THE OPPORTUNITY
We are looking for a Frontend Lead with deep frontend expertise to lead NorthLadder's product engineering team. This is a senior leadership role with two interlocking dimensions: you will own the UI strategy and visual standards of our product, and manage a team that is primarily frontend engineers, with backend engineers and QA also reporting into you.
The weight of this role sits firmly in the frontend and UI space — your technical home ground. You will set the bar for how NorthLadder's interfaces are built, reviewed, and shipped, while providing management oversight to backend and QA functions. You will report to the VP of Engineering and operate as a key voice in engineering leadership.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Frontend Leadership (Primary Focus)
- Lead and manage a frontend-heavy engineering team: the majority of your direct reports are frontend engineers building React/Next.js-based web and mobile interfaces.
- Set and enforce frontend standards — component architecture, code review practices, performance benchmarks, accessibility (WCAG 2.1 AA), and browser/device compatibility.
- Own the UI component library and front-end design system; ensure components are reusable, well-documented, and consistently adopted across squads.
- Drive frontend delivery: sprint planning, estimation, code reviews, release coordination, and post-release monitoring for frontend surfaces.
- Evaluate and make decisions on frontend tooling, frameworks, and libraries — staying current with the React/Next.js ecosystem.
- Ensure frontend builds are fast, reliable, and well-integrated into CI/CD pipelines; own frontend performance and quality metrics.
- Actively participate in architecture discussions and technical design reviews for features with significant frontend surface area.
UI Strategy & Visual Direction
- Define NorthLadder's UI strategy: visual language, interaction patterns, spacing/typography/colour systems, and component standards across all product surfaces (web, mobile, internal tools).
- Work closely with Product and Design to translate requirements into clear, high-quality UI specifications — and ensure implementation matches design intent precisely.
- Establish a visual quality gate process: review and sign off on UI implementations before they reach production.
- Ensure NorthLadder's interfaces are consistently on-brand, visually polished, and deliver a premium experience for both consumers and enterprise clients.
- Collaborate with the Design team on Figma component standards, design tokens, and handoff workflows to keep design and code in sync.
Cross-functional Collaboration
- Partner with Product Managers to scope features, align on timelines, and ensure frontend execution matches product intent.
- Collaborate with the VP of Engineering and business stakeholders on quarterly roadmap planning and trade-off decisions.
- Coordinate with Marketing and Brand on UI assets, landing pages, and visual consistency across customer-facing surfaces.
- Manage external contractors or agencies for frontend/design surge capacity when needed.
WHAT YOU BRING
Experience
- 8-10 years in frontend development; at least 2-3years team lead role.
- Proven track record managing frontend-heavy teams (5+ engineers) in a fast-paced product environment.
- Experience owning a UI strategy or design system for a consumer-facing digital product — marketplace, fintech, e-commerce, or platform preferred.
- Background in high-growth startups or scale-ups is strongly preferred.
Technical Skills — Frontend (Required)
- Expert-level proficiency in React.js and Next.js, TypeScript, HTML5, and CSS3.
- Deep experience with component-driven development, design systems, and front-end architecture patterns (atomic design, micro-frontends, etc.).
- Strong grasp of frontend performance optimisation, responsive/mobile-first design, and cross-browser compatibility.
- Hands-on experience with UI component libraries, design token pipelines, and tools such as Storybook, Tailwind CSS, or styled-components.
- Solid understanding of CI/CD for frontend (build pipelines, bundle analysis, Lighthouse CI, automated UI testing with Playwright or Cypress).
Leadership & People Skills
- Natural people leader — you build trust quickly, give direct feedback, and invest in the growth of your engineers.
- Strong project management instincts: you track execution, flag risks early, and keep stakeholders clearly informed.
- Excellent communicator — equally comfortable in a UI design review, a technical architecture discussion, and a leadership planning session.
- Comfortable with ambiguity; you can translate broad business goals into a clear, executable engineering plan.
- Experience working in remote-first, globally distributed teams across time zones.
- Strong written and verbal communication in English.
Pay: ₹2,500,000.00 - ₹3,000,000.00 per month
Experience:
- frontend lead: 3 years (Required)
Work Location: Remote
