Cloud Application & Solutions Architect

Washington State Health Care Authority; Olympia (WA); Hybrid; USD 112,000 - 168,000; Full time

Job summary

Washington Health Benefit Exchange in Olympia, WA seeks a senior Cloud Application & Solutions Architect to provide expert-level technical authority for cloud applications and integration solutions. You will guide design, development, and implementation aligned with IT standards, governance, and enterprise architecture.

Leadership across scrum teams and collaboration with stakeholders are essential. Responsibilities include driving architectural direction, ensuring security reviews, coordinating

Job description

The mission of Washington Health Benefit Exchange (Exchange) is to radically improve how Washington residents secure health insurance through innovative and practical solutions, an easy-to-use customer experience, our values of integrity, respect, equity and transparency, and by providing undeniable value to the health care community.

The Exchange is a public-private partnership that operates Washington Healthplanfinder, the eligibility and enrollment portal used by one in four Washington residents to obtain health and dental coverage. Through this platform, and with support from a Customer Support Center and statewide network of in-person navigators and brokers, individuals and families can shop, compare and enroll in private, qualified health plans (as defined in the Affordable Care Act) or enroll in Washington Apple Health, the state Medicaid program.

Equity is fundamental to the mission of the Washington Health Benefit Exchange. The process of advancing toward equity and becoming anti-racist is disruptive and demands vigilance to dismantle deeply entrenched systems of privilege and oppression. While systemic racism is a root cause of many societal inequities, we must also use an intersectional approach to address all forms of bias and oppression, which interact with and often exacerbate racial inequities. To be successful, we must recognize the socioeconomic drivers of health and focus on people and places where needs are greatest. As we listen to community, we must hold ourselves accountable to responding to recommendations to remedy inequitable policies, systems, or practices within the Exchange’s area of influence. Our goal is that all Washingtonians have full and equal access to opportunities, power and resources to achieve their full potential.

SUMMARY

The Cloud Application & Solutions Architect position reports to the Cloud development manager and serves as the expert-level technical authority as designated by the Enterprise Architect, CIO, and Deputy CIO. Architectural and development design decisions made in this role have significant long-term impacts—up to 10 years.

The incumbent is expected to collaborate with business and IT roles across HBE, providing technical leadership, vision, and direction for development efforts within and beyond scrum teams. This position oversees and provides technical consultation and guidance on matters of cloud applications and integration solutions architecture, design, and development necessary to meet HBE’s mission and business objectives.

The role leads the development team and other IT leads to advise, direct, develop, revise, and set direction on current and future application and data solutions. It also coordinates with business stakeholders and technical personnel to ensure solutions are delivered in alignment with IT architectural standards.

Additional responsibilities include supporting issue and risk resolution processes, conducting design and code reviews, and leading architectural validation efforts. The incumbent advises IT management on development standards and best practices and collaborates with other architects and leads to implement new standards, processes, and procedures for development teams.

• Lead development initiatives to architect, design, develop, and deliver quality, mission-critical solutions.
• Document technical design specifications and workflows.
• Plan and coordinate reviews and approval of technical deliverables.
• Write and review designs and deliverables for IT solutions.
• Occasionally take on development tasks to support the team.
• Stay current on development best practices and emerging technologies.
• Participate in budget development, SOW creation, and procurement.
• Provide technical consultation and oversight on complex projects.
• Lead teams in developing and documenting new processes.
• Translate complex requirements into software designs.
• Direct and lead developers on new projects and enhancements.
• Lead technical planning and development of new applications.
• Foster understanding among stakeholders and provide technical consulting.
• Analyze data and monitor system performance.
• Assess project feasibility and define technical requirements.
• Lead security design reviews at agency and state levels.
• Ensure compliance with technical audits and implement corrective actions.
• Collaborate with management and stakeholders on staffing and resourcing.
• Support interface and data conversion planning and execution.
• Ensure development standards are followed.
• Help establish policies, procedures, and technical guidance.
• Guide the team on appropriate technologies and tools.
• Oversee application development throughout the lifecycle.
• Ensure code and security reviews are conducted.
• Align development with IT strategic roadmap and architecture.
• Ensure solutions meet internal and external quality standards.
• Oversee solution delivery and release quality.
• Coordinate with vendors to align technical solutions with HBE standards.
• Act as a technical visionary for emerging technologies (e.g., PaaS, DevSecOps).
• Strategize architectural approaches to meet organizational goals.
• Advise executive and senior management on IT architecture.
• Research and guide integration of new technologies and processes.
• Lead and participate in technical proof‑of‑concepts and feasibility studies.
• Coach subordinates on policy and standards.
• Support team development through coaching and education.
• Serve as liaison between system integrators, business staff, state agencies, and partners.
• Consult with business and IT units to determine enterprise design and performance.
• Assist team members with technical questions and decision‑making.
• Collaborate across IT functions and organizations to resolve system issues.
• Provide technical expertise to translate system requirements into solutions.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED

• 10+ years in IT project development; experience with cloud solutions and architecture; DevOps/CI-CD; Agile (SCRUM/KANBAN)
• 4+ years of experience in planning technical architecture and implementation
• Experience in serving as technical expertise; 2+ years in architecture roles
• Ability to clearly communicate concepts and ideas in writing
• Experience with enterprise object-oriented systems; architecture experience
• Demonstrated ability of Leadership and mentoring skills; Experience in Agile methodologies
• Strong experience in utilizing analytical and design skills; Ability to communicate
• Experience in being servant Leader; experience managing development teams
• Ability to communicate effectively; working together across different departments.
• Experience in Project Management; Technical Analysis
• Experience in DevSecOps and familiar with security compliance
• Knowledge of audit and risk assessment processes
• Knowledge of development best practices
• Demonstrated ability to lead and provide technical guidance, create policy and procedures
• Experienced in SDLC and proficient in Agile methodologies
• Experience in DevSecOps: Applying Security Best Practices
• Experience in strategic planning; ability in architectural design
• Experienced in quality assurance and effectively managing stakeholder expectations
• Experienced in implementing continuous integration and continuous deployment (CI/CD) methods and managing software releases.
• Experienced in cloud-native tools, Azure PaaS, and committed to continuous learning of new technological advancements
• Experience in working with Enterprise architecture team; strategic planning
• Ability to communicate with leadership; Ability to provide technical consulting
• Demonstrated experience in driving innovation and leveraging emerging technologies such as Cloud, Agile methodologies, and DevSecOps.
• Skilled in technical review; experienced in architectural design
• Ability to collaborate with cross-functional teams; experience in communicating information clearly
• Experienced in enterprise architecture and skilled at engaging stakeholders.
• Experience in guiding teams on technical work items and mentoring teams enabling expertise; them to to derive technical solutions
• Experienced in systems analysis, architecture, and design

DESIRED

• Relevant awareness of Project management; experience in technical oversight
• Hands‑on development experience; cloud‑native tools (Docker, AKS)
• Demonstrated ability to understand technical solutions; continuous learning
• Experience in Project management principles and skills
• Experience with performance monitoring; analytical skills
• Experience in leading and project planning complex initiatives and team members
• Experience in using Integration technology (REST, SFTP, EDI)
• Knowledge of emerging technologies; DevOps
• Demonstrated expertise in managing vendors and maintaining consistent technical standards
• Mentoring skills; leadership experience
• Demonstrated ability to build effective teams and manage employee performance.
• Demonstrated ability in problem-solving and cross‑team coordination
• Being flexible and ability; to demonstrate broad technical competency

SALARY INFORMATION

Full Salary Range: $111,913.00 to $167,870.00 annually, with midpoint at $139,892.00.

Hiring Range: $128,700.00 and $139,892.00 annually. This is an estimate of where a qualified candidate can expect to receive an offer.

BENEFITS

Take a peek at our benefits package.

WORKING CONDITIONS

Core business hours are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. There are times where irregular hours will be required. The preferred duty station is our Olympia, Washington headquarters. The nature of this role relies heavily on remote and in-person collaboration. While a hybrid remote and on‑site schedule may be considered, the position will require flexibility to allow for in‑office availability as business needs dictate. Travel requirements will be limited, however there may be occasions where an employee is required to travel and work irregular hours to attend meetings or trainings. Duties of this position require the use of standard office furniture and equipment, including setup for remote work. The employee is responsible for providing and maintaining a safe, ergonomic, and secure workspace at their remote location.

The working conditions and physical demands are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

A criminal background screen will be conducted for candidates under final consideration, and if hired, every five years of employment where highly sensitive data is processed or maintained by the position. The result of this background screen must meet the Exchange s eligibility standards.

OTHER INFORMATION

The Washington Health Benefit Exchange is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status.

We participate in E-Verify. You can view the Department of Justice's Right to Work poster here.