Chief Architect, MD

Role Overview

The Chief Architect is the senior-most architecture leader within CRD Engineering, responsible for defining and governing the firm’s technology architecture strategy, standards, and execution discipline. This role ensures that all platforms evolve in a scalable, secure, and compliant manner, while enabling engineering teams to deliver against aggressive modernization and SaaS objectives. The Chief Architect leads the architecture function across CRD, drives architectural consistency and quality, and serves as the primary authority for design governance, including Architecture Review Board (ARB) decisions and approvals.

Key Responsibilities

1. Architecture Strategy & Vision

• Define and evolve the target architecture for CRD platforms, including Product, SaaS, and data domains.
• Establish reference architectures, design patterns, and standards aligned to enterprise policies, modernization goals, and operating cost targets.
• Define architectural standards for observability, reliability, and performance (SLO/SLI frameworks).
• Ensure production systems are measurable, resilient, and scalable by design.
• Partner with the CTO and senior leadership to translate business strategy into scalable, secure technical architecture bringing discipline to ensuring architecture is implemented, not just defined.

2. Architecture Governance & Control

• Own and operate the Architecture Review Board (ARB) and associated governance processes.
• Ensure all new systems, architectural changes, and major enhancements go through appropriate design review and approval gates.
• Enforce architecture compliance across the SDLC, including design approvals required before development.
• Maintain traceability, documentation, and auditability of architecture decisions in alignment with enterprise governance frameworks.
• Establish measurable architecture KPIs and hold engineering teams accountable for adherence.
• Track and report architecture compliance, drift, and remediation across all pillars.

3. Risk, Security & Regulatory Alignment

• Ensure architectural decisions meet risk, security, and regulatory requirements, including alignment with enterprise programs.
• Proactively identify and mitigate architectural risk exposure, particularly for:
• New technologies and platforms
• SaaS integrations and third‑party software
• Material changes affecting system risk profile
• Partner with Risk, Security, and Audit teams to support SOC, ATO, and regulatory commitments.

4. Platform & Engineering Enablement

• Provide architectural guidance to engineering teams to ensure consistent implementation of patterns and standards.
• Enable scalable delivery by defining guardrails rather than constraints, promoting engineering autonomy within approved architectures.
• Support modernization initiatives (cloud, SaaS, API‑first, event‑driven architectures) consistent with enterprise direction.
• Partner with QA leadership to ensure architecture supports testability, automation, and BDD‑driven development.
• Ensure architectural patterns enable high‑quality, verifiable systems.

5. Cross‑Functional Leadership

• Act as the central architecture authority across product, platform engineering, security, and operations.
• Drive alignment across global teams and stakeholders to ensure clear ownership, accountability, and execution.
• Lead architecture prioritization and backlog visibility (e.g., ARB pipelines, pre‑ARB planning activities).

6. Operational Governance & Execution Discipline

• Manage the architecture intake pipeline, prioritization, and review cadence.
• Ensure operational governance continues during periods of heightened risk or control focus, prioritizing:
• Regulatory and audit impacts
• Production stability
• Client commitments
• Drive a control‑oriented but pragmatic model that enables continued delivery.

7. Talent & Organization Development

• Lead and develop a high‑performing architecture community (domain architects, platform architects, etc.).
• Establish career frameworks, best practices, and training for architecture roles.
• Foster a culture of innovation, accountability, and engineering excellence aligned to CRD’s broader technology leadership expectations.

Stakeholder, Client & Market Leadership

• Serve as the senior…