Head of Engineering Excellence & Enablement

Head of Engineering Excellence & Enablement

Country: Spain

IT STARTS HERE

Santander (www.santander.com) is evolving from a global, high-impact brand into a technology-driven organization, and our people are at the heart of this journey. Together, we are driving a customer-centric transformation that values bold thinking, innovation, and the courage to challenge what’s possible.

This is more than a strategic shift. It’s a chance for driven professionals to grow, learn, and make a real difference.

Our mission is to contribute to help more people and businesses prosper. We embrace a strong risk culture and all our professionals at all levels are expected to take a proactive and responsible approach toward risk management.

Technology at Santander: Where innovation drives business

Being part of the Technology team at Santander means working at the heart of the Group's transformation. Our purpose is to support the business with innovative solutions that have a real impact on customers, employees and communities. We contribute to business challenges by combining cutting-edge technology — from cloud-native architectures and data streaming to generative artificial intelligence — with agile and collaborative methodologies. Here, every line of code, every operational improvement and every process optimisation has a purpose, and everything we build contributes to a more inclusive, efficient and sustainable future.

THE DIFFERENCE YOU MAKE

Role Overview

The Head of Engineering Excellence & Enablement is a global leadership role responsible for defining, evolving, and enabling best-in-class software delivery practices across the organization.

This role transforms how software is built across Santander Group by combining platform engineering, clear ways of working, and the effective use of AI. It provides domains with standardized platforms and practices to deliver software consistently, securely, and at scale. By simplifying how teams build and deploy software and using AI to accelerate development, it increases productivity and allows domains to focus on delivering business value.

It acts as a strategic enabler rather than a command-and-control function

Key Responsibilities

• Define and evolve the global Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC) framework, including standards, tooling, and practices.

• Drive Engineering Excellence across all domains, focusing on quality, reliability, performance, and security (DevSecOps).

• Promote modern ways of working, embedding Agile practices and continuous improvement across domains.

• Promote best practices in CI/CD, automation, and developer experience (DevEx), improving onboarding and day-to-day efficiency

• Enable domains to deliver effectively, supporting the adoption of common platforms and practices while preserving autonomy.

• Establish and track engineering metrics (e.g., DORA metrics, flow metrics) to continuously improve engineering performance.

• Leverage AI to improve engineering productivity, identifying and scaling high-impact use cases (e.g., code generation, testing,…) in a practical and measurable way.

• Collaborate with domains, platforms, and central functions (e.g., Cyber, Architecture) to ensure alignment and integration of engineering practices end-to-end.

• Build and lead a global community of practice for engineering disciplines and ways of working.

WHAT YOU’LL BRING

Our people are our greatest strength. Every individual contributes unique perspectives that make us stronger as a team and as an organization. We’re enabling teams to go beyond by valuing who they are and empowering what they bring.

The following requirements represent the knowledge, skills, and abilities essential for success in this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Key Skills & Experience

• Strong background in software engineering, with experience in large-scale, distributed systems.

• Proven experience in Agile methodologies (Scrum, Kanban, SAFe or similar at scale).

• Deep understanding of SDLC, DevOps, and modern engineering practices.

• Experience driving organizational change and transformation at scale.

• Strong stakeholder management skills across business and technology.

• Data-driven mindset with experience using engineering metrics.

• Excellent communication and influencing skills.

Leadership & Culture

• Acts as an enabler and coach rather than a directive authority.

• Promotes a culture of continuous improvement, learning, and experimentation.

• Encourages autonomy, accountability, and cross-functional collaboration.

• Builds trust across Domains, Platforms, and leadership teams.

• Champions engineering craftsmanship and Agile mindset at all levels.

Reporting Line

Reports to: Global CPO

WE VALUE YOUR IMPACT

Your contribution matters, and it’s recognized. You can expect a fair, competitive reward package that reflects the impact you create and the value you deliver. But we know rewards go beyond numbers.

• We’re enable our teams to go beyond through global opportunities and broad career paths.

• Flexibility that works. Enjoy a hybrid working models—some days remote, some days onsite with your team—along with flexible hours.

• Learning for life. Access hundreds of courses on our platforms, including exclusive access to our global learning space: Santander Open Academy (www.santanderopenacademy.com)

• Competitive rewards. Receive a highly competitive salary with performance-based bonuses, motivating you to keep growing with us.

• Financial advantages. Benefit from preferential banking terms, special interest rates on loans, life insurance, and more.

• Your health is our priority. Through BeHealthy, our global wellness programme, we promote Holistic wellbeing.

• We know family is everything. That’s why we offer childcare support and family-friendly programmes tailored to each life stage.

• Always by your side. Get access to Santander Contigo, our program for employees and their families offering legal, emotional, and administrative advisory services.

• Extra benefits. Gym/WellHub membership, medical centers in some of our facilities, meal subsidy, parking, shuttle service from various points in Madrid, as well as exclusive discounts and offers for Santander employees. And that’s only the beginning—we’ll tell you more when you join!

We’re here to keep you motivated, help you reach your goals, and celebrate your progress, every step of the way.D

LOCAL COMPLIANCE

Santander is proud of being an organization where there are equal opportunities regardless of age, gender, disability, civil status, race, religion or sexual orientation. We are committed to providing an inclusive and accessible application process for all candidates.

WHAT TO DO NEXT

If this sounds like a role you are interested in, then please apply.
 

READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP IN YOUR JOURNEY?