Head of Platforms - Technology, Infrastructure and Operations

Reed Technology

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Head of Platform leads the delivery and evolution of Elsevier’s internal developer platform as a core driver of engineering transformation. This role is accountable for shifting Elsevier from fragmented infrastructure services to a unified internal developer platform (IDP) that accelerates modernization, reuse, and AI-enabled engineering. This leader combines strong technical depth with enterprise influence, driving large-scale cultural and operational change across engineering. They will shape the platform as a product while embedding new ways of working focused on self-service, automation, and developer experience.

Requirements

15+ years in platform, software, or infrastructure engineering.
Proven experience leading large-scale cultural and operational transformations.
Strong background in platform-as-a-product and developer experience.
Demonstrated stakeholder influence across complex organizations.
Experience leading distributed engineering teams.
Familiarity with AI-enabled engineering practices.
Strong grounding in SRE, observability, and secure-by-design.
Excellent communication and leadership skills.

Responsibilities

Define and drive the platform strategy aligned with Elsevier standards and enterprise priorities.
Translate strategic objectives (DevEx, reuse, AI-enabled SDLC) into clear platform roadmaps.
Establish and evolve a platform-as-a-product operating model.
Build and lead a global platform organization (95–125 engineers) across key domains.
Partner with TIO leadership, architecture, and change teams to align operating models.
Drive an engineering-led, automation-first culture across the organization.
Deliver internal developer portal capabilities (e.g., Backstage) and golden paths.
Embed DORA and SPACE metrics to improve developer productivity.
Champion reuse and inner sourcing across engineering teams.
Integrate AI across the SDLC including code generation, testing, and automation.
Drive adoption of AI-enabled engineering practices.
Ensure secure and efficient-by-default platform services through automation.
Ensure reliability, observability, and cost efficiency of platform services.
Define resilience, incident management, and operational models.
Track and report on platform maturity and performance.
Partner with Business Unit CTOs, product leaders, and engineering teams.
Drive alignment between platform capabilities and business outcomes.
Communicate effectively across executive and technical audiences.