Technical Architect (Azure)

Howden; Budock Water; Remote; GBP 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

25 days holiday

Life Assurance up to 4x salary

Income protection up to 5 years

Contributory pension - 4%/5%

Healthcare Cashplan

Gym discounts

Cycle to Work discounts

Technology purchase discounts

Employee discounts

EAP

Job summary

Howden is seeking a Technical Architect (Azure) to join the Cloud Engineering & Architecture team. You will define and evolve the core Azure cloud platform, enabling product and delivery teams to move fast with secure, scalable solutions.

You will collaborate with Cloud Engineers, DevOps and Delivery to design reusable components, self-service capabilities and governance guardrails that balance speed with compliance.

Qualifications

• Strong experience designing, building, and operating cloud platforms in Microsoft Azure.
• Deep understanding of cloud platform architecture, including identity, networking, security, monitoring, and governance.
• Hands-on experience with Infrastructure as Code, ideally using Bicep.
• Strong working knowledge of CI/CD pipelines, including platform-level templates and guardrails.
• Experience designing and evolving Azure Landing Zones or equivalent enterprise-scale foundations.
• Clear understanding of cloud security principles, including identity design, least-privilege access, and platform hardening.
• Experience working within governance and compliance frameworks, and embedding these into platform design.
• Ability to create and validate reference architectures, patterns, and reusable components.
• Comfortable reviewing release plans and translating new workload demands into platform enhancements.
• Experience operating and supporting live cloud platforms, not just designing them.
• Strong observability mindset, including logging, metrics, alerts, and operational insight.
• Ability to identify areas suitable for self-service enablement and automation.
• A pragmatic approach to architectural decision-making, balancing ideal design with delivery reality.
• Experience producing and maintaining architectural decision records (ADRs).
• Strong documentation skills, including diagrams, design notes, and onboarding guidance.
• Confident communicator who can influence without authority and explain complex topics simply.
• Collaborative approach, working effectively across engineering, security, and delivery teams.
• Curiosity and drive to stay current with evolving Azure capabilities and platform practices.

Responsibilities

• Define and evolve the core cloud architecture that enables product and delivery teams to build securely, consistently, and at pace.
• Work closely with Cloud Engineers, DevOps, and Delivery teams to design and implement reusable platform components, self-service capabilities, and standard patterns.
• Shape platform standards, governance, and guardrails to balance speed with compliance and security requirements.
• Review upcoming platform demands, track emerging Azure capabilities, and introduce new services where they provide business value.
• Explain architectural decisions clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Skills

Azure design

Cloud platforms

CI/CD

Security

Observability

Governance

ADR

IaC

Identity

Tools

Azure DevOps

Bicep

Azure Landing Zones

Networking

Identity management

Security controls

Observability tools

Job description

Who are we?

Howden is a global insurance group with employee ownership at its heart. Together, we have pushed the boundaries of insurance. We are united by a shared passion and no-limits mindset, and our strength lies in our ability to collaborate as a powerful international team comprised of 24,000 employees spanning over 56 countries.

People join Howden for many different reasons, but they stay for the same one: our culture. It is what sets us apart, and the reason our employees have been turning down headhunters for years. Whatever your priorities - work / life balance, career progression, sustainability, volunteering - you'll find like-minded people driving change at Howden.

Role

Technical Architect (Azure)

Team

Cloud Engineering & Architecture

Location

Remote

Tech

Azure, Azure Landing Zones, Bicep (IaC), Azure DevOps, Networking, Identity, Security, Observability, CI/CD

As one of the largest insurance groups in the world and the fifth largest employee-owned business in the UK, we manage premiums on behalf of millions of clients across a wide range of product offerings and our development team work on solutions that innovate and put the users’ needs at the forefront.

Role

As a Technical Architect at Howden, you will join the Cloud Engineering & Architecture team with a focus on building, operating, and continuously improving our Azure cloud platform.

This is a technical architecture role, centred on platform capability as well as solution delivery. You will define and evolve the core cloud architecture that enables product and delivery teams to build securely, consistently, and at pace.

You will work closely with Cloud Engineers, DevOps, and Delivery teams to design and implement reusable platform components, self-service capabilities, and standard patterns. Your work will underpin all cloud-hosted workloads and directly influence reliability, security, scalability, and cost efficiency.

You will play a key role in shaping platform standards, governance, and guardrails, ensuring teams can move fast without bypassing compliance or security requirements. You will review upcoming platform demands, track emerging Azure capabilities, and introduce new services and patterns where they provide clear business value.

This role requires strong hands-on technical depth, paired with the ability to explain architectural decisions clearly and pragmatically to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

About You

• Strong experience designing, building, and operating cloud platforms in Microsoft Azure
• Deep understanding of cloud platform architecture, including identity, networking, security, monitoring, and governance
• Hands-on experience with Infrastructure as Code, ideally using Bicep
• Strong working knowledge of CI/CD pipelines, including platform-level templates and guardrails
• Experience designing and evolving Azure Landing Zones or equivalent enterprise-scale foundations
• Clear understanding of cloud security principles, including identity design, least-privilege access, and platform hardening
• Experience working within governance and compliance frameworks, and embedding these into platform design
• Ability to create and validate reference architectures, patterns, and reusable components
• Comfortable reviewing release plans and translating new workload demands into platform enhancements
• Experience operating and supporting live cloud platforms, not just designing them
• Strong observability mindset, including logging, metrics, alerts, and operational insight
• Ability to identify areas suitable for self-service enablement and automation
• A pragmatic approach to architectural decision-making, balancing ideal design with delivery reality
• Experience producing and maintaining architectural decision records (ADRs)
• Strong documentation skills, including diagrams, design notes, and onboarding guidance
• Confident communicator who can influence without authority and explain complex topics simply
• Collaborative approach, working effectively across engineering, security, and delivery teams
• Curiosity and drive to stay current with evolving Azure capabilities and platform practices

Rewards

We believe that great work and dedication should be rewarded, that’s why we offer:

• 25 days holiday (plus bank holidays), pro-rated for part year service
• A set of core benefits, designed with your health and financial protection in mind:
• Life Assurance up to 4x salary, protecting your loved ones in case the worst should happen
• Income protection, guaranteeing an income for up to 5 years in the event of an illness or injury
• Contributory pension scheme - 4% employer contribution and 5% employee contribution, rising to 5% & 5% in April 2025
• Access to a Healthcare Cashplan, which gives you access to a variety of health related benefits
• Access to a host of lifestyle and financial benefits that you can choose from:
• Discounts on gym membership across the UK
• Salary sacrifice schemes - Travel Insurance, Cycle to Work, Car leasing, Technology purchase
• Access to discounted personal health policies - Critical illness, private medical, dental plans
• A range of insurance products available commission free, including home, motor, travel and specialist vehicles
• Access to hundreds of high-street retailer discounts
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support employees outside of work

What do we offer in return?

A Career That You Define. At Howden, We Value Diversity - There Is No One Howden Type. Instead, We’re Looking For Individuals Who Share The Same Values As Us

• Our successes have all come from someone brave enough to try something new
• We support each other in the small everyday moments and the bigger challenges
• We are determined to make a positive difference at work and beyond

Reasonable adjustments

We're committed to providing reasonable accommodations at Howden to ensure that our positions align well with your needs. Besides the usual adjustments such as software, IT, and office setups, we can also accommodate other changes such as flexible hours* or hybrid working*.

Not all positions can accommodate changes to working hours or locations. Reach out to your Recruitment Partner if you want to know more.

Fixed Term Contract (Fixed Term)