Principal Architect

The Opportunity

We are looking for an experienced, capable Senior Principal Architect who has led architecture initiatives in or around e-commerce or retail. They will be strategically focused with excellent communication and stakeholder management skills; ideally formally trained in either TOGAF or Zachman frameworks. Coming from an advanced technology and software development background the Principal Architect will work with the business, engineering, product and the wider architecture team to assure ESW strategy and industry best practice is at the heart of our design thinking, and the quality of what we deliver aligns to our values.

The right candidate will have a 5+ years of experience as a Senior Enterprise, Solution Architect, or Head of Architecture working in and around key technology areas like event-driven architecture, micro-services, domain-driven design and data-driven architectures; ideally across multiple industries including Retail. Having worked with public cloud (ideally Azure) around concepts like Containers, DevSecOps, PaaS and SaaS whilst working on specifics like API management, caching/scaling in high performance environments and container driven designs with a technology like Kubernetes.

We have a mixed approach to delivery pulling on our agile start-up roots whilst balancing planning needs of the business and product to provide guidance to business, product and commercial strategy. The role will ensure that architecture processes are adhered too and work closely aligned to the existing ESW delivery processes, being involved in relevant retros to continually improve these. Reporting to the VP Architecture the role will assist in making key architecture decisions that will influence the company direction and act as role model and mentor to our partners in engineering and product. The right leader will positively influence stakeholders by demonstrating professionalism, enthusiasm, strong communication and creating collaborative environments for architecture to thrive.

Responsibilities

• Working closely with peers in product and the business to help define roadmaps that align business strategy to technology strategy whilst balancing client needs to timelines.
• Creating high level designs that clearly articulate strategy and technology steer. Focusing on business requirements/capabilities, data architecture, standards, impact assessments across domains, business cases, high level implementation plans and NFRs.
• Collaborating with engineering, product and business peers to ensure that HLDs are understood, helping shape significant solution designs whilst identifying key architecture decisions and calling out technical and architectural debt.
• Working in an agile environment, applying “Just Enough Design”, “Adaptability” and “Assurance over Governance”.
• Being able to become expert in one or more domains but always aware and working to align across domains to an enterprise view
• Ensure the right guardrails (principles, policies, standards and NFRs) are continually updated, understood and implemented across ESW.
• Be a positive mentor to the wider technology and product teams.
• Create and maintain the conceptual data models, as-is and to-be architectures for domains and/or strategic initiatives.

Requirements

• TOGAF or Zachman Certified.
• Kafka (ideally Confluent) for event-driven architecture and event-streaming.
• Architectural experience of native and non-native cloud services for either Azure or AWS including: Kubernetes, CosmosDB.
• Understanding and able to present differences between conceptual, logical and physical architectures to a range of stakeholders from Engineering Managers to Execs.
• Intellectual curiosity, learning agility, and enthusiasm for tackling tough problems.
• Outstanding communication skills required - primarily the ability to communicate ideas.
• Deep Problem solving – the ability to analyse a business or technical problem and select the most appropriate solutions.
• Understanding of risk in designs and mitigation strategies.
• Experience of retail industry would be a significant advantage.
• Experience managing monolith/legacy migration programs a huge plus!

About ESW

Our purpose is simple: to create moments that matter between people and the brands they cherish. We enable brands to expand their global reach, facilitating simple and seamless ecommerce experiences for consumers worldwide. Through our integration solutions, we deliver a complete international checkout experience, including local duties, taxes, fulfilment, delivery management, and global returns and payment processing capabilities.

Guided by our values—Own It, Champion Simplicity, Win as One, and Debate then Commit—we strive to foster innovation, accountability, and teamwork, creating solutions that inspire trust and drive impactful results.

What's on offer?

• Competitive salary and benefits: Your financial well being is important to us. Join ESW and experience the satisfaction of being rewarded for your hard work, dedication and commitment.
• Professional and personal development: Find your spark and leave your mark. We will ensure your talent is nurtured and cultivated for growth and success throughout your career with ESW.
• Hybrid Working: Our Hybrid Working Model empowers you to embrace the flexibility of hybrid working and enjoy the best of office and remote work.
• Diversity, Belonging & Inclusion: When we win, we win together. You'll be part of a culture that values every individual for who they are, fostering an environment where uniqueness is encouraged.

ESW is an equal opportunity employer, and we’re proud of our ongoing efforts to foster diversity, equity, & inclusion in the workplace. Individuals seeking employment and employees at ESW are considered without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, medical condition, ancestry, disability, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

If you require any reasonable accommodations or adjustments throughout the hiring process, please let us know. We are dedicated to ensuring equal access and opportunity for all candidates.

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