Android Technical Lead

Allwyn

  • Watford, Hertfordshire
  • Permanent
  • Full-time
  • 15 days ago
  • Apply easily
We are Allwyn UK, part of the Allwyn Entertainment Group – a multi-national lottery operator with a market-leading presence across Europe which includes: Czech Republic, Austria, Greece, Cyprus & Italy.While the main contribution of The National Lottery to society is through the funds to good causes, at Allwyn we put our purpose and values at the heart of everything we do. Join us as we embark on a once-in-a-lifetime, largescale transformation journey by creating a National Lottery that delivers more money to good causes.We’ll talk a bit more about us further down the page, but for now – let’s talk about the role and who we’re looking for…A bit about the role…As an Android Technical Lead, you will be responsible for the design and development of the Allwyn Android mobile application. The role combines hands-on development with leadership responsibilities, guiding a team of Android developers to create a high quality, scalable and performant mobile application. You will be responsible for delivering the Android mobile Grade ‘A’ application strategy. You will always place customer needs at the heart of the software development process.What you’ll be doing…Technical Leadership
  • Lead the Android development team in the design, development, deployment, and maintenance of Android applications.
  • Oversee architecture and design decisions for new features, ensuring scalability, performance, and maintainability, working closely with the Architecture Team (Solution & Enterprise Architecture).
  • Conduct code reviews to ensure adherence to best practices, coding standards, and technical guidelines to ensuring high-standards and a first-class application e.g. TDD, CI/CD, Shift-Left practices, etc.).
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams (design, product management, DevOps, SRE, backend services) to ensure cohesive and efficient implementation of features.
  • Remain up to date with the latest industry trends, libraries, and Android development tools, and advocate for their use within the team.
  • Write clean, maintainable, and efficient code while adhering to coding standards and best practices.
  • Driving innovation within the Digital Factory and championing it within the wider business.
  • Assist in troubleshooting and resolving complex technical issues.
  • Accountability for Android development and ownership for the creation of technical Epics/Stories.
  • Experience of working and leading near-shore/offshore development teams.
Team Mentoring & Development
  • Provide mentoring and guidance to junior and mid-level Android developers.
  • Foster a culture of collaboration, continuous learning, and innovation within the team.
  • Help junior developers grow in both technical skills and professional development.
  • Developing a talent pipeline for the remainder for of the Fourth Licence.
  • Ensure team members are following agile methodologies and best practices, fostering an efficient and healthy work environment.
  • Collaborate on the establishment, and be an active member, of Mobile & Android Guilds focusing on knowledge sharing, establishing best practices, and fostering a culture of continuous improvement. Working closely with the iOS & Web Technical Leads.
Project and Product Management
  • Collaborate with product managers, designers and solution architects to understand requirements and translate them into technical solutions.
  • Feed into the technical roadmap and feature prioritisation for the Android platform.
  • Manage and optimise development processes, ensuring timely delivery of high-quality products.
  • Identify, track, and mitigate technical risks and bottlenecks in the development lifecycle.
Quality Assurance & Continuous Improvement
  • Ensure that the Android application is rigorously tested and maintains high code quality through unit tests, integration tests, and automated UI testing.
  • Take ownership of technical debt and refactoring efforts, ensuring that the codebase remains clean, modular, and maintainable.
  • Drive continuous improvement of development processes, contributing to greater efficiency and effectiveness within the team.
Collaboration & Communication
  • Maintain clear, open lines of communication with cross-functional teams, ensuring alignment and understanding of technical and business objectives.
  • Regularly report on development progress, challenges, and milestones to senior management and stakeholders.
  • Participate in sprint planning, backlog grooming, and retrospectives to ensure smooth and efficient development cycles.
What experience we’re looking for…Experience
  • Extensive professional experience in Android development with strong expertise in Kotlin and Java.
  • Proven track record of leading and mentoring Android development teams in fast-paced and dynamic environments.
  • Demonstratable experience of building and releasing first-class Android application.
  • Extensive experience with modern Android development tools, libraries, and frameworks (e.g., Jetpack, Retrofit, Coroutines, Dagger, etc.).
  • Experience with Agile development methodologies and project management tools (e.g. JIRA, Agile, Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, LeSS, etc.).
  • Thrives on ambiguity, championing and progressing news ways of working and building high performing teams
  • Experience of working with near-shore/off-shore development teams.
Technical Skills
  • Strong understanding of mobile architecture patterns (MVVM, MVP, etc.) and SOLID principles.
  • Extensive knowledge of Android SDK, NDK (if applicable), and Android build systems (Gradle).
  • Familiarity with RESTful APIs, Graph API’s, JSON, WebSocket’s, and integration with backend services.
  • Experience with unit testing frameworks (JUnit, Espresso, etc.) and automated testing tools.
  • Deep understanding of UI/UX design principles for Android, and experience with tools like Android Studio, Figma, or Sketch.
  • Experience with version control systems, particularly Git, and CI/CD pipelines.
  • Knowledge of Android performance tuning and optimisation techniques.
Soft Skills
  • Strong leadership and team-building skills.
  • Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
  • Ability to work in an agile, fast-paced environment and manage multiple priorities.
  • Resilience under pressure.
  • Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to think critically and creatively.
  • Highly organised with attention to detail.
Advantageous Experience/Skills
  • Experience with cross-platform tools such as Flutter, React Native, or Xamarin.
  • Experience in Cloud Technologies (AWS, Firebase, Google Cloud).
  • Experience with App Store (Google Play) publishing, including app release management and analytics.
  • Experience with offline data storage and synchronising, as well as mobile data management.
  • Experience in the Gaming/Lottery sectors or other heavily regulated environment.
  • Familiarity with Kotlin/Java development (for potential cross-platform efforts).
  • Worked in a Technical Authority role
Key Measures of Success:Code Quality & Technical Standards
  • Code Review Metrics – The percentage of code reviews completed on time, also the quality of the feedback provided leading to improvements in the codebase.
  • Code Coverage - The percentage of code covered by Unit/Automation tests.
  • Post Release Defect - Reduction in the number of defects found post release.
App Performance & Stability
  • App Performance Metrics – user facing metrics e.g. application load times, responsiveness of features, memory usage, etc.
Customer Satisfaction
  • User Retention & Engagement Metrics
  • Customer Issue Resolution – issues raised and resolved within a defined period.
Team Productivity & Growth
  • Developer Growth & Retention – improvement in developer skills, learning milestones, etc.
  • Team Efficiency – Reduction in the average time spent completing a task/feature.
  • Mentoring Effectiveness – Feedback from developers regarding the support and guidance they receive.
  • Technical Innovation; Regularly exploring new tools, libraries, and technologies that can improve the app’s functionality, performance, or development efficiency.
Risk & Technical Debt Management
  • Reduction in Technical Debt.
  • Risk Mitigation & Resolution Time – The number of high-risk technical issues identified and resolved within a defined period.
Continuous ImprovementKeeping the team informed about the latest trends in iOS development and incorporating relevant advancements into the development process, along with knowledge transfer to other team members.About us:‍We’ve developed ground-breaking technologies, built player protection frameworks, and have a proven track record of making lotteries better.
  • Innovation - We pride ourselves on it! We’re constantly looking for new ways to excite our customers, bringing new products to enjoy which is all underpinned by our responsible play values and making them accessible to all.
  • Giving back – Did you know that playing the lottery generates around £30m a week for charities and good causes in the UK? Our aim is to have doubled this number by the end of the first 10 year licence
  • Sustainability – Our aim to be net zero by 2030 which would make us the first lottery provider globally to achieve this
  • Inclusion and accessibility – We are making all parts of The National Lottery inclusive – whether you play a game in a store or online.
If you need any assistance or adjustments to this job description or in the application process, please contact a member of the talent team at and we’ll be happy to help.An inclusive reward offering with wellbeing at the centre…At Allwyn, we’ve put together a range of inclusive benefits and policies to support our colleagues at every stage of their lives and careers.Here’s a list of some of the fantastic benefits we offer…
  • Company bonus scheme
  • Matched pension contributions up to 8.5%
  • 26 days annual leave + 2 Life Days (and bank holidays)
  • Complimentary Private Medical
  • Life Assurance
  • Enhanced Maternity & Paternity leave
  • £500 wellness allowance
  • Access to nutritional advisor and personal trainers
  • Discounted Health Assessments
  • Complimentary Financial coaching
Our benefits and policies reflect our commitment to wellbeing and inclusivity and are enhanced with features that benefit our colleagues (and their families). By offering a variety of benefits that support our colleagues, we continue to create a place of work where people feel rewarded and can succeed.We want to create one of the UK’s most inclusive organisations – where people can bring the best of themselves, to do their best work, every day, for the benefit of good causes.Allwyn is an Equal Opportunity Employer which prides itself in being diverse and inclusive. We do not tolerate discrimination, harassment, or victimisation in the workplace. All employment decisions at Allwyn are based on the business needs, the job requirements, and the individual qualifications. Allwyn encourages applications from individuals regardless of age, disability (visible or hidden), sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.We are a Disability Confident Leader which means we’ve taken proactive steps to ensure our workplace is accessible and inclusive for disabled colleagues and candidates. As part of this we offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential requirements of the job.

Allwyn