Enterprise AI Architect

ICON Clinical Research; Ireland; On-site; EUR 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

ICON plc is seeking an experienced AI Architect to define and govern the end-to-end architecture of the organisation's AI platforms, frameworks, and services. You will provide technical leadership across infrastructure, platform, and solution architecture to deliver scalable AI solutions.

You will lead architecture for central AI platform, multi-agent framework, and cloud infrastructure, setting standards and governance while mentoring engineering teams to ensure security, performance, and

Qualifications

• Proven experience leading large-scale software architectures, including cloud-native systems.
• Experience with cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP) and modern infra practices.
• Experience delivering AI/ML or data-driven systems in production environments.
• Knowledge of microservices, APIs, distributed systems, and event-driven architectures.
• Experience defining architectural standards and governing designs across teams.
• Strong focus on scalability, performance, security, and reliability.
• Ability to influence across engineering, product, and leadership stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Define and own the architecture for the central AI platform, multi-agent framework, and supporting services
• Design and maintain scalable cloud infrastructure architectures across all environments (development, staging, and production)
• Establish architectural standards, reference designs, and governance processes across engineering teams
• Lead solution architecture for AI products, translating business requirements into end-to-end technical designs
• Define integration patterns, API standards, and data architectures to support interoperability and scalability
• Design and guide multi-agent and agent-based system architectures, including orchestration and lifecycle management
• Lead architectural design reviews, ensuring alignment with standards, quality, and non-functional requirements
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineering teams, driving architectural best practices and continuous improvement

Skills

Software architecture

Cloud platforms

AI/ML systems

Microservices

APIs

Distributed systems

Event-driven architecture

Architectural governance

Stakeholder collaboration

Job description

AI Architect

ICON plc is a world-leading healthcare intelligence and clinical research organization. We're proud to foster an inclusive environment driving innovation and excellence, and we welcome you to join us on our mission to shape the future of clinical development.

AI Architect

As a Senior AI Architect at ICON, you will be responsible for defining and governing the end-to-end architecture of the organisation's AI platforms, frameworks, and services. You will provide technical leadership across infrastructure, platform, solution, and agent architecture to ensure sca
lable, secure, and high-performing AI solutions that support enterprise delivery.

What You Will Do

In this role you will act as the technical authority across the AI landscape, guiding architecture decisions and enabling engineering teams to deliver robust, future-ready solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and own the architecture for the central AI platform, multi-agent framework, and supporting services
• Design and maintain scalable cloud infrastructure architectures across all environments (development, staging, and production)
• Establish architectural standards, reference designs, and governance processes across engineering teams
• Lead solution architecture for AI products, translating business requirements into end-to-end technical designs
• Define integration patterns, API standards, and data architectures to support interoperability and scalability
• Design and guide multi-agent and agent-based system architectures, including orchestration and lifecycle management
• Lead architectural design reviews, ensuring alignment with standards, quality, and non-functional requirements
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineering teams, driving architectural best practices and continuous improvement

Your Profile

• Proven experience in software architecture, including leadership of complex, distributed, and cloud-native systems
• Strong experience with cloud platforms (Azure preferred, or AWS/GCP) and modern infrastructure practices
• Experience designing and delivering AI/ML or data-driven systems in production environments
• Knowledge of microservices, APIs, distributed systems, and event-driven architectures
• Experience defining architectural standards and governing design across multiple teams or programmes
• Strong understanding of system scalability, performance, security, and reliability considerations
• Ability to influence and collaborate across engineering, product, and leadership stakeholders

What ICON can offer you

Our success depends on the quality of our people. That's why we've made it a priority to build a diverse culture that rewards high performance and nurtures talent.

In addition to your competitive salary, ICON offers a range of additional benefits. Our benefits are designed to be competitive within each country and are focused on well-being and work life balance opportunities for you and your family.

Benefits examples include:

• Various annual leave entitlements
• A range of health insurance offerings to suit you and your family's needs.
• Competitive retirement planning offerings to maximize savings and plan with confidence for the years ahead.
• Global Employee Assistance Programme, LifeWorks, offering 24-hour access to a global network of over 80,000 independent specialized professionals who are there to support you and your family's well-being.
• Life assurance
• Flexible country-specific optional benefits, including childcare vouchers, bike purchase schemes, discounted gym memberships, subsidized travel passes, health assessments, among others.

Visit our careers site ( to read more about the benefits ICON offers.

At ICON, inclusion & belonging are fundamental to our culture and values. We're dedicated to providing an inclusive and accessible environment for all candidates. ICON is committed to providing a workplace free of discrimination and harassment. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application process, or in order to perform the essential functions of a position, please let us know or submit a request here