An exciting opportunity for someone with extensive experience of solutions architecture and oversight, who will act confidently as a direction setter and subject matter expert, engaging positively with key business and technical stakeholders.

The Solution Architect role underscores the importance of comprehensive data and digital solution design to ensure a cohesive and well-managed architecture for the organisation, supporting its long-term operations. Through the adoption of a modular approach specifically tailored to the systems within the organisation, this position aims to enhance adaptability, scalability, and sustainability. Its scope extends to encompassing the broader global strategic and operational architecture.

ACCOUNTABILITIES

Your subject matter and anticipated outcomes may differ greatly from one project to another. This versatility in role presents fresh and compelling prospects, necessitating a keen ability to adjust. Your capacity to adapt will be crucial as the expectations vary. Depending on the project, you will be expected to:

· Support Plan in creating and assessing their global technology strategies and roadmaps, ensuring they are investing in the right technology and delivering in the right order.

· Support delivery programs by crafting contemporary and innovative Solution Architectures and Technical Designs tailored to the scope of work, collaborating with business owners, analysts, development teams, and program managers.

· Persistently engage in learning, refinement, and adaptation to the evolving demands of the business. Explore new subject areas as needed, such as novel products and services or solutions aimed at addressing humanitarian crises.

· Fulfil the role of a technology leader, providing support to Plan throughout project/program lifecycle, including discovery, requirements gathering, solution design and development, end-to-end testing, process definition, change management, and go-live.

· Take a technical lead role in projects or other initiatives to ensure all requirements, including functional, integration, security, performance, quality, and operations are covered

· Responsible to ensure that the architecture requirements for the development, execution, and operations are implemented as designed

· Lead the IT Architecture analysis, design, and implementation, and ensure that policies and standards are followed in respective area

· Support development of architecture reference architecture, including standards and in management of exemptions

· Offer technical governance, across projects and operations ensuring solution quality assurance through design reviews that adhere to industry best practices and standards.

· Analyse technical dependencies to grasp enterprise-wide connections, assess the impacts of changes or delays, identify technology risks, issues, and technical debt, and provide insights into areas of IT fragility for inclusion in the IT backlog of work.

· Defining and implementing an Integrated architecture roadmap with sound enterprise application integration (EAI) standards for the organisation

· Drive a sound architecture roadmap, proactively addressing any uncertainties in solutions, guiding and influencing towards successful business outcomes and risk mitigation.

· Evaluate requests for new technology against the existing Plan technical landscape and provide recommendations for selections.

· Oversee governance activities aimed at ensuring solutions architecture assurance and compliance.

· Lead and guide to uphold solution integrity, ensuring adherence to requirements.

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

· Transformation team

· Business owners and delegated team leads.

· Technical specialists

· External strategic partners engaged in the delivery and support of the systems.

· External suppliers involved in the provision of operational or ad hoc services.

· Business and IT Leads, their management teams, change champions and subject matter experts based within Global Hub, the Regional Hubs, Country Offices and National Organisations

· Liaise with Executive Directors to establish personal, programme and operational credibility.

· Establish confidence in senior stakeholders in Plan through demonstration of robust Solution delivery and change controls.

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, SKILLS, AND KNOWLEDGE

Essential

· Proven Digital and Solution Architecture experience working across legacy, modern digital solutions, cloud platforms, modern integration (e.g. latest API practices) and architecture patterns including Microservices.

· A working knowledge of platform, infrastructure, and data architecture (including cyber security and networking patterns).

· Demonstrated technology delivery experience including a thorough understanding of all stages of the delivery lifecycle (discovery, design, delivery, transition

· Demonstrated experience in defining architecture principles and solution designs that adhere to these principles, common architecture patterns and practices.

· Exceptional communication and stakeholder management skills.

· Experiences in being part of digital transformation project lifecycles in defining end to end solution designs and delivering innovative solutions, including integration of emerging technology solutions.

· Extensive experience in leading teams of architects and / or technologists, and initiatives within a wider complex digital and data programme.

· You will have experience in delivering through various ways of working, including waterfall and various agile methodologies.

· Analysing and defining solution options and brokering buy-in, consensus and decision making from technical and business stakeholders.

· Experience as a technology lead who can work closely with developers, testers, and other agile roles to help shape delivery.

· Have a solid understanding of architecture, associated strategies, and frameworks.

· Ability to provide delivery support to multiple projects and stakeholders at one time.

· Outstanding skills in stakeholder management and communication, demonstrated through effective written and oral communication.

· Ability to manage and present information using a range of tools including MS Project, Excel, Jira, DevOps & PowerPoint

· Proven capability to engage with stakeholders at all levels with confidence and authority.

Desirable

· Certification or demonstrated knowledge of one of the major Cloud Service Providers – Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Amazon Web Services (AWS) or Microsoft Azure Platform.

· Proven adaptability and ability to shift focus and work with varied subject matters and work across different projects and project types.

· Industry certifications such as BCS, SCRUM, SAFe, PMP among others.

· Experience or qualifications within TOGAF, COBIT and/or SAFe (or equivalent) is advantageous.

· Experience in identity, data, enterprise integration and digital transformation based on Microsoft Cloud products such as Azure Active Directory, Azure and AWS infrastructure services, SAP S/4 HANA, Salesforce, Okta, SAP HRIS, and the Power Platform is ideal.