Lead Technical Architect

A fantastic opportunity has arisen to join the Companies House architecture team as a  Lead  Technical Architect, a key role in a small, high performing team within an organisation that truly values its staff. The team is responsible for developing technical architectures that deliver business objectives, while supporting and encouraging one another to create the most effective designs with a focus on delivering value. Team working is highly valued along with a willingness to challenge established thinking and ways of working.

This is an opportunity to advance your knowledge and technical understanding in a high-profile role which has an impact across the organisation, developing systems that are used nationally and at high volume. We're currently fulfilling around 14 million search requests per day with users including the general public, businesses, the police and other government organisations.

In this role you will work with the wider Digital and Data Directorate, working closely with business stakeholders to develop technical designs that address business priorities and guide the development teams in creating robust, secure solutions. This is an opportunity to work with the latest cloud technologies, develop microservice architectures and shape the technical direction of the organisation. You will have excellent technical skills, proven architecture design experience and a background in software engineering.

We offer an excellent benefits package that includes a generous 30 days annual leave plus 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day, flexitime with no core hours and enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme with a contribution rate averaging 28%. Find out more about what a great place Companies House is to work

Further information on Companies House Services can be found here

Job description

We're looking for a Technical Architect whose responsibilities will include:

• Providing technical guidance and architectural designs to help shape the future digital services at Companies House, and effectively communicating these to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Helping establish and maintain architectural principles, strategy, governance and technical direction for Companies House services.
• Working closely with the architecture team to ensure designs are consistent and fit for purpose.
• Keeping up to date new technologies and processes and applying this knowledge to improve our services.
• Working closely with development teams, ensuring their output adheres to the architectural designs.

  This is an exciting opportunity in digital services, designing and delivering quality services to our users. By helping us to shape our services, you'll have the opportunity to be at the forefront of digital transformation in government.

  Person specification

  We are looking for someone to be part of our team in a time of great change and to play an integral part in shaping the architecture and design of future digital services that are used worldwide, help tackle economic crime at a national level and provide confidence to the UK economy.

  We want someone keen to improve their skills using new and exciting technologies and develop their career working on diverse projects with a focus on continuous improvement, while being part of a supportive high-profile team.

  We are seeking a talented individual who not only excels in architectural design but also possesses exceptional communication skills to effectively engage with colleagues and stakeholders across the business.

  We are looking for the following experience and technical skills, which will be assessed at sift and at interview. Please refer to the top 3 experience bullet points and all technical skills bullet points below when writing your personal statement.

  Experience - refer to top 3 bullet points in personal statement

  • Proven experience designing scalable, distributed services within a production environment.
  • Technical lead experience.
  • Hands on experience of building infrastructure following microservice architecture patterns.
  • Experience of public cloud service offerings, especially IaaS / PaaS.
  • Experience of integrating third party and in house developed systems.
  • Demonstrate experience of translating user requirements to solution designs.
  • Knowledge of architectural tools, methods and industry best practice.
  • Demonstrate ability to think strategically whilst having a strong focus on technologies and operational service delivery.

    Technical skills - refer to all bullet points below in personal statement

    • Our current technology stack primarily comprises: node.js, Java/ Spring, Kafka and MongoDB running in AWS and some exposure to these technologies would be beneficial.
    • Proven commercial experience of a selection of the following technologies/ skills is desirable:
    • Microservices Architectures
    • API Development
    • Cloud Computing Platforms
    • Distributed Event Streaming
    • Designing Secure and Scalable Systems
    • NoSQL Databases
    • Relational Databases

      Behaviours

      We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

      • Communicating and Influencing
      • Delivering at Pace
      • Seeing the Big Picture

        Benefits

        Alongside your salary of £49,384, Companies House contributes £14,306 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

        We offer an excellent benefits package that includes:

        • a generous 30 days annual leave plus 8 bank holidays and 1 privilege day
        • enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme with a contribution rate of averaging 28%
        • a range of recognition schemes including instant awards to thank and recognise each other's efforts and contributions
        • strong ethos of equality, diversity and inclusion
        • great work life balance with flexible and mobile working available for many roles
        • a pro-active approach to employee wellbeing that allows our employees to flourish and be their best at work and has enabled us to become an Investors In People platinum accredited employer
        • online financial support and advice
        • seasonal flu jabs
        • generous maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave allowances
        • a focus on career development and progression
        • a number of inclusive network groups to support our colleagues and a great sports and social society
        • cycle to work scheme
        • staff discount scheme
        • holiday play scheme for children
        • 3 days paid volunteering leave

          Next Steps

          Click  'Apply Now' to be taken to our main advert Civil Service Jobs where you can see more details regarding the role, the incredible benefits we have to offer and what it's like to work in Companies House.

          If you have any questions about the role or process, please reach out to kjones6@companieshouse.gov.uk.

          This role closes on 17 November 2024.