| Description: |
Job Specification: Lead Enterprise Architect Contract Type: Contract (Outside IR35)
Duration: Initial 12 months with potential extension
Location: Hybrid/Remote (with occasional travel to offices and client sites as required)
Start Date: 01/June/2026
Salary/Rate: Competitive, depending on experience Role Overview We are seeking a Lead Enterprise Architect to provide strategic leadership across enterprise-wide technology and business architecture for public sector and regulated clients. The role will define and govern the enterprise architecture vision, ensuring alignment between business strategy, policy objectives, regulatory obligations, and technology delivery. The Lead Enterprise Architect will act as a trusted advisor to Lead stakeholders, shaping investment decisions, guiding complex transformation programmes, and ensuring architectural coherence across business, data, application, integration, infrastructure, and security domains. Key Responsibilities Enterprise Architecture Strategy - Define, maintain, and communicate a clear Enterprise Architecture vision, principles, and standards
- Develop baseline, transition, and target architectures aligned to organisational strategy and public value outcomes
- Produce and maintain enterprise roadmaps that balance strategic ambition with delivery pragmatism
Architecture Governance & Assurance - Establish and operate architecture governance and design assurance processes
- Provide architectural input to business cases, programmes, and investment decisions
- Ensure compliance with public sector and regulatory standards, including security, data protection, and audit requirements
Transformation & Programme Leadership - Provide architectural leadership for large-scale digital transformation and modernisation programmes
- Guide cloud adoption (eg Azure, AWS), Legacy replacement, and platform rationalisation
- Ensure solutions are secure, resilient, scalable, and interoperable
Stakeholder Collaboration - Work closely with Lead business leaders, service owners, policy teams, delivery leads, and suppliers
- Translate complex architectural concepts into clear, actionable guidance for non-technical stakeholders
- Influence and challenge constructively at Lead leadership and board level
Standards, Reuse & Continuous Improvement - Promote reuse through reference architectures, patterns, and shared services
- Identify and manage technical debt and architectural risk
- Monitor emerging technologies and assess their applicability in regulated and public sector contexts
Essential Skills and Qualifications Enterprise Architecture Experience - Significant experience working as a Lead Enterprise Architect in complex organisations
- Strong understanding of business architecture, application architecture, data, integration, infrastructure, and security
- Hands-on experience using enterprise architecture tooling, with Ardoq considered essential for architecture modelling, impact analysis, and stakeholder-facing visualisation
- Proven experience defining enterprise-wide target architectures and roadmaps
Regulated/Public Sector Experience - Experience operating within public sector or highly regulated environments
- Strong understanding of governance, assurance, and compliance requirements
- Familiarity with standards and frameworks such as:
- TOGAF
- GDS Service Standard/Technology Code of Practice
- NCSC security guidance
Technical & Cloud Expertise - Deep experience with cloud and hybrid architectures (eg AWS/Azure-centric environments)
- Strong understanding of integration patterns, APIs, and data platforms
- Experience shaping architecture for multi-supplier and outsourced delivery models
Desired Skills - Architecture certification (eg TOGAF, BCS, SABSA)
- Experience supporting Agile and product-centric delivery models
- Experience contributing to spend controls, investment assurance, or regulatory submissions
- Ability to mentor and develop other architects
Security Clearance:
Candidates must hold active or be eligible to obtain Security Check (SC) clearance due to the sensitive nature of the work and client environments. Candidate Profile - Strategic Thinker: Able to balance long-term vision with short-term delivery needs
- Strong Communicator: Confident presenting to Lead technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Pragmatic Leader: Values proportionate governance and outcome-focused architecture
- Collaborative: Works effectively across organisational and supplier boundaries
Application Process Interested candidates should submit a detailed CV and covering statement outlining their experience in enterprise architecture, public sector or regulated delivery, and large-scale transformation initiatives. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled. Contracting Details This role may be offered on a contract basis. Terms are negotiable depending on experience and engagement model.
We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion and welcome applications from all backgrounds.  |
