Senior Data/AI Technical Architect

NTT DATA, Inc.; Cape Town; Hybrid; ZAR 800,000 - 1,200,000; Full time

Job summary

NTT DATA, Inc. is looking for an experienced Senior AI and Data Cloud Architect to join our team in Cape Town, South Africa. This pivotal role involves collaborating with enterprise sales and delivery teams to design cutting-edge AI, data, and cloud solutions on platforms like Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud.

The ideal candidate should possess strong technical expertise as well as commercial acumen, enabling them to influence cloud transformation programs and drive significant data modernization projects. Join us to be part of a company that values diversity and inclusion.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in enterprise architecture and cloud solutions.
• Minimum of 5 years designing cloud-native solutions on Azure, AWS, or GCP.
• Experience in leading AI and data platform initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Lead pre-sales solutions for AI, Data, and Cloud.
• Architect scalable, secure cloud-native solutions.
• Mentor teams on AI and data initiatives.

Skills

Cloud-native solutions design

Enterprise architecture

AI/ML solutions

Data governance

Cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, GCP)

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Terraform

Databricks

Snowflake

Job description

Make an impact with NTT DATA. 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 Senior AI and Data Cloud Architect to partner with enterprise sales, consulting, and delivery teams in designing, positioning, and governing AI, Data, and Cloud solutions for clients across South Africa and the Middle East & Africa. This role serves as the senior technical leader for AI and Data architecture engagements, providing strategic guidance, pre‑sales leadership, solution architecture, and technical governance across Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Google Cloud Platform (GCP). The successful candidate will act as a trusted advisor to clients and internal stakeholders, translating business objectives into enterprise‑grade AI, analytics, data platform, and cloud‑native architectures. The role combines deep technical expertise with strong commercial acumen to support solution development, business growth, cloud transformation programs, AI adoption initiatives, and large‑scale data modernization engagements.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead pre‑sales solutioning activities for AI, Data, Analytics, and Cloud opportunities, including client workshops, discovery sessions, solution shaping, proposals, RFP/RFI responses, and executive presentations
• Develop end‑to‑end AI and Data platform architectures leveraging Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud services
• Design scalable, secure, resilient, and cost‑optimized cloud‑native solutions supporting AI, Generative AI, Machine Learning, Advanced Analytics, Data Engineering, and Data Governance use cases
• Define target‑state architectures covering data platforms, AI platforms, cloud infrastructure, networking, security, identity, observability, automation, governance, and operational excellence
• Architect modern data platforms including data lakes, lakehouses, data warehouses, streaming platforms, and real‑time analytics solutions
• Design and govern enterprise AI solutions including Machine Learning Operations (MLOps), Generative AI architectures, Retrieval‑Augmented Generation (RAG), vector databases, AI governance, and responsible AI frameworks
• Provide architectural leadership for cloud migration, data modernization, application modernization, containerization, and platform transformation initiatives
• Promote Infrastructure as Code (IaC), platform engineering, DevOps, DataOps, and MLOps best practices using Terraform and cloud‑native automation capabilities
• Collaborate with engineering, security, data, AI, and application teams to implement cloud‑native architectures and automation strategies
• Drive cloud security, compliance, governance, FinOps, and responsible AI best practices across client engagements
• Perform architecture reviews and provide technical oversight throughout solution delivery
• Act as a trusted advisor to executive, business, and technical stakeholders, translating complex technical concepts into business value
• Mentor architects, consultants, and engineers while contributing to AI, Data, and Cloud capability development and thought leadership
• Stay current with emerging AI technologies, hyperscaler innovations, cloud‑native platforms, and industry trends

Required Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, Engineering, Data Science, or a related discipline
• 10+ years of experience in enterprise architecture, cloud architecture, data platforms, analytics, or digital transformation
• Minimum 5 years of experience designing cloud‑native solutions on Azure, AWS, and/or Google Cloud
• Proven experience supporting pre‑sales, solution consulting, business development, and complex sales pursuits
• Deep expertise in enterprise data architectures, analytics platforms, AI/ML solutions, and cloud‑native technologies

Preferred Qualifications

• Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert, Azure AI Engineer Associate, AWS Solutions Architect Professional, Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect, or equivalent certifications
• Experience with Generative AI, Large Language Models (LLMs), Retrieval‑Augmented Generation (RAG), vector databases, and AI governance frameworks
• Experience with Databricks, Snowflake, Microsoft Fabric, Confluent Kafka, or other modern data platform technologies
• Experience with observability and monitoring platforms such as Datadog, Grafana, Prometheus, OpenSearch, Splunk, or Dynatrace
• Experience with cloud financial management (FinOps), cost optimization, and cloud governance frameworks
• Background in software engineering or development using Python, Java, .NET, JavaScript, or related technologies
• Experience leading large‑scale enterprise transformation, AI adoption, and data modernization programs
• Experience supporting executive‑level client engagements, solution workshops, and strategic technology advisory services

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. Join our growing global team and accelerate your career with us.