Platform Architect (Salesforce)

Department Of Education; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 180,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Department Of Education in Melbourne is seeking a Platform Architect (Salesforce) to define and govern the Salesforce architecture, ensuring secure, scalable and sustainable solutions across enterprise platforms.

You will provide technical leadership, guide design decisions, and collaborate with product managers, platform teams and suppliers to maximise Salesforce capabilities within the department's digital ecosystem.

Qualifications

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Information Technology, Computer Science, Software Engineering or related discipline.
• Significant experience in Salesforce architecture, solution design or technical leadership.
• Demonstrated experience designing and governing complex enterprise Salesforce solutions.
• Strong understanding of Salesforce platform architecture, security, data, integration and customization.

Responsibilities

• Define and maintain Salesforce platform architecture, design principles, standards and technical patterns.
• Provide technical leadership across Salesforce solutions, configurations, customisations and enhancements.
• Ensure solutions use Salesforce capabilities effectively and follow platform best practices.
• Guide decisions relating to platform configuration, data models, workflows, automation and application design.
• Assess proposed designs and provide technical recommendations.
• Review and assure technical designs, configurations and customisations.
• Ensure security, privacy, identity and access management, data protection and compliance requirements are addressed.
• Define and guide Salesforce integration patterns and technical interfaces with other enterprise platforms and applications.
• Provide architectural direction for platform upgrades, releases, enhancements and modernisation.
• Identify opportunities to improve platform capability, scalability, performance and maintainability.
• Guide the adoption of new Salesforce capabilities and emerging technologies.
• Ensure architectural decisions support long-term sustainability and evolution of the platform.
• Work with Solution Architect, Platform Manager and Product Managers to translate business priorities into Salesforce capabilities.

Skills

Salesforce architecture

Enterprise design

Security governance

DevOps/Lifecycle

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT or related

Tools

Salesforce

APIs

CI/CD

Job description

Corporate Digital Services (CDS) Branch

Corporate Digital Services (CDS) is responsible for enabling effective operation and transformation of the department through the delivery and management of corporate digital products, platforms and services. The branch partners with corporate business areas and portfolio entities to understand business needs, shape digital solutions and deliver connected, reliable and secure technology experiences for employees. CDS provides strategic leadership across corporate technology, including enterprise business systems, business applications, digital workplace technologies and employee-facing platforms. It brings together business product management, enterprise architecture, demand and portfolio management to ensure technology investment is aligned with business priorities, delivers value and supports continuous improvement. The branch is focused on strengthening the employee experience, improving business processes, enabling collaboration and productivity, and ensuring corporate technology is sustainable, well-governed and fit for the future. Through strong partnerships with business stakeholders, technology providers and other areas of the department, CDS enables better ways of working and contributes to improved outcomes for Victorian students.

Key platforms and applications

• Oracle
• Salesforce
• ServiceNow
• Microsoft 365
• SharePoint
• Power Platform
• Brief Connect
• Canvas LMS
• Atlassian
• Lucid
• Grammarly

The Opportunity

The Platform Architect (Salesforce) is responsible for defining and governing the technical architecture, design and evolution of the department's Salesforce platform and associated capabilities. The role provides specialist technical leadership and architectural guidance to ensure Salesforce solutions are scalable, secure, sustainable and aligned with enterprise architecture, technology standards and business needs. Working closely with the Solution Architect, Platform Manager, Product Managers, business stakeholders and delivery partners, the role ensures Salesforce is designed and implemented effectively, maximises the use of platform capabilities and maintains the integrity of the platform over time.

What you'll do

Platform architecture and design

• Define and maintain Salesforce platform architecture, design principles, standards and technical patterns.
• Provide technical leadership across Salesforce solutions, configurations, customisations and enhancements.
• Ensure solutions use Salesforce capabilities effectively and follow platform best practices.
• Guide decisions relating to platform configuration, data models, workflows, automation and application design.
• Assess proposed designs and provide technical recommendations.

Technical governance and assurance

• Ensure Salesforce solutions align with enterprise architecture, technology standards and approved design principles.
• Review and assure technical designs, configurations and customisations.
• Ensure security, privacy, identity and access management, data protection and compliance requirements are addressed.
• Identify architectural risks, technical debt, unnecessary customisation and opportunities for simplification.
• Contribute to Design Authority and architecture governance processes.

Platform integration and interoperability

• Define and guide Salesforce integration patterns and technical interfaces with other enterprise platforms and applications.
• Ensure Salesforce operates effectively within the Department's broader technology ecosystem.
• Work with integration and data specialists to ensure secure, reliable and sustainable data exchange.
• Consider dependencies across platforms, applications and technology services.

Platform lifecycle and evolution

• Provide architectural direction for platform upgrades, releases, enhancements and modernisation.
• Identify opportunities to improve platform capability, scalability, performance and maintainability.
• Guide the adoption of new Salesforce capabilities and emerging technologies.
• Ensure architectural decisions support the long-term sustainability and evolution of the platform.

Stakeholder and delivery engagement

• Work with the Solution Architect to ensure Salesforce design aligns with end-to-end solution architecture.
• Partner with the Platform Manager on platform strategy, technical health and operational considerations.
• Work with Product Managers to translate business priorities into appropriate Salesforce capabilities.
• Provide technical guidance to developers, administrators, delivery teams and suppliers.
• Ensure technical designs are clearly documented and understood by relevant stakeholders.

Key skills and capabilities

• Deep technical knowledge of Salesforce architecture, platform capabilities and ecosystem.
• Experience designing enterprise Salesforce solutions and complex business applications.
• Strong understanding of Salesforce configuration, customisation, data models, security and automation.
• Knowledge of Salesforce integration patterns, APIs, middleware and data architecture.
• Understanding of enterprise architecture, cloud technologies and technology design standards.
• Experience with platform governance, technical assurance and architecture reviews.
• Understanding of Salesforce release management, environment strategy, DevOps and lifecycle management.
• Ability to assess technical risks, manage technical debt and recommend sustainable design approaches.
• Strong stakeholder engagement, communication and technical influencing skills.

About You

• Technical authority: Demonstrates deep Salesforce expertise and credibility, with the ability to challenge technical decisions and provide sound architectural direction.
• Strategic thinker: Understands the longer-term implications of architecture decisions and plans for platform sustainability and evolution.
• Enterprise mindset: Considers how Salesforce interacts with other enterprise platforms, applications and services.
• Pragmatic problem solver: Balances platform best practice, business needs, complexity, cost and delivery constraints.
• Collaborative: Works effectively with architects, platform teams, suppliers, developers and business stakeholders.
• Strong communicator: Explains complex technical concepts and design decisions clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.

Qualifications and experience

Essential

• Relevant tertiary qualification in Information Technology, Computer Science, Software Engineering or a related discipline, or equivalent professional experience.
• Significant experience in Salesforce architecture, solution design or technical leadership.
• Demonstrated experience designing and governing complex enterprise Salesforce solutions.
• Strong understanding of Salesforce platform architecture, security, data, integration and customisation.
• Experience establishing architecture standards, reviewing technical designs and providing technical assurance.
• Experience working with enterprise technology teams, business stakeholders and external delivery partners.

Desirable

• Salesforce Certified Application Architect or Salesforce Certified System Architect.
• Salesforce Certified Technical Architect (CTA).
• Salesforce Platform Developer II.
• Experience with Salesforce integration technologies and enterprise API architectures.
• Experience in large, complex or government environments.

Why join us?

Join Corporate Digital Services and help shape the future of Salesforce across the Department of Education. You will provide technical leadership over an important enterprise platform, influence architecture and design decisions, and work with talented business and technology teams to deliver scalable, secure and innovative solutions. This is an opportunity to build platform capability, solve complex challenges and make a meaningful contribution to how the Department operates and supports Victorian schools and students. If you want to make a genuine difference at enterprise scale, we'd love to hear from you. For more details regarding this position please see attached position descriptions.

The Department values diversity and inclusion in all forms - gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQ+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

For more information about our work, working for the Department, diversity and inclusion, and our employment conditions visit the Department website and our Diversity and Inclusion page

Applicants requiring adjustments can contact the nominated contact person

Information about the Department of Education's operations and employment conditions can be located at www.education.vic.gov.au.

Applications close on 11:59pm 23 November 2026.