Principal AWS Cloud Architect

NTT DATA, Inc.; Johannesburg; Hybrid; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,500,000; Full time

Job summary

NTT DATA, Inc. in Johannesburg is seeking a Principal Cloud Architect (AWS) with over 10 years in IT infrastructure and cloud architecture. The role involves leading architecture for AWS solutions and collaborating with teams to develop cloud strategies.

The ideal candidate possesses excellent AWS skills, including services like EC2 and Lambda, and has expertise in Infrastructure as Code, DevOps practices, and strong stakeholder management skills. This position offers a hybrid working model.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in IT infrastructure or cloud architecture.
• At least 5 years focused on AWS.
• AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead the architecture and governance of enterprise-scale AWS solutions.
• Collaborate on cloud strategies and transformation roadmaps.
• Mentor architects and engineers while developing cloud capabilities.

Skills

AWS Services

Infrastructure as Code

Cloud Security

DevOps

Stakeholder Management

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related discipline

Tools

Terraform

AWS CloudFormation

AWS CDK

Git

Docker

Kubernetes

Job description

Join a company that is pushing the boundaries of what is possible. We are renowned for our technical excellence and leading innovations, and for making a difference to our clients and society. Our workplace embraces diversity and inclusion – it’s a place where you can grow, belong and thrive.

We are seeking a highly experienced Principal Cloud Architect (AWS) to partner with enterprise sales, consulting, and delivery teams in designing and positioning scalable, secure, resilient, and cost‑optimized cloud solutions for clients across South Africa and the Middle East & Africa. This role serves as the senior technical authority for AWS architecture engagements, providing strategic guidance, solution leadership, and architectural governance across the full cloud lifecycle.

The successful candidate will be a trusted advisor to clients and internal stakeholders, translating business objectives into enterprise‑grade cloud architectures while supporting pre‑sales activities, solution design, migration strategies, modernization initiatives, and cloud transformation programs.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the architecture, design, and technical governance of enterprise‑scale AWS solutions.
• Partner with sales and client stakeholders to develop compelling cloud strategies, solution architectures, and transformation roadmaps.
• Design highly available, resilient, secure, and scalable cloud platforms using AWS best practices and Well‑Architected Framework principles.
• Define target‑state architectures covering networking, security, identity, observability, automation, disaster recovery, and operational excellence.
• Develop and promote Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using Terraform, AWS CloudFormation, and AWS CDK.
• Provide architectural leadership for cloud migration, application modernization, containerization, and serverless initiatives.
• Collaborate with engineering, DevOps, security, and application teams to implement CI/CD and platform automation strategies.
• Drive cloud security, compliance, governance, and FinOps best practices.
• Perform architecture reviews and provide technical oversight throughout solution delivery.
• Act as a trusted advisor to clients, presenting technical solutions to executive, business, and technical audiences.
• Mentor architects and engineers while contributing to cloud capability development and thought leadership.
• Stay current with emerging AWS services, industry trends, and cloud‑native technologies.

Required Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, or a related discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in IT infrastructure, cloud architecture, or platform engineering, with at least 5 years focused on AWS.
• AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional (required or strongly preferred). Additional AWS Specialty certifications are advantageous.
• Deep expertise across AWS services including VPC, Transit Gateway, EC2, ECS, EKS, Lambda, S3, RDS, DynamoDB, IAM, Organizations, CloudWatch, Route 53, and AWS Backup.
• Strong experience designing enterprise networking, identity, security, and governance architectures within AWS.
• Hands‑on expertise with Infrastructure as Code using Terraform, AWS CloudFormation, and/or AWS CDK.
• Strong understanding of DevOps and platform engineering practices, including Git, CI/CD pipelines, Docker, Kubernetes, and automation frameworks.
• Experience implementing cloud security controls, compliance frameworks, and operational monitoring solutions.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, solution presentation, and documentation skills.

Preferred Experience

• Experience leading large‑scale cloud migration and modernization programs.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Azure and/or Google Cloud Platform in hybrid or multi‑cloud environments.
• Experience with serverless architectures, event‑driven systems, and cloud‑native application patterns.
• Experience with observability and monitoring platforms such as Datadog, Prometheus, Grafana, ELK/OpenSearch, or Splunk.
• Background in software development or scripting using Python, Bash, PowerShell, or similar languages.
• Experience with cloud financial management (FinOps), cost optimization, and cloud governance frameworks.
• Experience supporting pre‑sales, solution consulting, RFP responses, and executive‑level client engagements.
• Experience supporting complex sales pursuits, RFP/RFI responses, solution workshops, and executive‑level client presentations.

Workplace type

Hybrid Working

Equal Opportunity Employer

NTT DATA is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer with a global culture that embraces diversity. We are committed to providing an environment free of unfair discrimination and harassment. We do not discriminate based on age, race, colour, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, disability, pregnancy, marital status, veteran status, or any other protected category.