Senior Solution Architect – Complex Systems (MES)

Imec; Vlaams-Brabant; Remote; EUR 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Imec, Leuven-based leader in nanoelectronics, seeks a Senior Solution Architect to own end-to-end architecture for complex MES-enabled systems and guide architectural decisions across multi-system landscapes.

You will enable scalable, reliable designs, mentor engineers, define integration approaches, and balance long-term sustainability with pragmatic delivery in a collaborative research environment.

Qualifications

• Experienced Software or Solution Architect in complex environments.
• Strong systems thinker: connect applications, integrations, data, and operations.
• Comfortable with high-complexity, integration-heavy landscapes.
• Able to translate abstract problems into clear solutions.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end architecture across a complex system landscape (principles, standards, decisions).
• Create clarity where multiple systems, integrations, and constraints interact.
• Define guardrails for scalability, reliability, security, and operability.

Skills

Architectural design

Systems thinking

MES domain

Cross-team collab

Job description

Senior Solution Architect –Complex Systems (MES)

At imec, we are looking for a Senior Solution Architect with a broad technical interest and the ability to navigate complex system landscapes. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys understanding challenging problems, shaping solutions, and driving architectural clarity, and who is motivated to (re)orient towards the MES domain.

You will take architectural ownership within a mission-critical platform manufacturing software solution (OneFab) that supports manufacturing and R&D processes across a highly integrated ecosystem.

Your key contribution is not domain-specific knowledge, but your ability to:

• grasp complexity quickly
• translate ambiguous challenges into structured solutions
• design systems that are robust, scalable, and evolvable

What you will do

Shape and drive architecture

• Own end-to-end architecture across a complex system landscape (principles, standards, and decisions)
• Create clarity in environments where multiple systems, integrations, and constraints interact
• Balance long-term sustainability with pragmatic delivery needs

Work across system boundaries

• Understand and translate complex functional and technical questions into solution designs
• Define and guide integration approaches (APIs, messaging, data flows, system interactions)
• Navigate legacy environments and evolving architectures

Enable scalable and reliable systems

• Define guardrails for scalability, reliability, security, and operability
• Identify and reduce structural complexity and bottlenecks
• Ensure systems remain stable while evolving over time

Act as a technical problem solver

• Dive into complex issues when needed (e.g. cross-system defects, production challenges)
• Analyze root causes and translate them into structural improvements
• Support teams in resolving ambiguity and moving forward

Coach and influence

• Guide engineers and analysts in systems thinking and architectural reasoning
• Help teams make trade-offs transparent and explicitFoster strong engineering practices and pragmatic documentation

What we do for you

We offer you the opportunity to join one of the world’s premier research centers in nanotechnology at its headquarters in Leuven, Belgium. With your talent, passion and expertise, you’ll become part of a team that makes the impossible possible. Together, we shape the technology that will determine the society of tomorrow.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and proud of our open, multicultural, and informal working environment with ample possibilities to take initiative and show responsibility. We commit to supporting and guiding you in this process; not only with words but also with tangible actions. Through imec.academy, 'our corporate university', we actively invest in your development to further your technical and personal growth.

We are aware that your valuable contribution makes imec a top player in its field. Your energy and commitment are therefore appreciated by means of a market appropriate salary with many fringe benefits.

Who you are

Core profile

• Experienced Software or Solution Architect in complex environments
• Strong systems thinker: able to connect applications, integrations, data, and operations
• Comfortable working in high-complexity, integration-heavy landscapes
• Able to understand abstract, ambiguous, and technically challenging problems and translate them into clear solutions
• Background in modernizing legacy systems or platform architecture
• Experience working across multiple teams and stakeholders

Mindset

• Curious and motivated to explore or transition into new domains (e.g. MES)
• Hands-on when needed: able to investigate, analyze, and unblock teams
• Pragmatic: balances ideal architecture with real-world constraints
• Strong communicator: aligns stakeholders and drives decision-making

IMEC and its affiliates will not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from a candidate. IMEC will consider unsolicited referrals and/or resumes submitted by vendors such as search firms, staffing agencies, professional recruiters, fee-based referral services and recruiting agencies (hereafter “Agency”) to have been referred by the Agency free of charge. IMEC will not pay a fee to any Agency that does not have a prior written agreement with IMEC, validated by its HR department, in place regarding a specific job opening and allowing to submit resumes.