Senior Solutions Architect

Senior Solution Architect  (Defence) 
Remote (Some travel to Hook/Solihull)
SC Clearance
 

We aim to create an inclusive workplace in which everyone can thrive:

• We are a proud Disability Confident Leader and holder of the Silver Inclusive Employer Standard
• We have reduced our gender pay gap from 10.9% to 6.9% (in the last 12 months) and increased women in leadership roles from 21% to 32% (2018-2022)
• We have reduced our ethnicity data gap from 40% to 20%, and our disability data gap from 95% to 50% over the last 12 months
• We were recognised in May 2022 as one of only 3 companies (from 100) to achieve Tier 1 accreditation in the CCLA Mental Health Benchmark Report

As a business we advocate flexible working as we know that your time is valuable, both inside and outside of work. We also provide an extensive Employee Assistance Program to include online counselling, webinars, health check-ins and financial wellbeing assistance.

Careers in IT Services:

IT is at the heart of many of the vital services that Serco provide, from caring for vulnerable people, managing complex public services, to heavy rail and hospital operations. IT Services underpin Serco teams in many of the key public services we deliver in the UK, Europe and globally, making a difference to thousands of people every day.

The people in IT Services are passionate about what they do and are proud to make a positive difference to the services that Serco delivers. Working together with the shared goal of providing the best service for our customers, this is what drives the culture and mindset, this is the Serco value and that is why a career with us is so rewarding.

Responsibilities:

The IT Senior Solution Lead will develop a holistic architecture for Serco's offerings, aligned specifically to opportunities within UK Defence. Working as part of a wider bid team the IT Senior Solution Lead takes overall responsibility for the IT design development, through the capture and definition of customer, security and operational requirements. Using multiple architectural models or views the Solution Lead delivers an architecture that supports the most efficient and secure IT environment that meets the business needs. The IT Senior Solution Lead will have experience in designing IT systems and associated infrastructure for deployment on MOD/Government led procurements and can demonstrate compliance with MOD/Government IT standards.

Responsibilities:

• Leading on the development of the IT Architecture through the capture of customer requirements and assessing suitable solution components to meet these requirements
• Development of high level use-cases, demonstrating the desired functionality and interaction with systems
• Giving key focus to Applications Services and API's, identifying current and future system interactions and exchanges of data
• To be responsible for the ownership or/and construction of the technical architecture for a specific bid or contract, working with IT suppliers to ensure their systems meet the business requirements and are technically compliant
• To act as a Technical Design Authority across all IT systems, identifying interdependencies and ensuring any gaps are closed.
• To understand the direction of the business/bid, its imperatives, its future challenges and how these may be supported by an appropriate overarching IT architecture and principles.
• Understand the current or "as is" state of the IT architecture and the path required to move this to the future "to be" state, recognising the needs and demands future business improvement initiatives will place on the solution
• Ensuring that solutions align to a consistent set of architecture principles, policies and procedures and ensuring that Serco's governance is adhered to.
• Working alongside Information Assurance resources to ensure the customers security requirements are understood and met with the solution
• Completion of detailed Solution Designs with associated solution component definitions, costs and implementation plans.
• Leading on solution/bid briefings through the governance process and ensuring Serco's that the solution is approved by all stakeholders.
• Provide solutions design assurance through the bid transition phase to ensure the solution design is implemented as per target architecture

Requirements:

• Experience in working on major Government/Ministry of Defence (MOD) contracts and bids, including knowledge and understanding of MOD specific standards such as the Joint Service Publications (JSPs) and the Defence Cyber Protection Partnership (DCPP).
• Hold a deep understanding of Applications Architecture and Agile methodologies
• Have experience in CAFM, Asset Management, Bookings and Geographic Information Systems
• A degree in IT related discipline is required along with an understanding of modern IT Infrastructure, applications and Cloud based technologies.
• You must be good at offering solutions to problems, along with being an analytical thinker and logical in approaching issues.
• You will have effective communication skills that enables you to convey complex technical details to clients in a straightforward manner.
• You will need to identify technical issues and design solutions to fix them, gathering and assimilating information.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Ability to build from good relationships with clients/operational managers and colleagues.
• Good knowledge of quality standards, legislation and best practice.
• Qualifications in Architectural principles (TOGAF)

What we offer:

• 5% bonus 
• Company car 
• Flexible working considered
• Pension - 6%
• Chance to contribute to innovation in the public services
• A company passionate about diversity and inclusion

We encourage you to apply even if you don't match every single aspect of the job description. We're looking for great people and are big on career development, so we're open to reviewing all applications.

About Serco
At Serco, not only is the nature of the work we do important, everyone has an important role to play, from caring for vulnerable people to managing complex public services.  We are a team of 50,000 people responsible for delivering essential public services around the world in areas including defence, transport, justice, immigration, healthcare and citizen services. We are innovators, committed to redesigning and improving public services for the benefit of everyone.

By joining Serco you will have unlimited access to our Global Employee Networks - SercoInspire (Gender), SercoEmbrace (Multicultural), SercoUnlimited (Disability) and In@Serco (LGBT & Networks). Serco Employee Networks, led by colleagues who are passionate about diversity, inclusion and belonging. 

Apply
Please click on the apply button to complete your application. Occasionally we receive a large volume of applications for our roles and when that happens we sometimes bring the closing date forward, so please apply promptly to avoid disappointment. 

At Serco, we see people first and foremost for their performance and potential. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation that supports the needs of all. As such we will make reasonable adjustments at interview through to employment for our candidates and strongly encourage applications from a diverse candidate pool. We are open to discussions around flexibility and flexible working. We operate a hybrid work structure in many of our business areas. We are proudly Disability Confident Leader employers and holder of the Silver Inclusive Employer Standard. Disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job will be given the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities at an interview.  For help with your application please contact 0345 010 4000.
 

At Serco we support fair access to employment for those with unspent criminal convictions through the 'Ban the Box' pledge (some may be exempt due to the nature of the role and the security clearance required). Please contact our recruitment team directly on 0345 010 4000 to discuss.