trends.
• Willingness to adapt and learn new programming languages or technologies as required by project needs.
• Enthusiasm for tackling new challenges and the ability to learn quickly in a fast-paced environment.

CTO / Head of Engineering

About our Client

Our client is a B2B2C tech firm backed by India’s largest retailer and tech venture capitalist founded by founders - IITB Graduates who are experienced in retail, ecommerce and fintech

It aims to become one app to manage all your brands loyalty points, cashback and coupons. It will have additional content and discovery layer for customers and brands for further engagement and commerce.

The company currently powers closed-loop loyalty programs for all different brands under its parent retail group. Currently, it has 20Mn+ registered customers and 3Mn MAU across 8 brands. Its vision is to be at the center of D2C Brands and the consumer consumption ecosystem

Role description:
We are looking for a competent CTO (Chief Technology Officer) who will be our first technology go-to expert and play an integral role in setting the company’s strategic direction, development and future growth. In this position, you will oversee our overall technology development and technology utilization plan to manage all information technology resources of our company.

Key Responsibilities

•  CTO will be leading, building, and operating exciting products with a passionate team.
•  We are looking for someone who has developed and deployed software with a strong focus on end-user experience. We are seeking someone with a proven track record of shipping web scalable products.
•  The ideal candidate will have a track record of building and delivering cloud solutions with delightful consumer experiences, combined with ease of implementation/reliability.
•  Experience with massively scalable distributed compute product architectures.
•  Experience with micro services-oriented architectures, Experience with scaling Big Data infrastructure.
•  Experience delivering platform technology and creating an ecosystem of applications and services across multiple verticals and solution offerings
•  Experience successfully scaling technology infrastructure to support rapid customer /data growth.
•  Experience with fast-paced, rapidly-iterating, design-forward, product-focused companies.
•  "Roll-up-your-sleeves" entrepreneurial, start-up attitude, team player with record of leading and mentoring employees

Candidate Experience: Desired skills

•  He/she should have prior work experience of 7-12 years on large-scale mobile app products and can rapidly familiarize yourself with complex products
•  Have inclination to learn and build new age products with blockchain and web3 tech
•  Strong track record of being able to develop and set release plans, track deadlines, deliverables, resource allocations, issues/risks and create mitigation strategies as needed to deliver a quality product on time
•  Strong technical and architecture skills in wide areas of platform engineering with proven ability to dive deep in any area as needed.
•  Extensive experience with eCommerce platforms, cloud systems, payment solutions, digital marketing technology, automation, and multi-device development is required; AWS experience is a strong plus
•  Experience managing Small teams and remote teams is a strong plus
•  Competent in driving a culture of continuous learning to improve technology and remove roadblocks that hold the team back.

Why is this a great opportunity for the right candidate :

•  Experienced founding team
•  Backed by Future Group which gives an edge over working with different D2C and traditional brands ecosystem which is necessary to win in this market
•  Existing app customer base of 20Mn registered and 4-5 Mn MAU + which gives us a head start and starting customer base of FuturePay necessary for pivoting the product to Carrot as described earlier
•  Right to win - The founding team knows the business & its secrets inside out. We are starting with a significant head start and a precise plan of action
•  Barriers to entry - This is a specialized play with natural barriers to entry, allowing for significant value creation for all equity holders
•  Exposure to all aspects of company building - exposure to investors, fund-raising, decision making, building the team & culture
•  All of the above perks of joining a high potential company very early, along with a competitive market salary.

About First Principles

We are a Tech Holding Company and our portfolio companies generate millions in revenue. What is unique about FirstPrinciples is that most of our companies remain controlled and majority owned by First Principles and its team members rather than by external investors. We are proud that our product engineering team builds world class products from India. https://firstprinciples.io/">https://firstprinciples.io/

About this Role

As we scale and build our organisation, we would like to add an individual to our core Technical Leadership who can scale our key products and projects and help us build and foster relationships with Enterprise clients.

We are looking for an experienced Technology Leader to join our fast growing organisation to help us with driving Technical Strategy, Approach and oversee the Implementation for internal and external products. You should be someone who loves Engineering, have amazing debugging skills and slay problems with technology. 

In this role, you will undertake Technical / Solution Architecture and should also be able to help team with Engineering and coding wherever required. That includes, working along with the team, writing code, doing R&D or POCs, ensuring we follow modern industry standards and building beautiful high performing Software and Applications and thus delivering a better solution and product. You will also help FP build strong relationships with clients and technical leadership on the client side.

You would be required to have a minimum of 10+ years of experience with a mix of Engineering, DevOps, Infrastructure, Cyber - Network Security, Enterprise Application Maintenance, Database Management along with Project, Client and People Management skills which are necessary to lead the team and be their voice. You should be a leader and not just a manager who loves delegating things to the off-shore team, but rather someone who would not hesitate to take over Git-Pull and start writing code and show ‘here is how it’s done’ and amaze everyone with your expertise! :-) 

Because this is a Senior role, you would also be involved working with the Product/Project Manager and will be responsible for the delivery and output.

Tech Stack [High-Level]: We are JavaScript focused i.e. we work in ReactJS, NodeJS, AngularJS, TypeForm, TypeScript, Redis. On the server side, we work with AWS/GCP/DO. Database: MySQL, PostgreS and MongoDb. API: REST and GraphQL API. We also have a strong DevOps stack - including Kubernetes(K8), Dockers and CI/CD automation. 

Interview Process: 

• 60 min Discovery Call
• 15 mins introduction and what you bring to the table (We love people who say, “We build the damn table”) 
• 15 min understanding your experience and background
• 15 min on why you want to join our team and your expectations, future plans
• 15 min Q&A
  
  
• 60-90 min Technical Interview  (May be more than 1)
• Technical Call
  
  
• 45-60 min Final Call
• 15 min discussion on results 
• 15 min CTC expectations / negotiations 
• 15 min closure
• 15 min buffer