Solution Architect

The Solution Architect is a key technical role responsible for designing end-to-end solutions that address the business needs and requirements of the organization.

Working closely with stakeholders, project teams, and technical experts, the Solution Architect translates business requirements into architectural designs and ensures that solutions are scalable, secure, and aligned with the enterprise architecture and strategic objectives. This role is instrumental in guiding the design and implementation of complex solutions that drive business value, innovation, and competitive differentiation.

By leveraging technical expertise, architectural principles, and collaborative partnerships, Solution Architects play a critical role in shaping the future success and sustainability of the organisation's technology initiatives.

Key Responsibilities:

1. Requirement Analysis: Collaborate with business stakeholders, product owners, and subject matter experts to understand and analyse business requirements, user stories, and use cases. Clarify ambiguity, identify key functional and non-functional requirements, and translate business needs into technical specifications.
2. Solution Design: Develop comprehensive architectural designs and technical solutions that address business requirements, constraints, and objectives. Consider factors such as scalability, performance, security, reliability, and maintainability in the design process. Select appropriate technologies, frameworks, and patterns to achieve the desired outcomes.
3. Architecture Review and Validation: Conduct architecture reviews and validation sessions with stakeholders and project teams to ensure that proposed solutions meet business requirements and align with architectural standards and best practices. Solicit feedback, address concerns, and iterate on design proposals as needed.
4. Risk Assessment and Mitigation: Identify architectural risks, dependencies, and potential bottlenecks that may impact the successful delivery of solutions. Collaborate with stakeholders to assess risk levels, prioritize mitigation strategies, and develop contingency plans to address critical issues and ensure project success.
5. Integration and Interoperability: Design and implement integration solutions to enable seamless data flow and interoperability between different systems, applications, and platforms. Evaluate integration patterns, protocols, and standards to ensure compatibility and consistency across distributed environments.
6. Performance Optimization: Optimize solution architectures and application designs to maximize performance, scalability, and efficiency. Conduct performance testing, profiling, and tuning activities to identify performance bottlenecks, optimize resource utilization, and enhance system responsiveness under varying workloads.
7. Security and Compliance: Incorporate security best practices and principles into solution architectures to protect sensitive information and mitigate cybersecurity risks. Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements, industry standards, and organizational security policies. Implement security controls, encryption mechanisms, and access controls to safeguard data and infrastructure assets.
8. Documentation and Communication: Create detailed architectural documentation, diagrams, and technical specifications to communicate design decisions, components, and interfaces to stakeholders and development teams. Ensure that documentation is accurate, up-to-date, and accessible to support ongoing maintenance, troubleshooting, and knowledge transfer.
9. Vendor and Technology Evaluation: Evaluate third-party products, services, and technologies to assess their suitability for integration into solution architectures. Conduct vendor assessments, proof of concepts, and technology evaluations to validate capabilities, performance, and alignment with business requirements.

Qualifications and Experience:

1. Bachelor's degree or Diploma in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field.
2. Relevant certifications (e.g., AWS Certified Solutions Architect, TOGAF, HCIE / CCIE / JNCIE) and participation in industry forums, conferences, and communities of practice are desirable.
3. Proven 5+ years experience as a solution architect or technical lead, with a strong background in network planning, design, and architecture.
4. Technology Areas Expertise: Network domains, technologies, and protocols, infrastructure optimization, capacity planning, performance and availability management, Huawei (Switching & Routing, DWDM, xPON), MPLS, WAN, DAS systems & similar (Distributed Antenna Systems), Data Centre.
5. In-depth knowledge of architecture principles, design patterns, and architectural styles (e.g., microservices, SOA, event-driven architecture).
6. Hands-on experience with a wide range of technology stacks and platforms (e.g., Cisco / Huawei, Juniper and CGNAT).
7. Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
8. Ability to articulate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.