Solutions Architect

Company Description

Babble is a Customer Experience-led growth business. As the ultimate Trusted Advisor for cloud-based technologies, we specialize in empowering businesses with the best solutions from the world's leading providers.

We are specialists in:

• Microsoft Modern Work
• Cybersecurity
• Contact Centre Technology
• Mobile Solutions
• Communications & Connectivity

With thousands of customers, we're just scratching the surface of our potential. Many of our clients currently benefit from one or two of our technologies, presenting an incredible opportunity to introduce them to our full suite of market-leading solutions.

Join us on this exciting journey and let's achieve greatness together!

About Us | Leading UK Cloud Solutions Provider | Babble

Job Description

Join Our Dynamic Team as a Solutions Architect! 🌟

Are you passionate about telecoms? Do you thrive in a fast-paced, innovative environment? At Babble, we’re on a mission to be our customer’s most trusted advisor for cloud-based technologies. We’re looking for passionate and talented individuals to join our dynamic team. If so, we have the perfect opportunity for you!

Purpose of the Role

As a Solution Architect at Babble, you will design and deliver high-quality, integrated technology solutions that support the organisation's internal operations, systems and ways of working. Reporting to the Head of Technology, you will work with internal stakeholders to agree requirements, develop solutions, and advise on their technical and commercial implications. You will identify, map and document Babble's technology landscape, including systems and their integrations, owning the systems catalogue and keeping supporting documentation up to date. Where new solutions are developed, you will assess them against the technology strategy, existing ecosystem, industry best practice and other relevant considerations. As a technical leader, you will help develop and implement best-practice architecture, standards and guidelines internally, drawing on new technologies and market trends to deliver positive outcomes for the organisation. You will also line manage the Systems Team, sharing knowledge and mentoring colleagues to build technical capability, and will communicate clearly across audiences from senior leadership to technical SMEs and support staff.

Main Accountabilities

The role holder will be directly accountable for delivering the following, with a hands-on approach where required:

Solution Design & Delivery

• Provide overall solution leadership from design, through delivery, to handover, which may sometimes require hands-on work.
• Operate in either a traditional or agile delivery mode, as and when required.
• Work with senior stakeholders across the business to determine and document solution requirements.
• Work with Technical Leads, SMEs and senior leadership to ensure proposed solutions are both fit for purpose and meet core business needs.
• Promote co-operation and facilitate coordination of all technical and non-technical streams within a programme or project to achieve successful delivery of an integrated solution.
• Direct and coordinate technical SMEs during the design, delivery and implementation phases of a programme or project.
• Determine and understand the dependencies that exist between technical and non-technical solution components to ensure an integrated delivery.

Technology Landscape & Systems Documentation

• Identify, map and document Babble's technology landscape, including systems, applications and the integrations between them.
• Own and maintain the systems catalogue, ensuring it remains an accurate and current record of the organisation's technology estate.
• Ensure documentation relating to systems and interfaces is kept complete, accurate and up to date, and is accessible to relevant stakeholders.
• Where new solutions are developed, assess them against the organisation's technology strategy, the existing ecosystem, industry best practice and other relevant considerations (e.g., security, cost, supportability), ensuring coherence across the wider landscape.
• Proactively identify gaps, overlaps or risks within the technology landscape, and recommend remediation or consolidation where appropriate.

Governance, Documentation & Business Support

• Author documentation including HLD, LLD and Work Packages.
• Support internal business cases and investment proposals for technology initiatives.
• Support the project / programme manager in understanding risks, dependencies, issues and constraints, and the impact these may have on the project or programme.
• Understand the business outcomes a project or programme is targeted to deliver and advise on areas where this is not congruent with the proposed solution.
• Participate and/or lead governance and assurance reviews as appropriate.
• Ensure solutions are subject to the required governance and assurance activities, so they are fit for purpose both technically and commercially.

Leadership & Continuous Improvement

• Line manage, coach and develop the Systems Team, identifying gaps in capacity, capability and resilience, and ensuring skills remain current with modern technologies.
• Be an active member of the wider Technology Team, supporting colleagues via collaborative and transparent peer reviews, audits, assurance and due diligence as required.
• Share knowledge and mentor colleagues across the organisation, supporting the development of internal technical capability.

The Employer reserves the right to amend the employee's job title or description to meet its business needs subject to giving the employee reasonable notice.

Qualifications

• Level 5 qualification or equivalent experience in a relevant technical field, together with relevant recognised IT industry qualifications (e.g., Microsoft, TOGAF) or equivalent experience.
• A proven track record in a lead technical position, including team management and leadership experience directing technical SMEs.
• Significant experience as a technical lead, delivering complex technical solutions on high impact projects.
• Substantial experience of Microsoft products (e.g., Azure, M365) and complementary technologies, with extensive experience implementing and integrating technical solutions based on Microsoft technologies.
• Significant experience of complex Windows and application design and implementation.
• Significant experience designing and implementing solutions based on the Microsoft Azure platform and integrating other products and cloud services within these solutions.
• Breadth of solution architecture knowledge spanning Applications, Data, Technology, Security and Service, and comfortable combining disparate solution areas to create an integrated solution spanning technical and non-technical (e.g., commercial) domains.
• Production of procedural documentation and experience utilising ITIL best practice.
• Ability to create HLD, LLD and Work Package documentation.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to communicate solution concepts clearly and concisely to a non-technical audience.
• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with excellent prioritisation and time management skills, and the ability to work across several projects simultaneously.
• Subject matter expertise, coaching and mentoring skills, including experience line managing and developing a technical team.
• Excellent knowledge of enterprise systems, hosting and security operations, and a strong understanding of the IT industry, particularly tools, services and standards.
• Understanding of the internal and external drivers which impact technology and systems, and of ICT strategy, roadmaps and standards.
• Experience identifying, mapping and documenting technology landscapes, systems and their integrations, and maintaining systems catalogues or equivalent records as a single source of truth.
• Able to assess new solutions against an organisation's technology strategy, existing ecosystem and industry best practice, balancing this with commercial and delivery considerations.
• Able to work collaboratively as part of a project team, managing and executing work in a structured manner in line with project deliverables.

What Else Looks Good For This Role

• Understanding of marketplace trends within the technology sector, and how to apply them to add value internally.
• Experience and/or certification in architecture frameworks such as TOGAF.
• Experience using EA tools and modelling notations such as ArchiMate, BPMN, DMN, CMMN, UML, etc.
• Experience and/or certification in other IT frameworks such as ITIL, IT4IT, SAFe and/or COBIT.
• Experience of Agile working methods and DevOps, e.g., Azure DevOps Services.
• Understanding of how to plan the migration and transformation of an environment from a baseline to a target state using Enterprise Architecture techniques, including migrating payloads from on premises to cloud.
• General infrastructure knowledge in both virtual and physical environments, including on premises products and technologies in addition to cloud technologies.
• Awareness of architecture tools, and experience of enacting and undertaking governance and assurance activities.

Additional Information

Why work for Babble?

• Pension: Statutory pension provision
• Sick Leave: 20 days’ statutory sick pay
• Work Environment: Full‑time, office‑based role
• Parental Leave: Statutory maternity and paternity leave

The recruitment journey

We want to fill this role quickly, but we want to get the right person. The recruitment process will consist of a screening call. If you proceed past this then you will have an interview over Teams and possibly a follow up interview and competency testing depending on the role requirements.

Direct Candidates Only

Babble | Leading UK Cloud Solutions Provider