Solutions Architect

Our Role

Reporting to the Head of Technology, the Solution Architect is a senior, hands‑on role responsible for leading the design and delivery of technology solutions across the application, integration, and data landscape.

You will work closely with senior stakeholders across IT, digital, data, infrastructure, and delivery teams to ensure solutions align with business strategy while remaining pragmatic and delivery-focused. This role balances strategic architectural direction with direct ownership of solution design for priority initiatives.

You will act as a design authority across the portfolio while staying close to delivery teams to ensure solutions are implementable, scalable, and commercially sound.

• Personally design and own solution architectures for priority initiatives, covering applications, integrations, and high‑level data designs
• Translate business requirements into clear, pragmatic architecture artefacts through direct engagement with business and delivery teams
• Provide architectural leadership across the full delivery lifecycle, from feasibility and design through delivery and transition to support
• Remain actively engaged with delivery teams to adapt designs as delivery realities evolve

• Design solutions across core retail systems and processes, including ERP, eCommerce, and surrounding operational systems
• Architect integrations using API‑led, event‑driven, and asynchronous patterns across a distributed application landscape
• Design solutions supporting core retail capabilities such as order management, fulfilment, stock, pricing, promotions, and customer data

• Lead and contribute to architecture governance forums, including design authority and architecture review boards, for key initiatives.
• Own and operate architecture governance forums, including design authority and architecture review boards
• Review and assure solution designs produced by internal teams and delivery partners
• Clearly articulate the long‑term implications of design decisions to support informed trade‑offs

• Work closely with the Head of Technology to shape and evolve application, integration, and data architecture strategy.
• Produce architecture feasibility and impact assessments at initiative inception
• Support vendor and product selection, ensuring solutions are scalable, cost‑effective, and fit for purpose
• Provide guidance and mentoring to solution and technical architects across the portfolio

• Provide guidance and mentoring to other solution and technical architects across the portfolio
• Work effectively with third‑party vendors, software providers, and systems integrators
• Engage confidently with senior stakeholders, translating complex technical concepts into clear business outcomes

• Significant and extensive hands‑on experience as a Solution Architect, owning end‑to‑end solution design across applications, integrations, and data
• Proven experience designing application‑led solutions, including system responsibilities, interactions, and end‑to‑end business workflows
• Experience working across enterprise application landscapes such as ERP, eCommerce, operational, and customer‑facing systems (technology‑agnostic experience acceptable)
• Ability to produce clear, high‑quality architecture documentation, including solution design documents, application and integration diagrams, and data flows
• Experience designing production‑ready application architectures, with consideration for performance, scalability, resilience, error handling, and supportability in live environments
• Practical experience with cloud‑based platforms and integration patterns (APIs, events, orchestration) in the context of broader application solutions
• Experience designing solutions that support core business processes (e.g. order lifecycle, stock, fulfilment, pricing, customer data)
• Comfortable working across different delivery approaches and staying close to delivery teams
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, able to communicate design decisions and trade‑offs clearly
• Experience…