Lead Architect - Brand new function. Insurance

JR United Kingdom; Alderley Edge; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Nixor is seeking Lead Architects with expertise in solutions architecture and experience in the life insurance industry to join a new architecture team at the UK's largest Mutual Pensions company. The role involves overseeing technical transitions to modern microservices architecture, offering a unique opportunity for impactful contributions in a supportive environment.

Qualifications

• Strong background in solutions architecture (Applications, Cloud, Security).
• Experience modernizing legacy systems into microservices architectures.
• Prior experience in the Insurance Industry (Life Insurance ideally).

Responsibilities

• Provide technical oversight across the domain.
• Lead the architectural transition from a monolithic system to microservices.
• Act as a mentor to junior architects.

Skills

Solutions Architecture

Microservices Architecture

Application Security

Cloud Infrastructure

User-Centric Design

Job description

Social network you want to login/join with:

col-narrow-left

Client:

Nixor

Location:

Job Category:

Other

-

EU work permit required:

Yes

col-narrow-right

Job Views:

3

Posted:

07.06.2025

Expiry Date:

22.07.2025

col-wide

Job Description:

Nixor are currently seeking Principal/Lead Architects with Life Insurance / Assurance industry knowledge, to join a newly formed architecture team for the UKs largest Mutual Pensions company. This is a rare opportunity to help shape the future of their technology landscape as they transition from a legacy, "spaghetti" architecture to a modern, microservices-based target architecture over the coming years.

About the Role

As a Lead Architect, you will take full ownership of your domain, overseeing applications, cloud infrastructure, and services. This is a brand new team, who are inheriting a legacy "spaghetti" architecture, but have been given the remit (and funding) to turn that into a modern Micro-services Architecture.

These roles sit at the start of a transformative journey, offering you the chance to make a meaningful, lasting impact.

The initial value stream mapping has been completed, and the board has fully endorsed the transformation. With a clear vision of the target state, no third-party dependencies, and all work being done in-house, this is an exciting and well-supported initiative.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide technical oversight across your assigned domain
• Work closely with the board and other senior stakeholders
• Lead the architectural transition from a complex monolithic system to a modern microservices architecture
• Define and implement standard patterns and practices for application development, security, observability, and more
• Act as a mentor and coach to junior architects and technical teams
• Be the technical point of contact for your business unit

Why Join?

When asked why the Director of Architecture joined 6 months ago, the response was:

"I've never worked anywhere where you can make such an impact so quickly. We're building this team from the top down, and these Principal Architects will be the first hires—I want to create a high-performing architectural function. and the business are fully supporting me"

They also have:

• A large change budget is in place, with access to a significant portion of it
• Minimal internal politics – the groundwork and stakeholder alignment have already been done
• A chance to work customer-first, focusing on delivering meaningful, user-centric designs from day one

We’re seeking experienced Architects with:

• A strong background in solutions architecture (Covering Applications, Cloud, Security etc)
• Demonstrated experience modernizing legacy systems into microservices-based architectures
• Deep knowledge of standard design patterns, cloud infrastructure, and application security
• Prior experience in the the Insurance Industry (Life Insurance ideally)
• The ability to communicate effectively with technical and non-technical stakeholders

These are hands-on leadership roles that blend strategic influence with day-to-day architectural contribution. You’ll work alongside Business Architects, leaving you more head space to guide the technical direction of your domain.