Lead Solution Architect

Key purpose:

As a Lead Solution Architect, you'll be responsible for helping the team to deliver new solutions in Office 365 (Exchange), Microsoft Azure and Agile Methodologies. The role requires experience working with customers across multiple departments within the organisation to understand their needs and provide technical expertise where required. You will also be involved in planning design, architecture and development of new solutions as well as being able to use an agile approach to solve problems quickly.

Duties and responsibilities:

• Leverage a solid & deep understanding of the organization's strategy to identify, design & deliver relevant, scalable, testable, re‐usable technology solutions
• Work in collaboration with delivery teams to independently analyse customer requirements & varying business capabilities & leverage analysis to identify & accurately spec / frame the complex business problems we are aiming to solve with each solution design or solution evolution
• Through the above processes, leverage emotional, social & business / commercial quotient to understand consumers and the broader range of stakeholders, their opinions & perspectives and reconcile these within the solution on designs (nego on skills and dealing with complex and divergent stakeholder opinions are a must)
• Leverage expertise in analytical & creative problem solving to synthesise a solution design (build a solution from its components) beyond the analysis of the problem
• Lead design thinking processes to successfully deliver solution blueprints & associated roadmaps
• Maintains the various stages of the SDLC including planning, design, implementation, testing and post implementation
• The above extends to identifying the best-fit tools to be used for a particular solution, understanding those that would not be a good choice and leveraging researching skills to pivot towards something better
• Design & or contribute to the design & implementation of detailed feasibilities & business cases
• Assume one stop accountability for solution blueprint design & delivery decisions within an organization based on the above
• Leverage a strong engineering background to make the right choices in solution design this knowledge includes but is not limited to domain driven design, loosely coupled integra on, microservices and other modern so ware design practices
• Work with project / program management teams to design solution roadmaps aligned to the strategic requirements of an organization and through which the solution can be implemented across all phases of the initiative life‐cycle (idea on through to product launch and commercializa on)
• Create end to end solution blueprints & ensure these can be implemented across all phases of the initiative lifecycle (ideation through to product launch & commercializa on)
• Identifies gaps in architecture, resources, or knowledge and researches potential solutions
• Leverage synthesis & creative problem skills to identify risk (impending danger & challenges) and work with a cross functional group of stakeholders across the value chain for support & direction
• Assists in the development of design documents such as user stories, requirements, designs, or test plans
• Works with QA teams to make sure that features are thoroughly tested before they are deployed and that the release schedule is adhered to

Qualifications and experience:

• Bachelors degree in Computer Science, Engineering or a related field required
• BBA, MBA a bonus but not essential
• Certification in one or more agile frameworks
• Has read read Competing Against Luck, Zero to One, The Lean Startup or similar works and can explain their application in a large organization
• 8 years of solution architecture experience
• 8 years of hands‐on technology and engineering experience
• 5 years of team leadership experience
• 3 years in customer‐facing experience disciplines
• 3 years in agile delivery disciples
• Strong knowledge of server-side technology preferred
• T‐shaped expertise with a breadth of skill, understanding and experience across different areas of delivery, different banking functional/business domains
• Agile Delivery Techniques: SCRUM, KANBAN, SAFE, LESS, DAD, Spotify model better yet, individuals who can choose which of these is appropriate, Tailor them or even use waterfall where the task calls for it
• Hands‐on software engineering experience which should feature some of the following: Java, .Net, Scala, Spark, Spring, Integration (ESB/SOA/API/Microservices), Applica on Security, DDD, NoSQL
• Technology Management and Strategy including TCO modeling and analysis, application portfolio management, and cost optimization