Head of DNS Engineering

Head of DNS Engineering

Contract Type: Permanent

Location: Hybrid (minimum 20% on-site in our Oxford office)

We’re proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we’re committed to building an inclusive, diverse community that celebrates and welcomes everyone.
If there are any adjustments we could make to the recruitment and selection process to support you, please let us know.

About Us

We’re Nominet – a world-leading domain name registry operating at the heart of the UK internet. While we're best known for running .UK domains, we also help to protect public services from cyber threat.

As a public benefit company, our work has a positive impact on society. We’ve donated millions to projects that use technology to improve people’s lives and have committed to delivering £60m worth of support over the next three years.

We’re also already a Carbon Neutral company and we’re committed to helping the UK reach Net Zero by 2050.

About the role

As the Head of DNS Engineering at Nominet, you will lead a core technology engineering team to deliver industry leading Domain Name Systems for the internet.  This is a critical role with responsibility for engineering one of Nominet’s main business lines. 

You will manage a highly skilled team who are either deep experts in the Domain Name System (DNS) itself or software engineers who will develop custom applications that support our DNS Services. This role requires a comprehensive understanding of DNS technologies and protocols, as well as the strategic foresight to align our DNS services with the broader goals of the organisation.  

You will represent our company within the global DNS community, contributing to industry standards and ensuring that our DNS practices remain cutting-edge.  As a thought leader, you will identify and champion changes to the DNS ecosystem at Nominet, considering related and emerging technologies, and best practice.  

About you and your experience (max 5 bullet points covering all must haves and nice to haves)

• Significant Engineering experience at a senior leadership level, preferably working within a telco or service provider environment 

• Extensive experience with DNS architecture, protocols (such as DNSSEC, DoH/T/Q), and nameserver implementations such as those by ISC, NLNetLabs, and OpenXchange. 

• Deep understanding of DNS security practices, including DNSSEC, DDoS mitigation, and related technologies. 

• Strong knowledge of networking principles, including IP addressing, routing, and load balancing, as they relate to DNS. Knowledge of using BGP to deliver DNS services via IPAnycast. 

• Experience developing and commercialising solutions/products 

• Experience with near real time systems and streaming systems 

• Experience of working with highly secure environments 

• Hands-on experience with large scale distributed systems, web applications and cloud platforms (AWS preferred, but not essential). 

• Experience with systems design and development from business requirements analysis to day-to-day management  

• Programming experience with more than one programming language, typically C, C++, C#, Scala, Java, Python   

• Superior problem-solving, written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills  

• Experience managing, coaching, developing, and inspiring direct reports  

What we offer

• 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays, with the ability to purchase an additional 5 days
• Bupa private healthcare + Employee Assistance Programme
• Electric vehicle scheme with on-site charging points
• Rewards platform with access to discounts at hundreds of shops, restaurants etc.
• MediCash discounts on routine healthcare including optical, dental and much more
• Company and individual performance-based annual bonus

Please note, all roles working for Nominet will be subject to a Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS) check. Some roles will require additional security clearance due to the nature of their work.