Solutions Architect

Thales; Crawley; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the defense sector seeks a Solutions Architect to develop and specify solution architectures for underwater systems. This role emphasizes technical proficiency and a collaborative mindset, offering the chance to impact significant projects within a dynamic team. Join us and develop your career with Thales as we innovate for the future.

Benefits

Flexible working hours

Career development opportunities

Support for well-being

Qualifications

• Experience with agile development teams.
• Collaborative working with cross-industry teams desirable.
• Member of a professional body.

Responsibilities

• Lead requirements activities from cradle to grave.
• Work with integration teams to define acceptance criteria.
• Generate specifications from customer needs.

Skills

Requirements Management

System Engineering

Interpersonal Skills

Communication

Education

Engineering Degree

Tools

DOORS

MS Office

Job description

Direct message the job poster from Thales

Thales people provide armed forces customers with operational advantage at every decisive moment throughout the mission. Defence and armed forces customers rely on us to deliver the full range of defence mission systems solutions at land, sea, and air. Our platforms extend across the battlespace including Above and Sonar, Electronic Combat, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance systems.

Together we offer fantastic opportunities for committed employees to learn and develop their career with us. At Thales UK, we research, develop, and supply technology and services that impact the lives of millions of people each day to make life better, and keep us safer. We innovate across the major industries of Aerospace, Defence, Security and Space. Your health and well-being matters to us and that’s why we offer you the flexibility to do what’s important to you; whether that’s part time hours, job sharing, home working, or the ability to flex your start and finish times. Where possible, we support a working pattern that suits your lifestyle and helps you reach your ambitions.

Primary Purpose of the Role:

To specify and develop solution architectures for underwater systems (including sonar and combat management systems). To specify & define systems to meet the project needs, optimising the design through trade-offs to maximise customer and Thales value. Work closely with the Customer and Thales Engineering teams to align the solution and detail architectures.

Principal Relationships:

As part of the Thales Systems Engineering team you will interact with the following key roles:

• Major Stakeholders / Clients
• Designers at all levels
• Bid team members
• Project team members
• Integration team members
• Project Planners
• Sales and Marketing

Key Responsibilities and Tasks:

The list below is not exhaustive nor will individuals be expected to be able to undertake all of them. They are given as a guide as to the expected duties of the grade:

• Lead requirements activities from cradle (initial definition) to grave (formal validation and acceptance)
• Work closely with the integration/testing teams and customer/suppliers to define acceptance criteria and ensure valid evidence is gathered to verify and validate requirements, captured in a suitable matrix (RVVM/VCRI/VCRM….)
• Generate specifications from high-level and loosely defined customer needs
• Taking complex customer requirements and deriving them into product/subsystem requirements
• Lead requirements negotiations with customers, suppliers and internal work package managers
• Identify opportunities and clearly articulate as new/modified requirements
• Work closely with integration team lead to define requirements/validation strategy, including contribution to the associated management plans (EMP, SEMP, Acquisition Plans etc)
• Interface with the client, to define standards and architectural frameworks.
• Understanding and embracing customer needs and advising customers.
• Keep abreast of technical development both within and outside of the company.
• Assist the Head of Engineering Delivery to strengthen the engineering capabilities

Skills:

• Deep understanding of the characteristics of good requirements – able to coach others
• Understand the different requirement types, priorities and verification methods
• Experienced user of requirements management tools (e.g. DOORS)
• Competent user of MS Office in order to efficiently manipulate requirements documents between DOORS, Excel and Word
• Experience of agile development teams (e.g. Scrum) to prioritise requirements for development teams
• Able to use a range of IT tools.
• Has a sound ability to define the use of System Engineering tools, in particular modelling and requirements management.
• Has knowledge of configuration control processes.
• Working knowledge of project plans.
• Has knowledge of Engineering Safety Management in the context of architectural design
• A sound understanding of naval system architectures

Experience:

• Experience of collaborative working with cross-industry/customer teams, desirable for this to be multi-national.
• Sound knowledge of underwater systems deployed in UK maritime fleet, with detailed knowledge of at least one combat system equipment.
• The post holder should have strong interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate at all levels in the spoken and written word. A good outward appearance, self-motivation and the ability to work under pressure are vital.
• The success of the Systems Engineering job family relies on the interaction of its engineers at all levels, therefore evidence of team working is required.

Values & Behaviours:

• Innovate – Be motivated to search for novel and unique design solutions.
• Team working – Maximise the use of the wider Thales community to produce winning solutions.
• Develop people – Be prepared to share your ideas and experience with the wider Thales engineering community.
• Focus on customers – Be driven to deliver quality solutions to clients.
• Safety – Totally embrace the Thales safety culture to provide a safe and healthy working environment for all.
• Ethics - Thales employees must be exemplary in their ethical conduct and social responsibility.
• Job holders will be expected to perform in line with the Thales Code of Practice, Policies and Procedures.

Qualifications and Certification:

• Member of a professional body
• Engineering Degree or equivalent

Financial / Budgetary Responsibility:

• The post holder will be expected to deliver designs/projects to an agreed budget.

In line with Thales' Baseline Security requirements, candidates will be asked to provide evidence of identity, eligibility to work in the UK and employment and/or education history for up to three years. Some vacancies may require full Security Clearance which can require further evidence to be provided. For further details of the evidence required to apply for Baseline and Security Clearance please refer to the Defence Business Services National Security Vetting (DBS NSV) Agency.

At Thales we provide CAREERS and not only jobs. With Thales employing 80,000 employees in 68 countries our mobility policy enables thousands of employees each year to develop their careers at home and abroad, in their existing areas of expertise or by branching out into new fields. Together we believe that embracing flexibility is a smarter way of working.

Thales UK is committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process. We will provide reasonable adjustments and support to ensure neuro-diverse applicants or those with a disability or long-term condition can be their best during the recruitment process. To request an adjustment,if you need this job advert in an alternative format or if you have any questions about the recruitment process, please contact Resourcing Ops for mid to senior roles, or the Early Careers Team for graduate and apprentice roles.

Great journeys start here, apply now!

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Industries

  Defense and Space Manufacturing, Airlines and Aviation, and Manufacturing

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