IT Architecture

4 months ago


Salisbury, United Kingdom Hays UK - Landmarc Full time

Your new company

Landmarc provides the support services that enable Armed Forces from around the world to prepare for frontline military operations across the UK Defence Training Estate (DTE). This includes maintaining and delivering safe and sustainable infrastructure, managing and operating training areas and ranges and delivering multi-million pound projects to improve vital training assets.

By joining Landmarc you will be supporting our vision to provide the best training experience we can for our Armed Forces. We are the first and only Special Purpose Vehicle to be contracted by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) as their Industry Partner on the UK Defence Training Estate and the only company that is solely dedicated to the UK DTE, delivering essential support services since 2003.

As the IT Architecture and Engineering Lead, you will play a senior and pivotal role central to achieving Landmarc's business objectives. You will be a key member of the Information and Technology leadership team (ITLT), focusing on the vision, strategy, roadmap, and solution delivery aspects of IT. Our IT stack is primarily Microsoft-based, and we utilize several COTS Back Office systems, including IBM Maximo, Select HR, ESRI ArcGIS, and Microsoft SharePoint.

Your new role

Landmarc are excited to present an exceptional opportunity for you to join their team as an IT Architecture & Engineering Lead. In this role, you will play a pivotal part in shaping the business and technology architecture by working closely with business stakeholders to align high-level requirements with our architectural approach. You will promote the use of existing capabilities while also helping to define innovative possibilities.

In this role, you will be responsible for designing, building, testing, and implementing IT solutions that meet business requirements and align with their business objectives and IT strategy. You will collaborate with senior business and technology stakeholders to oversee the complete end-to-end architecture. This involves integrating Asset Management, Booking Systems, Work Order Management, Data and MI, Finance, and Cloud into a cohesive and understandable framework that supports our business and technology teams. You will also lead efforts to develop, configure, test, integrate, and deploy solutions that meet TESC contract and user needs.

Your responsibilities will include developing and evolving roadmaps that align with business objectives and broader principles, optimizing engineering delivery through a comprehensive understanding of the project portfolio, and leading the IT Architecture & Engineering practice. You will manage a talented team of Solution Architects, Developers, and Testers, ensuring they follow best practices and agreed roadmaps.

Collaboration with key business stakeholders will be crucial as you develop and evolve end-to-end architecture and solutions. You will ensure that architectural and engineering standards, best practices, and non-functional considerations are applied, and manage exceptions to architecture standards when necessary. Additionally, you will work with the wider technology community to define standards and patterns, ensuring a consistent approach to IT development and service delivery.

As a key member of the IT Leadership Team, you will help define and document the IT strategy and roadmap. You will oversee the design, development, and testing of changes to applications, ensuring they meet business requirements and adhere to IT processes. Your role will also involve supporting and maintaining existing applications, providing user support via the IT Service Desk, and setting performance objectives for your team.

What you'll need to succeed

To be successful in this role, you will need to have a comprehensive understanding of modern business operations, particularly in asset management and work management. They should be well-versed in the practical interpretation and implementation of Enterprise Architect methodologies such as TOGAF and Zachman.

You must be skilled at structured problem-solving, capable of tackling large and complex issues by breaking them down into manageable parts while maintaining a clear view of the overall 'big picture'. You should also be able to communicate solutions effectively to non-technical stakeholders.

Experience in defining modern architecture across various platforms, including mobile, web, desktop, CRM, contact centers, third-party suppliers, and Back Office integration, is essential. Familiarity with Agile delivery frameworks like Scrum and Kanban is also important.

You should have experience in managing and motivating a small team of 6-10 people, working within a defined development process that includes design, documentation, development, testing, and release, and adhering to development standards. You'll also have experience managing small to medium-sized projects in line with a defined project management process.

Effective knowledge and experience with relevant programming languages and technologies, including the Microsoft stack, SQL Server, Visual Studio, and ADO, are crucial. Additionally, they should be proficient in Microsoft Office and have experience with system integration and Service-Oriented Architecture.

Desirable qualifications include TOGAF certification, experience in architecting solutions with self-organizing agile teams, and experience in modern service-based, cloud-first organizations.

Behaviours/Traits

To excel in this role, you should interact constructively and effectively with business stakeholders and IT users across the organization. Your ability to listen and influence others will be crucial in driving forward the end-to-end architecture.

You will need to be the voice of reason, balancing speed and agility with quality and reliability. A well-rounded individual, you should apply both business acumen and commercial understanding alongside your technology expertise. Developing technical staff is a key part of this role. You should be able to impart your wisdom and provide support to help them improve their skills and capabilities. Providing constructive feedback to staff to aid their development and improvement is also essential.

A proactive, flexible, and positive approach to your work is necessary. You should be able to work independently and collaborate as part of a team, effectively settling conflicts as required. Never being satisfied with the status quo and always looking for improvements is a trait we highly value. Effective written and oral communication skills are essential, as is being health and safety conscious.

Being results-oriented, you should be able to prioritize effectively and work to tight deadlines. Establishing and developing effective working relationships is crucial, and experience in a team leadership role will be beneficial.

What you need to do now

If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV, or call us now.

If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion on your career.

- Daniel Sharp