Lead Application Architect

Humana Inc; Olympia (WA); Remote; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Humana Inc. is seeking a Lead Application Architect to provide strategic architectural leadership across complex enterprise initiatives in healthcare tech.

You will define architecture strategies and guide cross-functional teams in building API-first, event-driven, and microservices platforms on Azure. Responsibilities include establishing standards, leading governance, and mentoring engineers while partnering with business leaders to deliver resilient digital solutions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, application architecture, or enterprise architecture roles.
• 5+ years of experience designing and implementing enterprise-scale distributed systems.
• Strong expertise in microservices architecture and API design.
• Extensive experience with Microsoft Azure cloud services and cloud-native development.
• Experience designing event-driven architectures using Apache Kafka or equivalent messaging platforms.
• Strong understanding of application integration patterns and distributed systems.
• Experience with containerization technologies such as Docker and Kubernetes.
• Hands-on experience implementing CI/CD pipelines and DevSecOps practices.
• Strong knowledge of security, scalability, resiliency, and observability best practices.
• Proven ability to lead technical teams and influence architecture decisions across multiple programs.
• Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead architecture and design of enterprise-scale applications using microservices and cloud-native principles.
• Define target-state architectures and modernization roadmaps for strategic business capabilities.
• Establish architecture standards, reference architectures, and engineering best practices.
• Drive API-first architecture and enterprise integration strategies.
• Lead architecture reviews, design governance, and technology evaluations.
• Design scalable, secure solutions on Microsoft Azure with AKS, App Services, API Management.
• Guide adoption of Azure-native services and define cloud migration strategies for legacy apps.
• Design and govern event-driven architectures leveraging Apache Kafka and streaming tech.
• Promote DevSecOps and automation across engineering teams; implement CI/CD pipelines.
• Mentor architects and engineers; lead architecture review boards and design sessions.
• Ensure solutions meet security, performance, and scalability standards.
• Foster innovation and engineering excellence across programs.

Skills

Microservices architecture

API design

Azure cloud

Kafka

Docker

Kubernetes

CI/CD

DevSecOps

Security best practices

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree required

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Azure DevOps

Jenkins

GitHub Actions

Argo CD

Job description

Become a part of our caring community

Join our Digital Technology organization as a Lead Application Architect and play a critical role in shaping the future of healthcare technology. This role provides strategic architectural leadership across complex enterprise initiatives, driving the design and implementation of scalable, secure, cloud-native solutions that improve member, provider, and associate experiences.

As a Lead Application Architect, you will define architecture strategies, establish engineering standards, and guide cross-functional teams in building API-first, event-driven, and microservices-based platforms leveraging Azure cloud technologies. You will partner with business and technology leaders to deliver resilient, high-performing digital solutions while mentoring engineering teams and fostering architectural excellence across the organization.

Key Responsibilities

• Architecture & Technical Leadership
• Lead architecture and design of enterprise-scale applications using microservices, domain-driven design, and cloud-native principles.
• Define target-state architectures and modernization roadmaps for strategic business capabilities.
• Establish architecture standards, reference architectures, and engineering best practices.
• Drive API-first architecture and enterprise integration strategies.
• Lead architecture reviews, design governance, and technology evaluations.
• Cloud & Platform Engineering
• Design and implement scalable, resilient, and secure solutions on Microsoft Azure.
• Guide adoption of Azure-native services including AKS, App Services, API Management, Event Hub, Service Bus, Azure Functions, and Azure Storage.
• Define cloud migration and modernization strategies for legacy applications.
• Event-Driven & Integration Architecture
• Design and govern event-driven architectures leveraging Apache Kafka and related streaming technologies.
• Establish messaging patterns, event contracts, topic governance, and real-time integration strategies.
• Ensure scalability, reliability, observability, and fault tolerance across distributed systems.
• Drive asynchronous communication patterns across enterprise platforms.
• DevSecOps & CI/CD Enablement
• Champion DevSecOps practices and automation across engineering teams.
• Design and implement CI/CD pipelines supporting automated testing, security scanning, deployment, and monitoring.
• Collaborate with platform engineering teams to standardize deployment patterns.
• Promote Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and GitOps methodologies.
• Provide architectural guidance on Argo CD, GitHub Actions, Azure DevOps, Jenkins, and related automation platforms.
• Stakeholder Collaboration
• Partner with product, engineering, security, data, and business teams to align technical solutions with business goals.
• Influence technology strategy and architecture decisions across multiple initiatives.
• Present architecture recommendations and trade-off analyses to senior leadership.
• Mentorship & Governance
• Mentor architects, engineers, and technical leads on architecture principles and emerging technologies.
• Lead architecture review boards and technical design sessions.
• Ensure solutions adhere to security, compliance, performance, and scalability standards.
• Foster a culture of innovation, engineering excellence, and continuous improvement.

Use your skills to make an impact

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering, application architecture, or enterprise architecture roles.
• 5+ years of experience designing and implementing enterprise-scale distributed systems.
• Strong expertise in microservices architecture and API design.
• Extensive experience with Microsoft Azure cloud services and cloud-native development.
• Experience designing event-driven architectures using Apache Kafka or equivalent messaging platforms.
• Strong understanding of application integration patterns and distributed systems.
• Experience with containerization technologies such as Docker and Kubernetes.
• Hands-on experience implementing CI/CD pipelines and DevSecOps practices.
• Strong knowledge of security, scalability, resiliency, and observability best practices.
• Proven ability to lead technical teams and influence architecture decisions across multiple programs.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field

Additional Information

Location/Work Style: Remote US

Work at Home Guidance

• At minimum, a download speed of 25 Mbps and an upload speed of 10 Mbps is recommended; wireless, wired cable or DSL connection is suggested
• Satellite, cellular and microwave connection can be used only if approved by leadership
• Associates who live and work from Home in the state of California, Illinois, Montana, or South Dakota will be provided a bi-weekly payment for their internet expense.
• Humana will provide Home or Hybrid Home/Office associates with telephone equipment appropriate to meet the business requirements for their position/job.
• Work from a dedicated space lacking ongoing interruptions to protect member PHI / HIPAA information

HireVue Statement

As part of our hiring process for this opportunity, we will