Enterprise Architect

Role overview

Key responsibilities

• Own solution architecture from discovery through deployment and transition to operations, producing context, logical, physical, integration, data, security and deployment views.
• Translate business and non-functional requirements into target solutions, architecture decisions, transition states and delivery roadmaps.
• Design cloud-native applications using 12-factor principles, APIs, microservices, containers, serverless patterns, distributed systems, resiliency and observability.
• Define portable deployment standards for hybrid and multi-cloud environments, including infrastructure as code, CI/CD, configuration, secrets, releases, scalability, availability and disaster recovery.
• Select integration patterns including APIs, event-driven messaging, streaming, orchestration, batch interfaces and ETL/ELT, with contracts and failure handling.
• Design data flows and integration architectures covering operational stores, dimensional models, lakes, warehouses and data products.
• Govern data modelling, transformation, lineage, metadata, quality, security and retention.
• Lead solution option assessments covering build, partner, buy, reuse and shape decisions.
• Evaluate platforms, products, vendors and partner designs through evidence, proofs of concept and measurable acceptance criteria.
• Lead design reviews and approve solutions against enterprise architecture, cybersecurity, data, service-management and cloud guardrails.
• Provide technical direction to software, data, platform, DevOps, security and operations teams.
• Advise senior stakeholders on architecture choices, risks, dependencies, cost and delivery trade-offs.

Essential experience

• 15+ years of IT experience, including at least 10 years in solution, application, data or enterprise architecture roles delivering complex transformation programmes.
• Strong hands-on architecture experience across software engineering, data engineering, integration, cloud platforms, infrastructure, security and operations.
• Deep knowledge of cloud-native and distributed architecture, 12-factor applications, microservices, APIs, containers, serverless, event-driven design, streaming and batch processing.
• Strong command of integration and data patterns including API management, messaging, ETL/ELT, modelling, transformation, lineage, metadata and data-quality controls.
• Experience defining deployment and engineering standards for hybrid and multi-cloud environments, including infrastructure as code, CI/CD, testing, observability, reliability and secure-by-design practices.
• Ability to assess build, partner, buy, reuse and shape options and challenge vendor proposals, lock-in, commercial assumptions and operating-model impacts.
• Experience with architecture principles, reference architectures, target-state roadmaps, design authorities, architecture decision records and governance frameworks such as TOGAF.
• Ability to balance strategic alignment with delivery pragmatism across cost, speed, quality, security, resilience, portability and maintainability.
• Strong facilitation, technical leadership and executive communication skills.
• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, software engineering, information systems or a related discipline.
• TOGAF and relevant cloud architecture certification are required; postgraduate, data, integration, security or Kubernetes certification is advantageous.