Technical Architect

Full details of the job.

Vacancy Name: Technical Architect (FTC 6 months)

Vacancy No: VN497

Employment Type: Full-Time

Location: Office Based - Borehamwood

About Us:

Our Mission
Happy, healthy pets, make for happy, healthy people.
We aim to strengthen the unique bond between pets and their parents through our innovative products and services, enabled by brilliant colleagues who embody our values of performance, exploration, togetherness, and sustainability.

Our Journey
In 2016 we set out to focus entirely on pet insurance with pets and families at the centre of our business strategy and in 2017 launched a new brand, EveryPaw. To offer our customers a choice of insurance options for their pets, we also focused on finding the right partners to support our growth ambition and our first big partnerships with Sainsbury and Argos went live in 2019. We've developed new capabilities, new platforms, and new services specifically for our partners to achieve the best customer experience. Over the last 6 years, the number of pet parents we support has grown five-fold to over half a million in 2023.

Our ambition
We're delivering long-term success and growth through empowerment and strong collaboration focusing on our two own brands; EveryPaw and Pet Protect and building great relationships with our partners to provide market-leading products, innovative new services, simplicity, and a great customer experience. Our goal is to support over 1 million pet parents by the end of 2026.

Pinnacle Pet UK provides great opportunities for those who love pets, want to learn, be challenged, and develop. As a team, we are focused on performance and great customer outcomes. We support each other to achieve our individual and collective goals and have a culture where everyone can be authentic, diverse, and innovative.

We are seeking a Mid-Level IT Architect to join our team and contribute to the design and implementation of robust IT solutions. This role is ideal for someone with a solid foundation in technical architecture, exposure to cloud technologies (particularly Azure), and a collaborative mindset. The Technical Architect will work closely with the hiring manager, technical analysts, and other stakeholders to address key challenges and ensure alignment with our architectural principles and governance models.

This position offers the opportunity to influence critical projects, including technical debt reduction, pipeline management improvements, and Azure-based solutions. This position requires hands-on experience and the ability to contribute meaningfully to architectural discussions and decision-making processes.

A successful Technical Architect will have:

• Expertise in distributed systems and microservices architecture.
• Strong knowledge of event-driven architecture and API gateways (including REST APIs and GraphQL).
• Rich experience in defining detailed functional designs and architectural documentation.
• Proficiency in business process analysis and mapping.
• Comprehensive knowledge of cloud infrastructure, especially Azure.
• Strong understanding of containerization and database schema design.
• Experience with DevOps practices and CI/CD pipelines.

Key Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with the hiring manager and technical teams to design and implement IT architecture solutions aligned with business goals.
• Contribute to architectural governance by adhering to guiding principles and governance models.
• Support technical debt reduction initiatives across supported systems and applications.
• Address challenges related to pipeline management, ensuring efficient workflows and processes.
• Provide expertise in Azure cloud technologies, including Azure Queue Management and Enterprise Service Bus.
• Participate in community forums for architecture security assessments and other architectural discussions.
• Engage with stakeholders to facilitate architectural conversations, occasionally attending in-person meetings as needed.
• Assist in the development of strategies for application modernisation without significant changes to existing technology streams.

Successful Candidates Will Have:

• Proven experience in IT architecture or a related technical role.
• Exposure to cloud technologies, particularly Microsoft Azure (e.g., Azure Queue Management, Enterprise Service Bus).
• Familiarity with DevOps practices, pipeline management, and standard IT workflows.
• Understanding of architectural principles, governance models, and TOGAF frameworks (certification is a plus but not required).
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to address real-world challenges such as data consolidation or migration strategies.
• Hands-on experience with infrastructure-led architecture (preferred over development-centric roles).
• Excellent communication skills for engaging stakeholders and collaborating across teams.