AI Architecture Lead — Platform & Governance

The Citation Group; Basingstoke; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

The Citation Group is seeking an AI Architect to own the AI/Data architecture across delivery streams, coordinating with the Chief AI Officer. You will steer patterns for retrieval, grounding, and multi‑step workflows while balancing cost, security, and governance.

This role requires senior hands‑on experience and strong architectural leadership across Product and Engineering. Based in the UK, the position reports to the Chief AI Officer and sits within the AI/Data architecture area, influencing

Qualifications

• Senior — 6+ years in software, data, or platform engineering/architecture with hands-on production AI experience.
• Ability to influence across teams and drive architectural decisions.
• Strong understanding of AI model strategies, data architecture, and cost governance.

Responsibilities

• Define AI architectural standards and patterns for Citation's AI systems.
• Own the design patterns for AI retrieval, grounding, and tool-calling routines; document decisions for engineering use.
• Lead model selection discussions (open-weight vs closed) and apply a formal decision framework.
• Assess data readiness and integration across Salesforce, Atlas, Snowflake, and related layers.
• Oversee production quality, observability, and cost governance for AI initiatives.
• Collaborate with Delivery and Architecture Review Board to ensure architectural alignment and risk mitigation.

Job description

The Citation Group is seeking an AI Architect to own the AI/Data architecture across delivery streams, coordinating with the Chief AI Officer. You will steer patterns for retrieval, grounding, and multi‑step workflows while balancing cost, security, and governance.

This role requires senior hands‑on experience and strong architectural leadership across Product and Engineering. Based in the UK, the position reports to the Chief AI Officer and sits within the AI/Data architecture area, influencing