Lead Solution Architect - Unity Technical Services

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The Lead Solution Architect (LSA) works within the HMRC CDIO Chief Design & Information Office team and will be matrixed managed into the Unity Technical Services team. By collaborating with a team of Architects to ensure consistent implementation of architecture decisions and internal and external technical experts they will ensure that the Unity shared service business and IT strategy is delivered. Providing Architectural support, guidance and design for the Unity technical service once live they will also take an active role in the design and delivery of other ERP related initiatives for HMRC and work across the other cluster departments (DfT and MHCLG).

They research, design and propose IT architecture solutions across various domains, collaborating with business functions, technology teams, and delivery partners to design architecture that adheres to standards, meets strategic goals and integrates with other processes. The LSA oversees integrated systems analysis, assessment and recommendation of hardware and software to best achieve UTS strategic objectives. The LSA may also matrix manage application domain specialists to maintain alignment with business and IT strategies.

At this role level you will be expected to:

• Provide leadership and vision to the UTS architecture, including providing architecture strategy, direction, guidance and vision and championing leading practice, and be central to assuring services.
• Regularly collaborate and find agreement with senior stakeholders, providing direction and challenge.
• Be proactive in identifying problems and translating these into non-technical descriptions that can be widely understood.
• Lead the definition of conceptual and logical architecture specifications (e.g. data architecture, application architecture, technical architecture) for UTS.
• Own and ensure that technical architecture decisions are consistent across the enterprise and leverage opportunities for common approaches.
• Lead efforts to develop technical architecture approach for all layers of a solution within UTS, including solution estimations and consulting on programme delivery planning, delivery models, and forming deliverables.
• Lead efforts to assess and recommend infrastructure and application solutions for upgrades to meet business needs.
• Lead effort to support lines of business, support staff and technology areas, who are implementing projects that impact the technical architecture.
• Work collaboratively with the wider HMRC Solution and Enterprise architect teams to facilitate and lead. continuous improvement activities within HMRC, share/collaborate on best practice and develop others.
  

The right candidate will be able to demonstrate their ability to:

1. Understand, and convey the agreed strategic view across all architectural domains, platforms, portfolios and programmes, within a Business Domain / Cluster. This includes applying a good understanding of the organisations ecosystem and its interdependencies.
2. Provide proactive consultation to a range of Change and Architecture stakeholders, providing expert advice on specific enterprise level ambitions in respect of capability impact that help to inform the production of more detailed architectural designs in a strategically aligned manner.
3. Understand and be able to create As Is and To Be capability-based technology impacts that strategically shape enterprise level transformational change. Then use this to help define our I.T Strategy, inform IT Platform roadmaps, supports early delivery planning and ensure alignment with relevant business, Product and Commercial strategies & roadmaps.
4. Be responsible for socialising and promoting our strategies and enterprise-level impacts with peers and senior managers across multiple stakeholder communities.
   

Essential Criteria

1. Leadership in Architecture

• Proven experience in leading architecture and solution design functions
• Ability to provide architectural strategy, direction, and assurance across programmes
• Proven record of building and managing stakeholders across organisation boundaries and be able to upwardly mange stakeholder along with external IT suppliers
• Experience in the use of modelling tools and documenting As Is and To Be processes and architectures aligning to business and technology strategies.
• Develop, document and establish Reference Architectures
• Simplify and explain complex and technical information by using appropriate and accessible language for non-technical audiences.
• Clearly articulate enterprise level impacts across technology domains, including risks and assumptions based on the inputs provided and prepare briefings, findings, options & recommendations.
• Look beyond the immediate problem and identify the wider implications across the enterprise, in both the short, medium and long term.

2. Stakeholder Engagement

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to influence senior stakeholders (e.g. director level and above)
• Ability to translate complex technical concepts for non-technical audiences

3. Technical Expertise

• Extensive experience at a senior level technically of several ERP IT domain systems for example SAP ERP, S4 HANA, Success Factors and BTP with experience in network design and interconnect designs for large scale deployments, describing how each components relate and support each other.
• Experience leading CRM or ERP transformations
• Familiarity with corporate services domains (e.g. Finance, HR, Commercial, Estates)
• Demonstrable experience designing IT solutions that deliver tangible business benefits
• Familiarity with a range of technologies and architectural styles (e.g. Azure, AWS, microservices, SaaS/PaaS/IaaS)

4. Strategic Thinking

• Ability to align solution designs with organisational strategy and IT roadmaps
• Experience driving technological change in complex environments

5. Collaboration and Governance

• Experience working across business and technical teams to ensure architectural coherence
• Understanding of architecture governance and compliance with standards
• Experience of working in transformational change using Agile methodologies
• Be able to work collaboratively with colleagues to secure the results required, be able to set own direction to deliver the business strategy
• Have experience with 3rd party technical supplier commercial frameworks and agreements. A proven ability to manage third parties in structured governed manner.
  

Capability Allowance

The advertised role is part of the Government Digital and Data Profession and has access to a?Capability-Based Allowance. Applicants who are successful at interview will be invited to complete a Capability and Skills Assessment post-interview.?Any allowance awarded will be based on the assessment of your capability against theskills advertised for this role. Please see the attached candidate pack for more information.?

The allowance values are set by HMRC, subject to remaining in a qualifying role,?and are non-pensionable. This allowance is non-contractual, subject to an annual review and could be withdrawn at any time.?

For both new entrants and existing civil servants, the total compensation offer is a combination of base salary and, if applicable, a capability-based allowance. New entrants to the Civil Service will start on the pay range minimum. For existing civil servants, our policies on level transfer and promotion?will apply.?