IT - Enterprise Architect

Enterprise Architect is responsible for defining and governing the organization‘s technology architecture strategy, ensuring alignment between business objectives, digital transformation initiatives, and technology investments. This role establishes enterprise-wide architecture principles, standards, roadmaps, and governance frameworks to drive business agility, operational efficiency, innovation, and risk management.

Enterprise Architect collaborates with business executives, technology leaders, solution architects, and external partners to develop target-state architecture and guide technology decisions across the organization.

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Architecture Strategy

• Develop and maintain the enterprise architecture vision, principles, standards, and governance framework.
• Define current-state, target-state, and transition architecture roadmaps.
• Ensure alignment between business strategy, digital transformation programs, and technology initiatives.
• Drive architectural consistency across applications, infrastructure, data, security, and integration domains.
• Identify opportunities to improve business capabilities through technology innovation.

Business Alignment & Strategic Planning

• Partner with executive leadership to understand business objectives and strategic priorities.
• Translate business strategies into enterprise architecture roadmaps and technology initiatives.
• Support strategic planning, investment decisions, and technology portfolio management.
• Advise senior management on emerging technologies and their business impact.
• Enable business capability modeling and operating model transformation.

Technology Governance

• Establish architecture governance processes, policies, and standards.
• Lead architecture review boards and technology governance committees.
• Ensure all technology solutions comply with enterprise architecture standards.
• Evaluate architecture risks and recommend mitigation strategies.
• Promote technology standardization, simplification, and modernization.

Enterprise Architecture Domains

Business Architecture

• Define and maintain business capability maps.
• Analyze business processes and identify transformation opportunities.
• Support business operating model optimization.

Application Architecture

• Define enterprise application architecture standards.
• Rationalize application portfolios and reduce technology complexity.
• Ensure interoperability and integration among enterprise systems.

Data Architecture

• Define enterprise data strategy and architecture.
• Promote data governance, data quality, and master data management.
• Support data-driven decision-making initiatives.

Technology Architecture

• Guide infrastructure, cloud, and platform architecture strategies.
• Define standards for scalability, availability, security, and resilience.
• Support technology modernization initiatives.

Security Architecture

• Ensure security-by-design principles across all enterprise initiatives.
• Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to reduce enterprise risks.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory and information security requirements.

Digital Transformation & Innovation

• Lead architecture support for digital transformation programs.
• Evaluate emerging technologies, industry trends, and innovation opportunities.
• Drive cloud adoption, API strategy, automation, and modernization initiatives.
• Support enterprise-wide adoption of innovative business and technology capabilities.

Portfolio & Investment Management

• Assess technology investments and architectural impacts.
• Support IT portfolio governance and prioritization processes.
• Develop technology roadmaps aligned with business value realization.
• Optimize technology costs through strategic architecture decisions.

Stakeholder Management

• Collaborate with executives, business leaders, and technology teams.
• Influence architecture decisions across multiple business units.
• Communicate architecture strategy, roadmaps, and governance requirements to stakeholders.
• Facilitate architecture workshops and executive presentations.

Risk, Compliance & Operational Resilience

• Ensure enterprise architecture supports regulatory compliance requirements.
• Support business continuity, disaster recovery, and operational resilience frameworks.
• Assess technology risks and recommend mitigation strategies.
• Ensure architecture decisions meet audit and regulatory expectations.

Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor‘s Degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Business Information Systems, or related disciplines.
• Master‘s Degree in Information Systems, Technology Management, Business Administration (MBA), or related field is preferred.

Experience

• Minimum 10 years of IT experience across multiple technology domains.
• At least 5 years of experience in Enterprise Architecture, Solution Architecture, or Technology Strategy roles.
• Proven experience leading enterprise-wide.
• Experience in large and complex organizations.
• Banking, Financial Services, Insurance, or highly regulated industries experience is highly preferred.

Technical Knowledge

Enterprise Architecture

• Enterprise Architecture Frameworks (TOGAF, Zachman, FEAF)
• Business Capability Modeling
• Enterprise Architecture Governance
• Technology Strategy and Roadmap Development

Application & Integration

• Enterprise Application Architecture
• API Management
• Microservices Architecture
• Enterprise Integration Patterns
• Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA)

Data & Analytics

• Data Architecture
• Data Governance
• Data Warehousing
• Big Data and Analytics Platforms

Infrastructure & Cloud

• Hybrid Cloud Architecture
• Azure, AWS, or GCP Platforms
• Infrastructure Modernization
• Containerization and Kubernetes

Security & Compliance

• Cybersecurity Frameworks
• Regulatory Compliance
• Risk Management
• Security Architecture Principles

Preferred Certifications

Enterprise Architecture

• TOGAF Certified
• Certified Enterprise Architect (CEA)

Cloud Certifications

• Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert
• AWS Solutions Architect Professional
• Google Professional Cloud Architect

Governance & Service Management

• ITIL Foundation or ITIL Managing Professional
• COBIT Certification

Security Certifications (Preferred)

• CISSP
• SABSA Foundation