Sr System Architect

CAVA; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Bonus and long-term incentives

Unlimited PTO & parental leave

Health, Dental, Vision, Telemedicine

401k with company contribution

Company food and casual environment

Job summary

CAVA is seeking a Solution Architect to shape innovative restaurant and enterprise solutions using AI, automation, and modern tech. You will translate business needs into scalable architectures, guide engineering teams, and collaborate across operations, product, data, and finance to drive measurable value.

This senior role requires deep experience across cloud, APIs, and data platforms, with a focus on security, governance, and observable systems.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in software engineering, architecture, or related tech.

Responsibilities

• Identify innovation opportunities with cross-functional teams.
• Translate challenges into technical strategies and designs.
• Architect solutions improving operations and guest experiences.
• Apply AI, automation, and emerging tech; lead pilots.
• Guide engineering teams through implementation with security and governance.

Skills

AI solutions

Cloud architecture

API design

Security governance

Vendor evaluation

Tools

AWS

Kubernetes

Python

Node.js

Java

Job description

At CAVA we make it deliciously simple to eat well and feel good every day. We are guided by a Mediterranean heritage that's been perfecting how to eat and live for four thousand years. We prioritize authenticity, curiosity and the pursuit of excellence in everything we do. We are working towards something big, together.

We foster a culture built on five core values:

• Generosity First: We lead with kindness. Our best work happens when we act in service of others.
• Constant Curiosity: We are eager to learn, grow, and explore beyond the obvious.
• Act with Agility: We welcome change; it's the only constant. We embrace, adjust, adapt.
• Passion for Positivity: We greet each day with warmth and possibility.
• Collective Ambition: We have high aspirations that are achieved when we work together with a shared purpose.

Solution Architect

The Solution Architect, Innovation & Intelligence is a technical leadership role responsible for shaping innovative solutions across CAVA's restaurants and broader business.

This role will identify opportunities to improve restaurant operations, guest experiences, team member experiences, and enterprise productivity through emerging technology, artificial intelligence, and automation. The architect will translate business needs into scalable, secure, and practical solutions that can be tested, measured, and expanded across the organization.

What You'll Do

• Partner with restaurant operations, product, engineering, data, marketing, finance, supply chain, and other teams to identify innovation opportunities.
• Translate business challenges into technical strategies, solution designs, prototypes, and implementation plans.
• Architect solutions that improve restaurant operations, guest experiences, team member experiences, and enterprise productivity.
• Evaluate and apply AI, intelligent agents, workflow automation, computer vision, sensors, connected devices, and other emerging technologies.
• Lead technical discovery, proofs of concept, and pilots, with clear success measures and paths to scale.
• Design secure integrations across restaurant systems, cloud platforms, enterprise applications, data platforms, edge technologies, and third-party services.
• Establish reusable architecture patterns for AI, automation, integrations, and emerging technology.
• Assess the technical, operational, financial, and organizational impact of proposed solutions.
• Guide engineering teams through implementation and ensure alignment with architectural standards.
• Incorporate security, privacy, resilience, observability, responsible AI, and data governance into solution designs.
• Create and maintain architecture diagrams, decision records, integration patterns, and implementation guidance.
• Communicate technical opportunities, risks, and tradeoffs to technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Evaluate vendors, platforms, and technologies based on business value, architectural fit, scalability, cost, and long-term ownership.
• Stay current on AI, restaurant technology, automation, and broader industry trends.

The Qualifications

• 10 or more years of experience in software engineering, architecture, data, automation, or related technology fields.
• 3 or more years of experience designing and delivering complex enterprise solutions.
• Experience applying AI, automation, or emerging technology to solve business and operational problems.
• Experience architecting solutions across cloud, APIs, events, data platforms, enterprise systems, edge systems, and third-party technologies.
• Strong understanding of AI solution architecture, including model integration, data grounding, evaluation, monitoring, security, and governance.
• Experience with restaurant, retail, hospitality, supply chain, or other distributed operating environments is preferred.
• Familiarity with technologies such as point of sale, kitchen systems, labor systems, inventory systems, sensors, connected devices, or edge computing is preferred.
• Hands-on experience with AWS or a similar cloud platform, container technologies, and modern application architectures.
• Development experience with Python, Node.js, Java, Go, or similar languages.
• Experience defining API, event-driven, and integration strategies at scale.
• Experience with CI/CD, observability, performance, security, and reliability practices.
• Experience leading technology evaluations, proofs of concept, vendor selection, RFPs, and implementation planning.
• Strong analytical, communication, and decision-making skills.
• Ability to work independently, navigate ambiguity, and move ideas from concept through implementation.
• Ability to balance experimentation with practical delivery, operational readiness, and measurable business value.

Physical Requirements:[AH1]

• Ability to maintain stationary position to be able to operate a computer and other office equipment
• Must be able to identify, analyze and assess details
• For certain positions, must be able to occasionally move or transport items up to 50 pounds
• Ability to communicate with others and exchange information accurately and effectively
• Constantly positions self and move about to support ordinary restaurant or food production support or office operations, as applicable
• Ability to work in a constant state of alertness and in a safe manner
• Occasional travel required

What we offer

• Competitive salary, plus bonus and long-term incentives*
• Early wage access!
• Unlimited PTO, paid parental leave, plus paid opportunities to give back to the community
• Health, Dental, Vision, Telemedicine, Pet Insurance plus more!
• 401k enrollment with CAVA contribution
• Company-paid STD, LTD, Life and AD&D coverage for salaried positions*
• Free CAVA food
• Casual work environment
• The opportunity to be on the ground floor of a rapidly growing brand*Indicates qualifying eligible positions only

CAVA - Joining "A culture, not a concept"

As an equal opportunity employer, CAVA considers applicants for all positions without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, disability, age, height, weight, marital status, sexual orientation, familial status, genetic information or any other characteristic or protected classes as defined by federal, state, or local law.