Principal Architect, BU

TXU Energy; United States; On-site; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Vistra in Irving, Texas seeks a Principal Application Architect to lead architecture services, cloud strategy, and enterprise governance. You will drive cost efficiencies, define standards, and mentor automation engineers across the organization.

The role emphasizes cross-functional collaboration, technology roadmaps, and delivering reference implementations with ADRs and governance. A strong background in AWS and data-driven platforms is essential.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of IT architecture experience required.
• 5+ years of team management experience.
• Knowledge of ITIL, Cloud, Agile, Scrum, DevOps, and TOGAF.
• Experience with ISO 9000 and governance practices.

Responsibilities

• Oversee architecture and platforms for all applications.
• Engage business leads to define technology solutions and roadmaps.
• Define guiding principles, standards, and roadmaps.
• Design and implement cloud architectures to meet business needs.
• Lead enterprise architecture and governance practices.
• Drive cost management and ROI focus across IT landscape.
• Mentor Automation Engineers within the Center of Excellence.
• Create reference architectures with standards and leading practices.

Skills

Architecture leadership

Cloud architecture

Agile/DevOps

IT governance

Team management

Education

College degree or certifications

Tools

AWS

MuleSoft

ActiveMQ

RabbitMQ

Java/Spring Boot

Python

Job description

Job Summary

The Principal Application Architect will be responsible for managing Application and Solution Architecture Services, the Cloud Strategy, planning and execution. Also responsible for gaining cost efficiencies across the IT landscape and then take those lessons and apply to Business. Drive adoption of Automation processes and tools Enterprise wide.

Job Description

Key Accountabilities

• Oversee the architecture and platforms for all applications and information architecture.
• Engage business unit leaders to define technology solutions and roadmaps in their domain
• Define the Guiding Principles, Standards and Roadmap for all applications
• Design and solution infrastructure, and cloud architecture to meet business requirements while complying to technology standards
• Define and communicate the Enterprise Architecture and Tech Governance Practice including: Principles, Models, Standards, Best Practices, and the roles and responsibilities of the architecture community
• Drive a culture of accountability, communication, clarity, and collaboration with specific focus on business value, return on investment, and cost management.
• Recommend, implement, manage, and maintain the technology platforms that enable Digital Labor
• Create and maintain a reference architecture that enforces standards, guidelines, and leading practices
• Lead, support, and guide counselees within the Digital Labor Center of Excellence and increase competency of Automation Engineers

Education, Experience, & Skill Requirements

• 8+ years minimum; 12+ years preferred
• 5+ years experience managing/supervising teams
• Working knowledge of technology best practices, methodologies and processes (e.g., ISO 9000, ITIL, Cloud, Agile, Scrum, DevOps, TOGAF).
• Working knowledge of relevant project and program management concepts and techniques.
• Experience gained through college degree programs and/or certifications is applicable to above skills

Key Metrics

• Project/program benefits realization and business customer satisfaction with delivered change.
• Team member engagement across technology department Tools adoption and usage, where appropriate
• Ensuring that the IT organization is effectively meeting the goals and objectives of the corporation.
• Providing a consistent and efficient operating model adhering to the established fiscal controls and meeting or exceeding the defined key performance indicators.
• Identifying areas for improvement that will result in reduced operating or capital expense.
• Identifying areas for automation that will result in increased operational efficiency and decreased operational cost.

Energy & Utilities Domain — US Power Trading/Commercial experience (ERCOT/PJM/MISO/SPP)

Day-ahead/real-time bidding, forward curves, CRRs, ETRM, commercial optimization. Plant-side systems (PI, GADS, CEMS, Maximo) a plus.

Cloud-Native Data Lake & Market Data Architecture

Delivered unified data lakes ingesting commodity feeds (ICE/CME), ISO pricing/LMPs, forward curves (ZEMA/Morningstar/Platts), historians, and ETRM. ISO data extraction across major RTOs. Enterprise integration (MuleSoft, Active MQ, Rabbit MQ) with event-driven/batch/CDC patterns. AWS pipelines (Glue, Step Functions, Lambda, MWAA, Kinesis) and consumption layers (Athena, Redshift, Lake Formation). Sound build-vs-buy judgment.

AWS Architecture & Strategy

Enterprise architecture for event-driven pipelines (Lambda, Step Functions, Event Bridge, Kinesis, MSK), AI/ML (Bedrock, SageMaker), multi-database (RDS, Aurora, DynamoDB, Redshift, Fabric). Delivers reference implementations, ADRs, and governance — not just diagrams.

Polyglot Technical Leadership & Execution

Leads by building: Java/Spring Boot, Python, Groovy, complex multi-engine SQL, modern web frameworks. Technical decision-maker across concurrent workstreams — unblocks teams tactically (code reviews, design sessions) while driving strategy (roadmaps, platform evolution). Working architect who mentors, stays code-current, and owns decisions and consequences.

#LI-Hybrid #LI-ND1

Job Family Information Technology Company Vistra Corporate Services Company Locations Irving, Texas Texas

We are a company of people committed to: Exceeding Customer Expectations, Great People, Teamwork, Competitive Spirit and Effective Communication.

It is the policy of the Company to comply with all employment laws and to afford equal employment opportunity to individuals in all aspects of employment, including in selection for job opportunities, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, military service, protected veteran status, or any other consideration protected by federal, state or local laws.

If you are an individual with a disability and need assistance submitting an application or would like to request an accommodation, please email us at [e-mail] to make a request.

Vistra (NYSE: VST) is a leading Fortune 500 integrated retail electricity and power generation company based in Irving, Texas, that provides essential power resources to customers, businesses, and communities from California to Maine. Vistra is the largest competitive power generator in the U.S., with a capacity of approximately 41,000 megawatts, or enough to power 20 million homes, operating in all of the major competitive wholesale markets in the country. Vistra is a leader in the energy transformation and expansion with an unyielding focus on reliability, affordability, and sustainability, powered by a diverse portfolio that includes natural gas, nuclear, coal, solar, and battery energy storage facilities. The company continues to grow its zero-carbon resources, operating the second-largest fleet of competitive nuclear power plants in the country, substantial battery energy storage capacity, and a growing number of solar facilities. Vistra is one of the largest competitive electricity providers in the country and takes an innovative, customer-centric approach to retail, offering solutions to meet customers’ needs, including more than 50 renewable energy plans. Through its family of retail brands, Vistra serves approximately 5 million residential, commercial, and industrial retail customers. As a leader in the responsible transformation of the country’s energy supply, Vistra has made significant progress towards its 2030 and 2050 targets. The company has committed to a 60% reduction of Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, as compared to our 2010 baseline, and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, assuming necessary technological advancements and public policy incentives are achieved. Learn more about our environmental, social, and governance efforts and read the company’s sustainability report at https://vistracorp.com/sustainability/. Vistra’s hardworking team is committed to its purpose, “lighting up lives, powering a better way forward” and is guided by four core principles: we do business the right way, we work as a team, we compete to win, and we care about our stakeholders, including our customers, our communities where we work and live, our employees, and our investors. Learn more about how Vistra is powering a better way forward at vistracorp.com. Come join us and be part of something special!

If you are an individual with a disability and need assistance submitting an application or would like to request an accommodation, please email us at [e-mail] to make a request.