Portfolio Architect - Information Technology

Report to the Chief Architect as senior individual contributors within the Enterprise Architecture organization.

May be classified at the Manager or Director level depending on applicant experience, portfolio complexity, stakeholder scope, enterprise impact, and demonstrated seniority.

Support portfolios such as Customer, Operations, Corporate, IT 4 IT, or other portfolios aligned to enterprise priorities.

Exercise leadership through influence, architecture direction, stakeholder alignment, and decision framing rather than direct people-management authority.

Remain distinct from Solution Architecture, development leadership, product ownership, delivery management, and domain architecture roles.

Do not directly manage people, design detailed solutions, own sprint-level decisions, approve or reject solutions unilaterally, manage delivery teams, take over development work, or own formal governance outcomes.

Accountable for the architectural coherence of the assigned portfolio, including alignment to enterprise strategy, principles, reference architectures, and approved guardrails.

Accountable for the portfolio target architecture and roadmap remaining current, actionable, and connected to business outcomes, investment planning, delivery capacity, and modernization priorities.

Accountable for making major architectural risks, dependencies, trade-offs, and target-state deviations visible to senior stakeholders and governance forums.

Accountable for enabling consistent, transparent, and traceable architecture decision support for portfolio planning, sequencing, ARB readiness, and formal governance outcomes.

Adopted portfolio architecture direction: Target architecture and roadmap are understood, current, and used by IT leadership, EPMO, Finance, Solution Architects, and delivery teams to guide planning and execution.

Improved investment and sequencing decisions: Portfolio priorities are supported by clear architectural rationale, dependency visibility, trade-off analysis, affordability considerations, and alignment to corporate and IT strategy.

Reduced architectural friction: Major risks, technical debt patterns, duplication, and target-state deviations are identified earlier, resulting in fewer late-stage escalations, avoidable rework, and unresolved delivery constraints.

Stronger governance readiness: Initiatives entering ARB or related governance forums have clear portfolio context, decision options, risk framing, and traceable alignment to enterprise principles and guardrails.

Clearer role alignment and delivery enablement: Stakeholders understand where Portfolio Architecture adds value, how it differs from Solution Architecture and development delivery, and how portfolio guardrails enable rather than duplicate delivery work.

Bachelor’s Degree in Information Systems, Computer Science, Engineering, Business, or a related discipline, or equivalent experience.

Experience in the life and health insurance industry is a strong asset, particularly where it includes exposure to customer experience, claims, benefits administration, regulatory obligations, data privacy, digital services, or insurance technology modernization.

10+ years of progressive experience in enterprise architecture, portfolio architecture, technology strategy, solution architecture, or senior technology advisory roles; Manager or Director classification will reflect demonstrated seniority, scope, and enterprise impact.

Demonstrated ability to define target architecture, transition states, modernization roadmaps, and sequencing recommendations for complex portfolios or transformation programs.

Strong understanding of enterprise architecture practices, including architecture principles, reference architectures, governance, guardrails, technology lifecycle management, technical debt, risk, regulatory obligations, and operational constraints.

Experience with enterprise architecture tools or repository platforms is an asset, including use of these solutions to model capabilities, applications, technologies, roadmaps, dependencies, standards, risks, and architecture decisions.

Experience influencing senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams across IT, business, EPMO, Finance, architecture, product, and delivery groups without relying on direct reporting authority.

Ability to assess cross-domain impacts across business capabilities, applications, data, integration, digital experience, cloud, security, identity, platforms, operations, and customer outcomes.

Excellent communication, facilitation, executive storytelling, and decision-framing skills, with the ability to clarify trade-offs, role boundaries, risks, and recommendations for diverse audiences.

Description: Defines coherent target architecture, transition states, and roadmap direction for the assigned portfolio.

Proficiency Level: Advanced

Evidence: Maintains a current roadmap with clear transition states and an adopted portfolio architecture direction.

Description: Guides senior stakeholders through ambiguity, trade-offs, and decisions without relying on direct authority.

Evidence: Builds stakeholder alignment, supports timely decision-making, and provides clear recommendations.

Description: Connects architecture decisions to business value, affordability, risk, delivery readiness, and sequencing.

Proficiency Level: Working to Advanced

Evidence: Provides decision-ready options, identifies dependencies, and establishes clear sequencing rationale.

Description: Assesses impacts across capabilities, platforms, data, integration, security, operations, customer outcomes, and regulatory context.

Evidence: Enables earlier visibility of risks and reduces architectural friction across the enterprise.

Description: Uses enterprise architecture tools or repositories to maintain architecture knowledge, dependencies, standards, roadmaps, and decision traceability.

Evidence: Maintains reliable repository content, develops reusable architecture views, and ensures architecture decisions are traceable.

Description: Applies guardrails, clarifies accountabilities, and enables governance readiness without duplicating delivery work.

Evidence: Supports clear ARB preparation and decision records while reducing role conflicts and duplication.

Description: Translates complex architecture topics into concise messages for technical, business, Finance, EPMO, and executive audiences.

Evidence: Develops clear roadmap narratives, effectively frames risks, and provides leadership-ready recommendations.

Anticipates portfolio impacts, downstream dependencies, and long-term implications of architecture and investment decisions.

Balances modernization, customer outcomes, business value, risk, compliance, affordability, and sustainability.

Provides calm, credible leadership when priorities, dependencies, stakeholder expectations, or trade-offs are unclear.

Leads through influence and clarity while enabling Solution Architects, product teams, and delivery teams to work within agreed guardrails.

Builds trust across business, technology, architecture, EPMO, Finance, product, and delivery stakeholders.

Resolves tension by focusing on enterprise outcomes, transparent trade-offs, and clear accountabilities.

This position will remain open until suitable candidates are selected.

Alberta Blue Cross® is an inclusive employer committed to a workplace that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. We empower and are advocates for our team members by welcoming, respecting and valuing their unique perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences.

We offer the opportunity to work in an innovative, high-energy team-focused environment. If you have the qualifications we are looking for, apply online at careers.ab.bluecross.ca

A criminal record check satisfactory to Alberta Blue Cross will be required as a condition of employment, following a conditional offer.