Technical Architect
12 Month Contract
Location: Didcot (onsite 5 days a week)
Salary: £800 - £850 per day (INSIDE IR35)

We are looking to recruit a Technical Architect for a leading technology consultancy. The initial focus of this role will be on the evolution of a complex, business-critical software platform.

They are looking for an experienced Technical Architect to review the current architecture, assess key technical uncertainties, define the next level of solution design, and provide hands-on architectural guidance to development teams.

This role would suit a Technical Architect with strong experience across service-oriented architecture, Java-based systems, APIs, data flows, integration patterns, non-functional requirements and technical design documentation. You will need to be comfortable working closely with engineering teams, understanding complex existing systems, and turning architectural ambiguity into clear, actionable recommendations.

Key responsibilities

• Review and assess the existing high-level architecture, including key components, services, interfaces and deployment approach.
• Analyse the current service-oriented architecture and identify strengths, gaps, risks and areas of emerging technical debt.
• Assess alignment with strategic objectives and non-functional requirements, including reliability, determinism, maintainability, scalability and resilience.
• Evaluate integration options across a hybrid architecture, including how existing Java-based applications interact with newer services.
• Assess inter-service communication needs and provide recommendations on messaging, message bus patterns, protocols and associated trade-offs.
• Analyse and document system data flows, including real-time data, configuration data, core operational data, processed data and metadata.
• Evaluate whether a graph layer or alternative integration pattern would provide value as a primary interface between services.
• Define appropriate standards for APIs, messaging frameworks, data models, configuration management and service testing.
• Produce clear architectural documentation, including logical diagrams, high-level designs, service interaction models and data flow diagrams.
• Record key architectural decisions and rationale.
• Work closely with development teams to ensure a shared understanding of the architecture and support incremental delivery.
• Provide technical guidance, challenge and direction to help create a scalable, adaptable and operationally resilient architecture.

Key deliverables

• Current-state architecture assessment.
• Next-level architectural design documentation.
• Logical and high-level diagrams showing services, integrations and data flows.
• Recommendations covering message bus usage, service communication, data flow management and graph/integration layer design.
• Documented architectural decisions and guiding principles.
• Roadmap for future architectural development and technical improvement.

Essential experience

• Proven experience as a Technical Architect, Solution Architect or Software Architect on complex software systems.
• Strong understanding of service-oriented architecture, distributed systems and integration patterns.
• Experience working with Java-based applications or Java-heavy technical environments.
• Strong knowledge of APIs, messaging, data models, configuration management and service communication.
• Ability to analyse complex existing systems and produce clear architectural recommendations.
• Experience documenting data flows, system interactions, logical architecture and technical design decisions.
• Strong understanding of non-functional requirements such as reliability, scalability, maintainability, resilience and performance.
• Experience working closely with software engineering teams in an Agile or iterative delivery environment.
• Strong stakeholder communication skills, with the ability to explain complex technical concepts clearly.
• Ability to work onsite in Didcot 5 days per week.
• Eligible for BPSS clearance.

Desirable experience

• Experience with message bus technologies, event-driven architecture or asynchronous communication patterns.
• Experience evaluating or implementing graph-based interfaces, graph schemas or related integration approaches.
• Experience with scientific, engineering, research, data acquisition, instrumentation or highly technical software environments.
• Experience defining API standards, service boundaries and architectural governance.
• Experience assessing technical debt and creating pragmatic architecture roadmaps.
• Familiarity with DevOps, CI/CD, automated testing and service deployment practices.

“Diamond Light are looking for a hands-on Technical Architect to review and shape the software architecture behind their beamline/data acquisition systems. It’s Java-based, service-oriented, scientific/engineering software, with lots of real-time data flows, detector data, APIs, messaging, configuration, and integration design. They need someone who can assess the current architecture, document what good looks like, and guide development teams on the next-level design.”

GDA - Generic Data Acquisition - Java-based distributed system used on beamlines to control experiments and collect data. It is used across Diamond beamlines and provides beamline-specific GUIs, Python scripting, and experiment/data acquisition capability. 

This architect is being brought in to decide whether the current architecture is fit for the new Diamond-II flagship beamlines, including CSXID, SWIFT and K04. Diamond says these are the day-one flagship beamlines for Diamond-II.

The strongest fit would be someone from a scientific, engineering, control systems, laboratory, research, defence, aerospace, robotics, manufacturing or complex instrumentation software background.

need to be eligible for SC

“It’s a Civica Security Solution Architect role supporting an Army end customer. It looks like a hands-on secure-by-design architecture role across Central Government projects — threat modelling, secure SDLC, cloud/security patterns, ITHC remediation, working with accreditors and advising technical teams. I haven’t had the full briefing yet, but on paper your SC clearance, security architecture, cloud security and threat modelling background look very relevant.”

“It looks like a role focused on ensuring major solutions are securely designed and delivered, rather than a pure GRC or policy role. They need someone who can lead security architecture across projects, promote secure-by-design principles, work with technical teams, and engage directly with the customer and accreditors around risk, requirements and assurance.”

“My read is that Civica need someone who can sit between the customer, architects and technical delivery teams — identify security risks, advise on secure design, challenge where needed, and help get solutions through assurance without slowing delivery unnecessarily.”

Technical Architect
Permanent
Location: Home / Andover (onsite 2 days a week)
Salary: £100,000 - £110,000 (+ benefits)

Skills: Technical Architecture, Azure/AWS, DevOps, Secure Development, Microservices, APIs, SC Clearance

We are looking to recruit an SC Cleared Technical Architect for a leading technology consultancy.

This is a high-impact role, working across the full delivery lifecycle to design and deliver complex, secure, and scalable solutions aligned to business and technical strategy.

Location: Andover (2 days per week onsite)
Clearance: Active SC required

Key Responsibilities

• Own the technical design of large and complex systems
• Provide architecture governance and technical leadership across delivery teams
• Collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams to ensure solutions meet business and technical needs
• Define and apply architecture principles, standards and best practice
• Lead design reviews, risk assessment and impact analysis
• Support pre-sales, bids and client engagements
• Develop proof of concepts and client demonstrations
• Contribute to innovation, identifying emerging technologies and opportunities
• Mentor team members and support development of architecture capability

Experience Required

• Strong experience as a Technical Architect within complex environments
• Proven track record delivering solutions in central government or defence sectors
• Experience designing solutions using Azure and/or AWS
• Knowledge of DevOps, CI/CD and secure software development lifecycle
• Strong understanding of microservices, APIs (REST/SOAP), JSON
• Experience with authentication technologies (SAML, OAuth, OpenID, Active Directory, LDAP)
• Background in Java or .NET development
• Strong stakeholder engagement and consultancy skills

Desirable

• Experience in secure environments
• Exposure to data architecture or real-time integration
• Knowledge of AI-based solutions
• Relevant certifications (e.g. Microsoft, AWS)

• Design, implement, and maintain CI/CD pipelines using Azure DevOps Cloud
• Integrate Static Application Security Testing (SAST) and Dynamic Application Security Testing (DAST) tools into CI/CD pipelines
• Collaborate with security teams to embed DevSecOps controls, including vulnerability scanning, policy enforcement, and secure build gates
• Implement DevOps best practices including automation, version control, monitoring, and release management
• Work with development teams to improve build, test, deploy, and security feedback loops
• Troubleshoot pipeline, deployment, and security‑related issues
• Provide documentation, knowledge transfer, and hands‑on mentoring to teams
• Experience with containerisation and orchestration (Docker, Kubernetes / AKS)
• Strong understanding of Git and branching strategies

“The person who turns the roadmap into actual delivered software”

Figures out how it gets built, in what order, and makes sure it actually ships

• Someone who has sat inside an engineering team
• Someone who has owned a backlog and shipped features
• Someone who can translate messy ideas into clear dev-ready work

“It’s essentially a Technical Product Owner role – you’d be working alongside engineers day-to-day, taking roadmap items and turning them into deliverable features, owning the backlog and driving delivery.”

“How hands-on are you with backlog management and writing user stories day-to-day?”

Email from the manager:

We've had a bit of a review of what we think we want:

• Someone to partner with our PM: PM owns strategy and roadmap; they own execution and delivery
• Break down roadmap into epics and user stories in GitHub, plan work, and manage day‑to‑day delivery
• Track progress, give clear updates, surface risks early, and remove blockers
• Build strong relationships with engineers; keep the team motivated and focused
• Detail‑oriented, comfortable working with ambiguity and the ability to pivot/reprioritise quickly with the focus on delivering value

Arguably this is more of a "product owner" role, so it's possible someone with a lot of SPM experience (for example) might not be delivery enough focused. Potentially we might need to lean more towards candidates who have worked at a software company and/or really worked closely with engineers. In an interview, we want someone who can talk to and give examples of these things strongly.

Business Architect (SC Cleared)
Permanent
Location: UK - travel to customer sites when required
Salary: £100,000 - £110,000 (+ benefits)

We are looking to recruit an SC Cleared Business Architect for a leading technology consultancy who specialise in supporting organisations to design and implement large-scale digital and business transformation programmes.

Due to continued growth, they are looking to appoint an SC Cleared Business Architect to join their expanding Architecture Practice.

The Role

As a Business Architect, you will play a key role in helping clients translate strategic objectives into clear, actionable roadmaps for delivery. You will work across complex programmes, ensuring business strategy, operating models and technology solutions are aligned to deliver measurable outcomes.

This is a highly consultative role, working closely with senior stakeholders to shape direction, define architecture and guide delivery across the full lifecycle.

Key Responsibilities

• Translate business strategy into practical architecture roadmaps and delivery plans
• Lead business architecture activities across client engagements and transformation programmes
• Apply and promote business architecture frameworks (e.g. TOGAF, ArchiMate)
• Develop target operating models, capability maps and value streams
• Provide clear recommendations to support business, technology and data decision-making
• Engage with stakeholders to communicate complex concepts in a clear and structured way
• Support pre-sales, bids and proposals, contributing to solution shaping and estimation
• Collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams across architecture, delivery and engineering
• Mentor and support the development of junior team members
• Contribute to the ongoing development of internal architecture capability and best practices

Skills & Experience

• Experience working as a Business Architect / Enterprise Architect / Lead Business Analyst
• Strong understanding of business architecture frameworks, tools and methodologies
• Experience developing operating models, roadmaps and strategic plans
• Knowledge of tools such as Sparx Enterprise Architect and modelling languages such as ArchiMate
• TOGAF certified (or equivalent experience applying architecture frameworks)
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with experience working at senior / executive level
• Experience working in consulting or client-facing environments
• Ability to simplify complex problems into clear, actionable outcomes

Desirable

• Experience working within central government or public sector environments
• Exposure to digital transformation programmes and large-scale delivery
• Experience contributing to business development and pre-sales activities

Why Apply

• Opportunity to work on high-impact transformation programmes across central government
• Join a growing architecture capability with strong career progression opportunities
• Collaborative, forward-thinking environment focused on delivering real client value

“It’s a Principal Solution Architect role working into central government, essentially acting as a ‘front door’ architect for Army-led projects. You’d be engaging very early with senior stakeholders – often at Colonel level – helping shape ideas into workable solutions and making sure everything aligns to architectural standards. It’s less hands-on modelling and more about stakeholder engagement, leadership and setting direction across multiple programmes.”

1. Describe a KIM strategy you led for a public sector or Defence client—targets, metrics, and outcomes.

2. How did you design and govern taxonomy/metadata and measure search/findability improvements?

3. Which platforms (e.g., M365/Purview, EDRM, search) did you use and why?

4. What was your adoption approach and how did you evidence behaviour change?

5. What risks or constraints (including security/classification) arose and how did you mitigate them?

“It’s a senior consulting role where you’re helping government and defence organisations get control of their knowledge and information. That means shaping strategy, designing how information is structured and governed, and then making sure it actually works in practice—improving how quickly people can find and use information, while staying compliant.”