Architect - Solution Ownership (Chicago)

Slalom Build; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 133,000 - 163,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

401(k) with match

Health, dental, & vision coverage

Well-being reimbursement

Job summary

Slalom is seeking an Architect-level Solution Owner to drive AI-enabled delivery, translating business intent into clear product direction. You will lead cross-functional pods with engineers, architects, and data specialists, partnering with client product owners and technology leaders from concept to launch and beyond.

You will define governance, craft specifications, own the lifecycle, and leverage AI tooling to keep the context hub current. Travel may be required based on client needs.

Qualifications

• Experience with Agile frameworks (Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, XP, Lean) and adapting them to project needs.
• Ability to bridge business and technical teams, with comfort in delivery toolchains.
• Experience applying AI to real delivery work and driving outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Define and manage project governance, cadence, Agile events, and delivery reporting.
• Partner with Product Owners to define the product, write user stories and acceptance criteria tied to OKRs.
• Own the product lifecycle from concept through launch, measure impact, plan iterations.
• Maintain a context hub and use AI tooling to keep it current and accessible.
• Lead delivery teams, manage issues and risks, provide clear status updates.
• Collaborate with engineering leaders to validate technical strategy and toolchains.
• Develop AI workflows, prompts, and templates to support documentation and backlog management.
• Test ideas via lightweight prototypes and iterate on product direction.

Skills

Agile delivery

AI in delivery

Product ownership

Stakeholder communication

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in relevant field

Tools

Jira

Confluence

Git

Job description

AI-native product and delivery leader who works with clients to shape the right solutions, directs teams on how to deliver them, and stays accountable for outcomes, performance, and business value.

Who You’ll Work With

Slalom’s Solution Owners are hands-on technology, AI, and Agile delivery experts dedicated to their projects and clients. Our job is to make sure our clients build the right thing at the right time — and then build it right. AI tools, agents, and workflows are embedded into our delivery practices — accelerating discovery, documentation, analysis, backlog management, and team alignment. We are passionate, adaptive experts who continually practice and hone our craft.

What You’ll Do

As an Architect-level Solution Owner, you’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with engineers, architects, designers, and data specialists inside high-velocity delivery pods, and partner directly with client product owners and technology leaders to translate business intent into clear product direction, lead AI-enabled Agile delivery teams, and keep strategy, scope, delivery health, and value connected from concept through launch and iteration. Core responsibilities include:

• Defining and managing project governance including cadence, Agile events, and delivery reporting that surfaces the data clients need to decide.
• Partnering with Product Owners to define the product, pressure-test assumptions, and produce clear specifications, user stories, and acceptance criteria tied to OKRs — reframing conversations from solutions to outcomes when needed.
• Owning the product lifecycle from concept through launch and beyond — collecting feedback, measuring impact, and planning the next iteration.
• Maintaining the project’s context hub — a shared source of truth across strategy, decisions, requirements, risks, and technical context — and using AI tooling (e.g., MCPs, agents) to keep it current and accessible.
• Leading delivery teams through managing issues and risks, facilitating meetings, and providing clear project status updates.
• Collaborating with engineering leaders, validating the technical approach, strategy, and deliverables, and documenting the toolchain the team relies on.
• Building and refining effective prompts, templates, and repeatable AI workflows that support requirements, documentation, analysis, and backlog management.
• Testing ideas through lightweight prototypes and using feedback to sharpen product direction.
• Travel may be required depending on client needs.

What You’ll Bring

You are a curious problem solver and bring several years of product development experience as a Product, Project, or Program Manager using Agile methodologies and leveraging AI across the full software and testing lifecycle. You demonstrate:

• Skill in turning ideas and conversations into clear specifications, backlogs, acceptance criteria, and success metrics for iterative development.
• Ability to bridge business and technical teams, with comfort in repositories, version control, and delivery toolchains.
• Strong investigative, analytical, and communication skills — including the use of AI to accelerate research, validate findings, and produce actionable insights.
• Knowledge of Agile frameworks including Scrum, Kanban, SAFe, XP, and Lean, and the ability to adapt the framework to project needs.
• Strong delivery acumen, risk identification and mitigation skills, in complex or ambiguous environments.
• Experience applying AI to real delivery work, and the curiosity to keep pushing what it can do.
• A technology-oriented mindset and comfort with modern developer tooling. A technical degree, software delivery background, or equivalent experience is helpful.

About Us

Slalom is a fiercely human business and technology consulting company that leads with outcomes to bring more value, in all ways, always. From strategy through delivery, our agile teams across 52 offices in 12 countries partner with clients to co-create powerful customer experiences, modern ways of working, and meaningful impact.

What sets us apart? We believe work should be challenging and fulfilling, not perfect, but possible. That’s why we prioritize purpose, flexibility, connection, and recognition, so our people can thrive and love what they do, most days.

Compensation and Benefits

Slalom prides itself on helping team members thrive in their work and life. As a result, Slalom is proud to invest in benefits that includemeaningful time off and paid holidays, parental leave, 401(k) with a match, a range of choices for highly subsidized health, dental, & vision coverage, adoption and fertility assistance, and short/long-term disability. We also offer yearly $350 reimbursement account for any well‑being‑related expenses, as well as discounted home, auto, and pet insurance.

Slalom is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices.For this role, we are hiring at the following levels and targeted base pay salary ranges: The targeted base salary pay range for Architect is $133,000 to $163,000. In addition, individuals may be eligible for an annual discretionary bonus . Actual compensation will depend upon an individual’s skills, experience, qualifications, location, and other relevant factors. The salary pay range is subject to change and may be modified at any time.

Wearecommittedtopaytransparencyandcompliancewithapplicablelaws.Ifyouhavequestionsorconcernsaboutthepayrangeorothercompensationinformationinthisposting,pleasecontactusat: [e-mail] .Pleasenote,thisrecipientisnotabletosupportrecruitmentinquiriesbeyondthispurpose.

EEO and Accommodations

Slalomisanequalopportunityemployerandiscommittedtoattracting,developingandretaininghighlyqualifiedtalentwhoempowerourinnovativeteamsthroughuniqueperspectivesandexperiences.Allqualifiedapplicantswillreceiveconsiderationforemploymentwithoutregardtorace,color,religion,sex,nationalorigin,disabilitystatus,protectedveterans’status,oranyothercharacteristicprotectedbyfederal,state,orlocallaws.Slalomwillalsoconsiderqualifiedapplicationswithcriminalhistories,consistentwithlegalrequirements.Slalomwelcomesandencouragesapplicationsfromindividualswithdisabilities.Reasonableaccommodationsareavailableforcandidatesduringallaspectsoftheselectionprocess.Pleaseadvisethetalentacquisitionteamorcontact [e-mail] ifyourequireaccommodationsduringtheinterviewprocess.

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