Solution Architect - 12 months' Fixed Term Contract

Location: Harlow, Essex

Time Type: Full time

Job Description

Date Posted:

Country:

Location:

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Job Title: Solution Architect

Grade: P4

Function: DT

Location: Harlow (Hybrid)

Clearance Required: SC Eligible

Duration: Fixed Term Contract – 12 months

Hours: Full Time – 37 hours per week

Raytheon UK

At Raytheon UK, we take immense pride in being a leader in defence and aerospace technology. As an employer, we are dedicated to fuelling innovation, nurturing talent, and fostering a culture of excellence.

Joining our team means being part of an organisation that shapes the future of national security whilst investing in your growth and personal development. We provide a collaborative environment, abundant opportunities for professional development, and a profound sense of purpose in what we do. Together, we are not just advancing technology; we're building a community committed to safeguarding a safer and more connected world.

About the role:

We are seeking an experienced IT Solution Architect to join our Digital Technology function within the Architecture team. This role will play a critical part in transforming the organisation’s financial reporting platforms, working as a key member of a broader transformation programme that includes internal teams and external consultancy partners.

Under the direction of the Lead Architect, the Solution Architect will serve as a trusted point of reference for the programme, providing clear architectural guidance and ensuring cohesive, compliant design across application, data, security, and integration domains. This transformation will operate

within a highly regulated environment, requiring thoughtful design and rigorous governance.

Responsibilities:

Architecture & Design:

• Develop robust solution architectures for the modernisation and integration of financial reporting platforms.
• Ensure solutions meet functional and non-functional requirements including performance, reliability, auditability, and regulatory compliance.
• Produce architectural artefacts such as conceptual and logical designs, integration models, interface definitions, and traceable design decisions.

Collaboration & Technical Leadership:

• Work closely with the Lead Architect to maintain alignment with enterprise architecture standards and strategic technology direction.
• Serve as the architectural point of reference for internal teams and third‑party consultancy partners, helping to guide design decisions and resolve architectural issues.
• Collaborate with finance stakeholders, programme managers, engineers, data specialists, and security teams to ensure shared understanding and alignment.

Data & Security:

• Ensure data models, reporting structures, lineage, and governance standards are incorporated effectively into solution designs.
• Embed strong security‑by‑design principles, including data protection, identity and access management, and secure integration patterns.
• Address regulatory obligations related to financial data, audit requirements, retention, and access control.

Integration & Connected Systems:

• Design integration patterns that connect financial reporting platforms to ERP systems, operational systems, and data platforms.
• Ensure end‑to‑end consistency of financial processes across systems and reporting layers.
• Work with third‑party consultancies to validate integration approaches and ensure alignment with enterprise standards.

Governance & Compliance:

• Apply architectural frameworks such as TOGAF or equivalent to structure design work, rationale, and governance.
• Support architecture governance forums and ensure adherence to architectural policies and regulatory requirements.
• Assess risks associated with solutions and ensure mitigation strategies are in place, especially within the constraints of a highly regulated environment.

Candidate Requirements: 

 Essential Skills:

• Proven experience as a Solution Architect within large-scale transformation programmes, ideally involving finance or reporting platforms.
• Deep understanding of financial reporting systems, data models, and integration patterns.
• Competence with enterprise architecture frameworks (TOGAF or similar).
• Demonstrable experience in:
  • Application architecture for reporting and analytics platforms
  • Data architecture, lineage, quality, and governance
  • Security architecture fundamentals
  • API, integration, and middleware technologies
• Experience working with or alongside third‑party consultancy partners in a structured programme environment.
• Experience operating in a highly regulated sector (e.g., finance, pharma, energy, government).

Desirable Skills:

• Knowledge of cloud data platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP) and modern reporting/visualisation tools.
• Experience with modern data engineering approaches (streaming, event-driven architectures, data lakes/lakehouses).
• Understanding of financial controls, compliance frameworks, and audit processes.

Personal Attributes:

• Strong analytical thinking and ability to translate business needs into structured technical designs.
• Excellent communication skills, with the ability to engage technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Collaborative, pragmatic, and able to work confidently across organisational boundaries.
• Structured, detail‑oriented, and capable of balancing depth with strategic perspective.

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