Lead Microservices and AI Technical Architect

A federal government department is seeking a Lead Microservices and AI Technical Architect to join its CIO Division, providing technical leadership and architectural authority across cloud-native, microservices-based and AI-enabled platforms.

This is a senior, hands-on architecture leadership role for someone who can set technical direction, influence architecture across a complex enterprise environment, and lead modern engineering and AI delivery practices - while directly uplifting the capability of the teams around them.

The Role

• Provide architectural authority for cloud native, microservices-based and event-driven platforms
• Lead AI-enabled solution delivery - enterprise AI, semantic search, ML, and responsible AI practices
• Champion modern engineering practices: AI-enabled SDLC, DevSecOps, CI/CD, automated testing, observability
• Drive technology modernisation initiatives - microservices, containerisation, integration, reusable patterns
• Build organisational capability through knowledge transfer, coaching and engineering leadership
• Engage confidently across multidisciplinary teams, delivery partners and senior executives

Essential Criteria

• Extensive experience designing, implementing and governing cloud native, microservices and event-driven architectures in complex enterprise environments
• Demonstrated AI engineering and AI-enabled solution delivery expertise, including enterprise AI, semantic search, ML and responsible AI
• Strong software and platform engineering background - modern frameworks, DevSecOps, CI/CD, automated testing, observability, security by design
• Proven leadership of enterprise technology modernisation/transformation - setting technical direction and delivering measurable reliability, security and scalability gains
• Exceptional stakeholder engagement, communication and leadership across multidisciplinary teams, delivery partners and senior executives

Desirable Criteria

• Container platform experience (Kubernetes, OpenShift, AKS, EKS, GKE) - automation, governance, workload management
• Cloud platform modernisation, SRE, platform engineering and enterprise observability/automation
• Agile delivery leadership - coaching dispersed teams and driving capability uplift

Engagement Details

• Level: Lead - EL2 equivalent
• Location: ACT, Hybrid, max 40 hours/week
• Start date: 1 October 2026
• Term: Initial 12 months, plus 2 x 12-month extension options
• Clearance: Must be able to obtain Baseline
• Panel: DMP2 - ICT Labour Hire (Simple contract)

How to Apply

Submissions must include: proposed start date, hourly rate, service management fee, citizenship status, current security clearance, a one-page written pitch addressing the essential and desirable criteria (max 5000 characters), and a current resumé. Note: this engagement is assessed on written submission - no interview stage.

Closing: Monday 14 September 2026, 11:59pm Canberra time.