Technical Architect

Financial Conduct Authority; City of Edinburgh; Hybrid; GBP 72,000 - 105,000; Full time

Job summary

A regulatory body is seeking a proficient Technical Architect in Edinburgh. The role involves collaborating on architecture design, ensuring the delivery of integrated solutions, and adhering to technical standards. Candidates must have experience with solution architecture, stakeholder engagement, and knowledge of ArchiMate and UML. The position offers competitive salary and hybrid working options.

Benefits

28 days holiday plus bank holidays

Private healthcare

Non-contributory pension

Life assurance

Income protection

Qualifications

• Experience working as a Solution or Technical Architect, applying frameworks and tools.
• Proven ability to build trusted relationships with stakeholders.
• Experience designing scalable, reliable platforms focusing on inclusive design.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate on technology design standards for user-friendly integrated solutions.
• Design and assess reliable software architectures.
• Prepare structured architectural materials for growth and innovation.

Skills

Solution or Technical Architect experience

Stakeholder engagement

Designing public-facing applications

Understanding of architectural concepts

Solution architecture skills

Cross-functional architecture understanding

Tools

ArchiMate

UML

Job description

Overview

Technical Architect

Division – Data, Technology & Innovation (DTI)
Department – Strategy & Architecture

Salary – National (Edinburgh and Leeds) ranging from £72,100 to £105,000 and London £79,300 to £115,000 pro rata (salary offered will be based on skills and experience)

About the FCA

The FCA regulates the conduct of 45,000 firms in the UK to ensure our financial markets are honest, fair and competitive. About the FCA.

What will you be doing?

Strategy & Architecture’s purpose is to help translate the FCA vision into a coherent strategy, ensuring we have the right enterprise architecture to support delivery. We ensure we have the right roadmap, with the right solutions, and the best investment case.

The DTI & Operations Squad, within S&A’s Architecture Consultancy team, provides architecture capability support to the business area and architecture support to the wider portfolio – in total the Squad supports DTI, Operations, and Risk & Compliance Oversight divisions plus the Payment Systems Regulator, our Chief Executive Office, and the Bank of England.

Our Technical Architects play a valued role within the Squad, supporting the successful delivery of the DTI & OPS portfolio. You will contribute to the creation of Domain Roadmaps and provide architectural support aligned with Enterprise Architecture principles and enterprise-wide blueprints. You will:

• Collaborate on the co-creation and adoption of inclusive technology design standards that support user-friendly, integrated solutions across a range of platforms and systems.
• Contribute to the design and assessment of reliable software and hardware architectures, considering risk, cost, and alignment with evolving business needs
• Strengthen solution outcomes by offering supportive architectural input and ensuring clear traceability from concept to implementation
• Prepare clear, structured architectural materials - such as domain roadmaps, integration approaches, and design principles - that encourage scalable growth and innovation
• Help uphold architectural governance practices that promote consistency, creativity, and accountability across teams
• Foster a culture of learning and continuous improvement by enhancing architectural approaches and supporting the development of peers within the architecture community

What you will get from the role

• Gain hands-on experience across a diverse portfolio of projects in Data, AI, and Operations, expanding your expertise in multiple areas
• Contribute to impactful initiatives that harness innovative technologies to solve complex, enterprise-level challenges
• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, enriching your knowledge and enhancing your strategic thinking
• Benefit from a strong commitment to your professional growth, with access to certifications, workshops, and industry events, all within a culture that champions continuous learning and supports your career development
• Join an inclusive, forward-thinking team that values collaboration, adaptability, and long-term success for all its members

Which skills are required?

We are a Disability Confident Employer; therefore, disabled people or individuals with long-term conditions who best meet the minimum criteria for a role will go through to the next stage of the recruitment process (to learn more about the Disability Confident Scheme, see the organisation’s information).

Minimum

• Experience working as a Solution or Technical Architect including experience applying recognised frameworks and tools to co-create resilient technical designs, support evolving architecture roadmaps, and contributing to the delivery of complex, multi-tier systems
• Experienced in stakeholder engagement and building trusted relationships with internal and external partners, encouraging collaborative discussions, aligning cross-functional teams, and communicating architectural decisions with clarity to support shared strategic outcomes
• Proven experience designing and delivering scalable, reliable, and secure platforms for public-facing applications, with a focus on inclusive design, modern architecture practices, and continuous improvement

Essential

• You understand architectural concepts, methodologies and mapping approaches and have proficient knowledge of ArchiMate and UML
• You have solution architecture skills (i.e. Data, Application, and Infrastructure)
• You can think beyond your specific area of architecture with experience developing solutions that consider other architecture specialisms across the business, including business, data, service, and security architecture

Our Values & Diversity

We are proud to be an inclusive employer, and our ambition is to cultivate a culture for all employees that respects their individual strengths, views, and experiences. We believe that our differences and similarities enable us to be a better organisation – one that makes better decisions, drives innovation, and delivers better regulation.

Within the workplace you will have access to various employee resource groups which aim to promote and achieve a healthy work / life balance and support our diversity ambitions.

Did you know? 50% of our Executive Committee were the first in their family to attend university.

The FCA is committed to achieving greater diversity across all levels of the organisation. Given this, we particularly welcome applications from women, minority ethnic, disabled, and neurodivergent candidates for our Technical Architect role.

Benefits of working at the FCA

• 28 days holiday per year plus bank holidays
• Hybrid working (work from home up to 60% of your time)
• Private healthcare with Bupa
• A non-contributory Pension of at least 8% of basic salary each month (there are several contribution levels that increase depending on your age – up to 12% a month once you reach age 35)
• Life assurance of eight times your basic salary
• Income protection

We also have a competitive flexible benefits scheme which gives you the opportunity to create a personalised benefits package, tailored to suit your lifestyle.

We welcome applications from candidates who are looking for flexible arrangements. Many of our staff work flexibly including working part-time, staggered hours, and job shares. We can’t promise to give you exactly what you want but we can explore what might work best for both sides.

Follow this link to see what life is like at the FCA - Life at the FCA

Application Support

We are dedicated to removing barriers and ensuring our application process is accessible to everyone. We offer a range of adjustments to make your application experience as comfortable and straightforward as possible.

If you have an accessibility need, disability, or condition requiring changes to the recruitment process, please contact your recruiter using the details below and they will be happy to discuss this further with you.

Useful Information and Timeline

• This role is graded as: Technical Specialist - Regulatory
• When submitting your application, please tailor your CV to highlight how you meet the minimum and essential requirements above
• Advert Closing: Midnight 24 September (please apply before 11.59pm 23 September)
• Shortlist: 26 September
• Technical Interview & Presentation: 02 & 03 October
• Final Interview: 13 & 14 October

Your Recruiter will discuss the process in detail with you during screening for the role, therefore, please make them aware if you are going to be unavailable for any date during this time.

Got a question?

If you are interested in learning more about the role, please contact Steve Christopher on [e-mail]

Applications must be submitted through our online portal. Applications sent via email will not be accepted