Solutions Architect II

Ellucian; Abu Dhabi; On-site; AED 300,000 - 420,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days annual leave

Flight allowance

Private medical cover

Thrive Flex program

Charitable days

Job summary

Ellucian is seeking a Solution Architect to lead end-to-end design for SIS implementations in the Middle East. You will own functional and technical architectures, guide discovery, and ensure alignment with institutional strategy and Ellucian standards.

You will partner with Product, Architecture, Integration, Delivery, and Project Management teams to drive value realization, champion responsible AI-enhanced delivery, and mentor delivery professionals across multiple projects.

Qualifications

• Minimum 7 years' experience in higher education, SIS/ERP, professional services, or enterprise architecture.
• Demonstrated ability to translate complex requirements into architecture across ERP, SIS, and CRM environments.
• Middle East market experience preferred, ideally GCC/Levant/Egypt; international experience beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Analyze objectives and translate them into a coherent future-state SIS solution.
• Own end-to-end architecture including cross-product integrations and data considerations.
• Lead workshops to align design with product, architecture, and delivery teams.
• Define design principles, reusable patterns, and governance checkpoints to ensure value realization.
• Mentor capability-stream consultants to improve solution quality.

Skills

Excellent communication

Stakeholder-management

Documentation skills

Presentation skills

Problem-solving

Analytical skills

Education

TOGAF qualification

ArchiMate knowledge

BPMN 2.0

BizzDesign

Tools

ArchiMate

BPMN 2.0

BizzDesign

Job description

About Ellucian

Ellucian powers innovation for higher education, partnering with approximately 3,000 customers across 50 countries, serving more than 21 million students. Ellucian's AI-powered platform, trained on the richest dataset available in higher education, drives efficiency, personalized experiences, and strengthened engagement for all students, faculty and staff. Fueled by decades of experience with a singular focus on the unique needs of learning institutions, the Ellucian platform features best-in-class SaaS capabilities and delivers insights needed now and into the future. These solutions and services span the entire student lifecycle, including data-rich tools for student recruitment, enrollment, and retention to workforce analytics, fundraising, and alumni engagement. Ellucian's innovative solutions, vast ecosystem of partners and user community of more than 45,000 provides best practices leading to greater institutional success and achieving better student outcomes.

About The Opportunity

The Solution Architect is the lead design authority for Ellucian SIS implementations in the Middle East, owning end-to-end functional and technical solution design from discovery through post-go-live value realization. The role combines deep higher-education process knowledge with strong SIS expertise to shape architecture, design principles, governance, and integrations; challenge requirements; and guide delivery teams to implement fit-for-purpose solutions aligned to institutional strategy and Ellucian standards.

This position reports directly to the Senior Manager based in EMEA.

Where you will make an impact

• Analyze institutional objectives, operating models, and student-lifecycle outcomes, translating requirements into a coherent future-state SIS solution.
• Own end-to-end functional and technical solution architecture, including cross-product integrations and data considerations.
• Lead discovery, design, alignment, and solution-assurance workshops; make prescriptive recommendations and challenge non-standard or custom requirements using product, value, and risk reasoning.
• Maintain alignment across capability streams, including admissions, curriculum, registration, progression, graduation, integrations, reporting, and data.
• Validate designs with Product, Architecture, Integration, Delivery, and Project Management to align roadmap, standards, scope, risks, dependencies, and decisions.
• Define design principles, reusable patterns, guardrails, and assurance checkpoints; govern delivery so solutions are implemented as architected and changes are assessed for impact and value.
• Continuously improve delivery using standardization, automation, reusable assets, templates, and responsible AI-assisted methods to reduce manual effort, rework, cycle time, and non-value-added administration.
• Build and maintain reusable playbooks, accelerators, and solution patterns across projects and customers.
• Act as the principal solution liaison for customers, internal teams, and partners, and represent Services in cross-functional forums.
• Guide and mentor capability-stream consultants, strengthening solution quality and product knowledge across the delivery team.
• Conduct post-implementation reviews, assess value realization, and recommend ongoing improvements.

What Will You Bring

• Minimum 7 years' experience in higher education, SIS/ERP, professional services, or enterprise architecture, including at least 5 years in technical or functional roles; SIS or comparable higher-education experience strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated experience shaping strategic and business requirements with customers and translating them into solutions across complex ERP, SIS, and/or CRM environments.
• Middle East market experience preferred, ideally across the GCC, Levant, or Egypt; broader international experience beneficial.
• Proven customer-facing consulting experience across multiple organizations, with excellent communication, presentation, stakeholder-management, technical-management, and documentation skills.
• Demonstrated ability to adopt new tools and technologies, including automation and AI-enabled capabilities, responsibly to improve delivery quality and productivity.
• Willingness to travel up to 40%.
• Enterprise architecture or modelling expertise is advantageous; TOGAF or similar qualification with familiarity with ArchiMate, BPMN 2.0, and BizzDesign.
• Deep understanding of higher-education operating models, SIS processes, applications, data, integrations, and technology, with the ability to design and assess solutions at a credible level of detail.
• Ability to quickly identify cross-functional institutional impacts and translate them into clear solution decisions.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and decision-making skills, with sound commercial and delivery judgment when prioritizing competing requirements.
• Strong knowledge of the full software lifecycle and a continuous-improvement mindset, applying standardization, automation, and AI-assisted approaches responsibly to improve efficiency, quality, and customer outcomes.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, influencing, planning, and organizational skills, adapting information to the audience.
• Self-motivated and collaborative, able to work independently while leading and influencing across teams.

What makes #Ellucianlife

• 25 days annual leave plus public holidays
• End of service gratuity and flight allowance contributions
• Private medical and dental cover for self, spouse and 2 dependents
• Thrive Flex Program that allows you to contribute towards your health, financial or learning interests
• 5 charitable days to support the community that supports us
• Diversity and inclusion programs that promote employee resource groups such as: Women in Technology, Lean In Circles and Go Green to name a few.
• Parental leave
• Employee referral bonuses to encourage the addition of great new people to the team
• We Foster a learning culture with:
• Tuition Reimbursement Assistance
• Professional development opportunities

Diversity and inclusion programs that promote employee resource groups such as: Women in Technology, Lean In Circles and Go Green to name a few.