Job Description

Role Title: Solution Architect
About The Role:
We are looking to offer a Solution Architect the exciting opportunity to join our dynamic and expanding Group IT Function Team based in either Stevenage or Newcastle.
As a Solution Architect you will be a part of our commitment to deliver what we promise for our clients, within the leading essential infrastructure services provider operating within the UK & Ireland.
Does this sound like a role for you? Read more...
About the team
A trusted employer to more than 11,000 people in the UK and Ireland. Operating across 21 businesses in 240 locations, we provide specialist infrastructure services in the water, energy, transport and telecommunications sectors.
We work in a fast-paced environment and our business is constantly growing and evolving. Our central support team has grown rapidly and provides support across our Group and divisions to deliver to our people, our clients and their customers.
As a Group we recognise that engaging and empowering our people to deliver and grow is pivotal to driving our business and achieving continued success. We are committed to creating an environment in which our people feel valued, supported and fulfilled.
We offer a flexible working environment where hybrid working has been embedded.
Who you are?
The purpose of the IT Solution Architect is to define and deliver innovative, cost-effective, and efficient solutions.
Reporting into the Solution Architect Manager as part of the wider Enterprise Architecture function, this role will consult on and be responsible for the design, delivery, and deployment of IT solutions.
The role will analyse technical issues, business problems and requirements, to develop tailored designs, and help govern the solution implementation throughout delivery. The role will be responsible for ensuring solutions are fit for purpose, cost effective and aligned with strategic goals and principles. As a member of the team, you will be expected to gain a comprehensive understanding of the As-Is IT landscape across the Group while contributing to the future IT strategy and vision for the organisation.
Do you like a challenge? Are you keen to develop your skills? Do you enjoy finding solutions? If you want to make a difference working within a supportive team environment, we would be pleased to hear from you.
As a Solution Architect, you'll get the opportunity to:

• Lead the design and implementation of solutions to meet agreed business requirements, as encapsulated within a change initiative.
• Ensure the most effective use of the available technologies and platforms from the estate.
• Represent technical change through corporate governance processes.
• Communicate the risks, dependencies, scope, and scale of solutions such that they are fully understood by relevant decision-making bodies.
• Advise on the viability of technical solutions, considering other programmes of work and the complexities inherent in it.
• Support Project Managers in delivery of projects, acting as a single point of contact for solution architecture aspects.
• Contribute to the coordination of third parties, such as vendors and outsourced partners, to ensure the delivery of solutions across domains and technologies remains aligned.
• Develop and maintain a level of technical expertise, knowledge of current best practice and industry trends.
• Contribute to the overall IT strategy and proactively identifying continuous improvement opportunities using industry best practice and emerging technologies.
• Manage communication up to MD level across business and technical areas both internally and with partners and vendors. To ensure technical ideas and solutions are effectively translated into the real world.
• Provide key stake holders at a senior level the right information, recommendations, and proposals to allow decisions to be made.

Core Responsibilities:

• Translate the business requirements into an architectural specification, defining an effective architecture that will be the blueprint for the solution being created.
• Ensure that the architectural specification is documented clearly, and that it is applied consistently throughout the subsequent delivery process.
• Ensure the development and delivery of high quality, flexible, scalable, cost-effective solutions through high quality solution architecture for projects and programmes in line with the enterprise architecture.
• Highlight to the Domain and/or Enterprise Architects where solution architectures are being created that are not in line with the enterprise architecture, so that they can be managed as exceptions to the enterprise architecture.
• Ensure that architecture principles, policies and standards are met and to develop appropriate standards. Provide feedback to Domain and Enterprise Architects to ensure that the enterprise architecture is fit for purpose.
• Participate in the Technical Governance process, raising exceptions, obtaining waivers as required, & ensuring compliance with standards, blueprints, & principles.
• Responsible to produce consistent estimation of project delivery effort.
• Responsible for working with key stakeholders to assess impact of technical change on business processes and operations.
• Work with Enterprise and Domain Architects to create and maintain future state architecture.
• Responsible to produce solution architecture options to meet business requirements.
• Responsible to produce estimates for solution architecture options.
• Responsible to produce Architecture Specification Documents.
• Responsible for specifying architecture to maximise reuse.

What you'll bring?

• Ability to communicate complex issues in a simple and concise manner with good presentation skills.
• Ability to produce high quality technical documentation and design specifications.
• Broad knowledge and understanding of technologies (e.g. Azure, Salesforce, Oracle, MSSQL)
• Significant experience of integration, consolidation, and transit of data within systems.
• Analytical mindset and good problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work well with teams at all levels including senior management, stakeholders, analysts, developers, third party vendors and customers.
• Ability support and mentor colleagues and act as a role model to others within the IT function.
• Minimum 5 years of experience as Solution Architect in positions with comparable complexity.
• Experience of different IT delivery approaches (waterfall, agile, etc.) and software development lifecycles.
• Strong Application Architecture background demonstrated through a proven track record of leading, influencing and creating architecture standards incl. solution, data and interfaces.
• Sound knowledge of computer science fundamentals including basic infrastructure and networking.
• Oracle Fusion experience desirable.
• Salesforce experiences highly desirable - specifically Field Services.
• Microsoft Azure experience desirable.
• University Degree preferably in a business or technical subject or any comparable education.
• Certification within a recognized Architecture framework (i.e. TOGAF / Zachman) desirable.

Please note you will receive an automated response advising you that we have received your CV.
Morgan Philips Group is a global talent solutions business that disrupts conventional thinking in executive search, recruitment and talent consulting. We operate in over 20 markets in Europe, North & South America, Asia, and the Middle East & Africa. We understand that the future is digital and social, so we embrace the latest technology, including video ads and CVs, as well as social recruiting. Our innovative services are tailored to the new world of work yet we do not lose sight of the fact that employees be they existing and potential are ultimately human beings.
We are committed to ensuring that all job applicants are treated equally, without discrimination because of gender, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, gender reassignment, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability or age.

Skills Required