Chief Architect, Retail

WHO YOU'LL WORK WITH

You will join the Architect experts within the Enterprise Technology team, part of Bain’s digital capabilities practice. In this multidisciplinary group, you’ll help clients modernize their tech strategy, architecture, and systems – aligning technology with business goals to drive efficiency, agility, and innovation. You’ll develop enterprise-wide solutions, optimize cloud and data architectures, and integrate AI to enable scalable end-to-end digital transformations.

• Lead the definition of enterprise, solution, cloud, and data architectures that align with client business outcomes. Define and create demand, then co‑create proactive go‑to‑market thought‑differentiated Points of View (PoV) for end‑client consideration and expansion of current accounts.
• Architect and guide the integration of end‑to‑end retail technology ecosystems, including e‑commerce, ERP, WMS, OMS, and POS solutions.
• Be well‑versed across the retail technology stack, from customer experience platforms to back‑office solutions.
• Have hands‑on implementation experience of retail technology solutions, and have experience in estimating, planning, and executing large, complex retail technology programs.
• Define and establish enterprise integration standards and reference models for APIs, event streaming, and data pipelines that connect store systems, warehouses, data lakes, and e‑commerce platforms.
• Advise and accelerate client adoption of modern technologies such as AI/ML, IoT, and advanced analytics to transform retail in‑store, digital customer experiences, and operations.
• Develop strategic architecture roadmaps, frameworks, and reference models that enable modernization, integration of AI, and long‑term value creation.
• Translate complex technical and business requirements into clear, actionable strategies that clients can adopt and scale.
• Contribute to thought leadership, publications, and community engagement to advance Bain’s technology point of view.
• Assess, select, and integrate vendor platforms, fintech solutions, and hyperscaler technologies (AWS, Azure, GCP) into client architectures to maximize business and technology value.

• Serve as a trusted advisor to CIOs, CTOs, Chief Architects, and senior executives on architectural decisions and trade‑offs.
• Bridge the gap between business priorities and technology execution, ensuring architectures support strategic objectives.
• Influence, coach, and mentor client technology leaders and Bain teams to build sustainable internal architecture capabilities.

• Guide Bain consulting and client teams in executing architecture roadmaps, identifying risks, and embedding effective governance.
• Ensure architectures evolve with agile and MVP approaches while maintaining coherence, resilience, and scalability.
• Partner with Bain consulting teams to integrate architecture seamlessly into broader digital and business transformation programs.

• Contribute to Bain’s intellectual property and points of view on architecture, core banking modernization, and emerging technologies.
• Help advance Bain’s reputation in the market as a leader in enterprise and financial services architecture.
• Support business development by bringing architecture expertise into proposals, pursuits, and client discussions.
• Build and sustain trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, sponsors, and architecture communities.

• 15+ years of experience in architecture and technology leadership, with proven ability to shape enterprise, solution, and data architecture strategies.
• Deep expertise in Retail and Consumer Goods, especially in supply chain, inventory, warehouse management, and POS solutions.
• Exceptional candidates with fewer years of experience but outstanding impact in modern architecture and transformation will also be considered.
• Demonstrated track record advising senior business and technology leaders on complex, large‑scale transformation programs.
• Strong technical depth in domains such as cloud, data, AI, security, operational resilience,…