Engineering Manager, Yoto
Embedded Software
£90-110k
+ Share option programme
1-5 days a week in office
Interactive audio platform for kids
Open for applications
Interactive audio platform for kids
101-200 employees
Open for applications
£90-110k
+ Share option programme
1-5 days a week in office
101-200 employees
Company mission
To help parents inspire the next generation of independent, creative minds.
Role
Who you are
- Experience in embedded engineering development
- 3+ years in engineering leadership or management in a distributed team environment
- Knowledge of embedded software architecture design (multiple chipsets, MCU/SoC, dual/triple cpu, etc) with the ability to provide hands-on technical leadership as needed
- Proven experience managing large-scale technical projects, creating strategic roadmaps and manifesting them into day-to-day tasks, and driving alignment and accountability across multiple teams and stakeholders
- Demonstrated ability to lead, mentor, and grow engineering teams in fast-scaling organizations
- Exceptional communication skills, with experience facilitating asynchronous communication and collaboration across time zones
- Ability to thrive in a rapidly changing, scale-up environment, proactively solving complex technical and operational challenges
- Experience establishing and driving operational excellence best practices, including dashboards, alarms, and incident response
- This role demands strong leadership in a remote-first environment and a proven ability to scale high-caliber engineering teams
- The ideal candidate has extensive experience establishing and maintaining effective processes in a distributed setting, alongside a strong track record of driving operational and technical excellence and delivering impactful initiatives aligned with company growth
What the job involves
- We are seeking an Engineering Manager (EM) for our Player Experience Cluster, a team comprising of cross-functional engineers, designers, and product managers (our version of Tribes)
- As an EM, you will oversee day-to-day engineering operations and support the career development of your reports within the Cluster
- In our scale-up phase, we rely on EMs to continually develop and evolve their teams, identify new business needs, and ensure the timely delivery of large-scale initiatives impacting the Cluster
- The Player Experience cluster is focused on ensuring Players work seamlessly for every family around the world
- With hundreds of thousands of players out there (and growing every minute) we make sure every child has the content they want to listen to available at their fingertips
- We also work to improve the Player and Mini experience with innovative features like our room thermometer, nightlight, and alarms
- We’re a passionate, cross-functional group of engineers, product managers, and designers, all focused on keeping a world-class experience for all the families we help
- Lead, mentor, and manage a cross-functional engineering Cluster with trust, respect, and empathy, setting clear goals and metrics as needed
- Establish a collaborative, high-performing engineering culture that thrives in a remote-first setting, fostering accountability, innovation, and ownership
- Serve as the primary delivery lead for large strategic engineering initiatives, managing timelines, resources, and stakeholder communication
- Ensure strong collaboration across teams and functions, including product, design, and operations, to deliver projects on time and within scope
- Drive technical decisions related to the scalability, reliability, and performance of our systems, in alignment with company scale-up objectives
- Establish and maintain high engineering standards and best practices with clear mechanisms for tracking and reporting
- Participate actively in technical reviews, providing hands-on support when necessary
- Lead the team in improving and maintaining critical technical and operational metrics, ensuring product stability and performance as the company scales
- Implement robust operational processes, such as incident management and uptime monitoring, to support product scalability and growth
- Support recruitment efforts by identifying and onboarding top talent for the organization
- Provide leadership through development plans, performance reviews, and constructive feedback grounded in trust and respect
Salary benchmarks
Our take
A key development in the last 5 years has been a move towards screen-based kids entertainment like apps and streaming services. However, more recently there have been concerns that excessive screen time for children can be damaging to health and development. So, many consumers are looking for alternative products which will expose children to modernity without the drawbacks of many modern devices. This is the demand which Yoto is setting out to capitalise on.
Yoto's product - a screen-free audio platform - enables children to access features such as audiobooks, podcasts, and soundscapes via physical cards inserted into the device. The Yoto Player has received considerable early praise from consumers and from investors also, who granted Yoto considerable funding.
Perhaps the most difficult challenge for a business operating in the highly competitive children's toys market is keeping its product current. However, Yoto's software is fully customisable, meaning that alongside its library of content, parents can add their own audio files to the device to suit the interests of their children. This imbibes Yoto with a customisability that gives it an edge, especially as children's tastes change with age.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
Company
Employee endorsements
Flexible working
"At Yoto I'm treated as an adult, and given the autonomy to get on with what I need to get done at work while also getting done what I need to in my..."
Funding (last 2 of 3 rounds)
Jun 2024
$23m
ANGEL
May 2021
$17m
SERIES A
Total funding: $43.3m
Company benefits
- Your birthday off
- Choice-based approach to where you work - we encourage everyone to come in to the office minimum once a month
- A Work from Anywhere policy giving you the opportunity to work from a different location for a temporary period
- Yoto player and starter pack of cards
- Company socials and celebrations, including our annual Yoto Fest
- 2x volunteer days a year
- 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
- Family-friendly leave
- 25 days holidays plus bank holidays
- Workplace pension
- Private Medical Insurance or Wellbeing Allowance
- Dental advice and guidance
- Income Protection
- Life Assurance
Company HQ
Somers Town, London, UK
Articles
Leadership
Ben Drury
(CEO)They have extensive experience as a Non Executive Director for the likes of Marmalade and Intercede. Since 2016, they have also been a board member and investor for Pimoroni.
Filip Denker
(Co-Founder)They co-founded Yoto alongside Ben in 2017.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Yoto
- At Yoto, we love creating a world where childhood is rich with discovery and joy. We’re also passionate about building a workplace where everyone can thrive - both professionally and personally. We value flexibility and give our team the freedom to balance life and work in ways that suit them. We're committed to fostering a safe, diverse, and inclusive environment where all individuals, regardless of their background, feel valued and supported. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion group holds bi-monthly forums to elevate diverse voices and perspectives, ensuring everyone at Yoto feels heard, respected, and appreciated. We don’t just embrace differences - we celebrate them. We share audio content from a vibrant and diverse community of creators (check out our DEI selection), and we are building a team that reflects that same diversity. We invite candidates from all walks of life to explore opportunities with us and join a company that champions flexibility, equity, and inclusion. Take a look at our website for more information on our approach to People and Planet.
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