Senior Solution Architect

We are seeking an experienced Senior Cloud Migration Architect to lead complex Data Centre Exit and DC Consolidation programmes, migrating large-scale enterprise estates to Amazon Web Services (AWS). This is a technically demanding, client-facing role that sits at the intersection of cloud architecture, migration engineering, and programme delivery.

You will be responsible for the end-to-end architectural direction of migration programmes - from initial discovery and dependency mapping through to wave execution, cutover, and post-migration optimisation. You will bring deep expertise in AWS infrastructure, licensing portability (BYOL, BYOS, AWS Licence Manager), network transformation using AWS Transit Gateway and Direct Connect, and the unique complexities that arise when exiting or consolidating physical data centres onto AWS.

This role is suited to an architect who is equally comfortable whiteboarding a target-state AWS Landing Zone architecture with a CTO and sitting with an engineering team to resolve a blast-radius dependency conflict the night before a cutover.

Key Responsibilities

Architecture & Technical Leadership

• Design and own the target-state cloud architecture for DC Exit / DC Consolidation programmes on AWS, including compute (EC2, ECS, EKS), storage (EBS, EFS, S3), networking (VPC, Transit Gateway), identity (IAM, AWS SSO), and security (AWS Security Hub, GuardDuty, SCPs)
• Lead application and infrastructure discovery using AWS Application Discovery Service (ADS), Migration Evaluator, and dependency mapping to produce migration-ready groupings and blast radius analysis
• Define migration patterns (rehost via AWS MGN, replatform to RDS/EKS, refactor to Lambda/containers, retire, replace with SaaS) per workload with clear technical rationale and risk assessment
• Produce Architecture Decision Records (ADRs), High-Level Designs (HLDs), and Low-Level Designs (LLDs) to programme-grade quality, aligned to the AWS Well-Architected Framework
• Govern architectural consistency across migration waves and enforce AWS Landing Zone / Control Tower guardrails throughout the transition

Licensing Portability & Compliance

• Lead licensing portability strategy for DC exit - BYOL (Bring Your Own Licence) for Windows Server and SQL Server on EC2, AWS Licence Manager configuration, OEM licence impact analysis, and SPLA transition planning for MSP-operated environments moving to AWS
• Advise on AWS Dedicated Hosts as the mechanism for BYOL compliance for Windows Server and SQL Server (per-socket/per-core licence models), ensuring licence counts are correctly mapped to Dedicated Host instance families
• Design licence governance controls using AWS Licence Manager rules, resource tagging strategies via AWS Config, and integration with third-party SAM tooling (Flexera, Snow Software) to prevent compliance drift post-migration
• Engage the AWS account team and AWS Partner Network (APN) to maximise programme value through AWS Migration Acceleration Programme (MAP) funding, AWS Credits, and AWS Professional Services co-delivery

Network Transformation

• Design target-state hybrid network architectures on AWS: AWS Transit Gateway (TGW) as the centralised routing hub, AWS Direct Connect (dedicated and hosted connections), Site-to-Site VPN as failover, and SD-WAN integration with TGW Connect
• Define internet egress and traffic inspection strategy for the post-DC state, replacing DC-based security perimeters with AWS Network Firewall, AWS Gateway Load Balancer (GWLB) with third-party NVAs (Palo Alto, Fortinet), and AWS WAF
• Lead DNS transformation planning - Amazon Route 53 Private Hosted Zones, Route 53 Resolver (inbound/outbound endpoints), split-horizon DNS - and IP addressing strategy for migration with minimal re-IP using AWS IPAM
• Design VPC architecture across accounts and regions: hub-and-spoke or flat TGW models, VPC sharing via AWS RAM, and PrivateLink for service consumption without public exposure
• Ensure latency-sensitive workloads (ERP, payments, OT/SCADA) are isolated in dedicated VPCs with appropriate Direct Connect SIFs and QoS, and their connectivity requirements validated pre-cutover

Migration Programme Delivery

• Own the migration wave plan using AWS Migration Hub as the central tracking plane - sequencing, dependency groupings, rollback criteria, and cutover playbooks across programmes of 500+ workloads
• Lead rehost migrations using AWS Application Migration Service (MGN) for agent-based lift-and-shift, and AWS Server Migration Service (SMS) or AWS VMware Cloud on AWS (VMC) for VMware estate migration
• Define and enforce go/no-go criteria for each migration wave, including pre-flight AWS MGN replication lag thresholds, post-cutover smoke test suites, and DNS TTL management during cutover windows
• Manage and resolve technical blockers across infrastructure, networking, security, and application teams during wave execution
• Ensure regulated workloads (financial services, public sector) are handled with appropriate regulatory notifications, BCP/DR evidence updated in AWS Resilience Hub, and audit trails via AWS CloudTrail

FinOps & Cost Governance

• Build pre-migration cost models using AWS Migration Evaluator and AWS Pricing Calculator, incorporating BYOL savings on Dedicated Hosts, Savings Plans and Reserved Instance pricing, S3 storage tiering, and data transfer / egress cost assumptions
• Establish a FinOps operating model - visibility via AWS Cost Explorer and Cost and Usage Reports (CUR), accountability through AWS account-level tagging and chargeback, optimisation via Compute Optimizer and Savings Plans, governance via AWS Budgets and anomaly detection
• Conduct post-migration right-sizing reviews using AWS Compute Optimizer recommendations and Trusted Advisor checks to close the gap between business case projections and actual AWS spend

Stakeholder & Vendor Management

• Act as the primary technical authority for client stakeholders up to CTO / CIO level, translating complex AWS architectural decisions into clear business outcomes
• Lead multi-vendor technical governance - defining interface agreements, RACI frameworks, and joint testing protocols across SIs, MSPs, and AWS
• Manage AWS account team, network vendors (Direct Connect providers, SD-WAN), and third-party migration tooling vendors as an integrated programme team

Required Skills & Experience

Essential

• 8+ years of experience in cloud architecture, with a significant portion focused on large-scale migration programmes (DC Exit, DC consolidation, or cloud-first transformation) on AWS
• Deep hands-on expertise in AWS compute and migration services: EC2 (including Dedicated Hosts for BYOL), AWS Application Migration Service (MGN), AWS Migration Hub, AWS Application Discovery Service (ADS), and AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)
• Demonstrable expertise in AWS licensing portability: BYOL on Dedicated Hosts (Windows Server and SQL Server per-socket/per-core models), AWS Licence Manager configuration, OEM licence restrictions, and SPLA transition planning for MSP colo environments
• Network transformation experience: AWS Transit Gateway, Direct Connect (dedicated and hosted), VPC design (hub-and-spoke, shared VPCs), Route 53 Resolver, AWS Network Firewall, and SD-WAN integration with TGW Connect
• Proven experience designing and executing migration wave plans for estates of 500+ VMs in enterprise or regulated environments, using AWS Migration Hub as the tracking plane
• AWS Landing Zone / Control Tower design and guardrail enforcement across multi-account organisations
• FinOps experience: AWS Cost Explorer, Cost and Usage Reports (CUR), Compute Optimizer, Savings Plans, and pre-migration cost modelling using AWS Migration Evaluator
• Strong technical documentation skills - ADRs, HLDs, LLDs, cutover playbooks, and AWS Well-Architected Review outputs to consulting-grade standard
• Experience operating in multi-vendor programme environments (SI, MSP, AWS account team triangles)

Highly Desirable

• Hands-on experience with VMware Cloud on AWS (VMC on AWS) as a migration accelerator for VMware-heavy DC estates
• Experience with AWS Outposts for hybrid workloads that cannot fully exit on-prem, and AWS Local Zones for latency-sensitive edge workloads
• Experience with third-party migration tooling: Zerto on AWS, Carbonite Migrate, CloudEndure (now MGN), or PlateSpin
• Container and modernisation experience: Amazon EKS, Amazon ECS, AWS App2Container (A2C) for containerising legacy applications during DC exit
• Azure exposure - useful for programmes with workloads that are split across hyperscalers

Certifications

CertificationStatus NotesAWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional Required Core requirement at this level AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate Expected Assumed as prerequisite to Professional AWS Certified Advanced Networking - Specialty Highly Desirable Essential for network transformation-heavy programmes AWS Certified Security - Specialty Highly Desirable For regulated and public sector programmes AWS Cloud Practitioner Expected Foundational - assumed at this level TOGAF / ArchiMate Desirable Enterprise architecture governance contexts Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305) Desirable For multi-cloud or Azure-adjacent programmes

Competency Framework

CompetencyBehavioural Indicators at Senior LevelTechnical Depth Provides technically precise answers without being prompted; anticipates second-order consequences of architectural decisions Risk Ownership Proactively surfaces programme risks before they become issues; defines rollback criteria and escalation paths without being asked Stakeholder Influence Can translate technical complexity into business language for C-suite; influences without authority across vendor teams Delivery Pragmatism Makes pragmatic trade-off decisions under time pressure; knows when 'good enough now' beats 'perfect later' Continuous Learning Stays current with AWS service releases and deprecations; proactively shares knowledge with programme teams and clients via internal tech talks or runbook updates

What We Offer

• Lead architect role on high-visibility, enterprise-scale DC Exit programmes for FTSE 100 and public sector clients on AWS
• Direct access to AWS Migration Acceleration Programme (MAP) funding, AWS ProServe co-delivery, and AWS account team engineering support
• Structured career progression into Principal Architect or Cloud Practice Lead roles
• Certification support - AWS exam costs, study leave, and training budget (A Cloud Guru / Pluralsight / re:Invent access)
• Hybrid working model - programme site presence balanced with remote working
• Competitive salary, performance bonus, and pension scheme