POSITION DETAILS

IT Services
Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £57,422 to £66,537 with potential progression once in post to £86,760
Grade: 9
Full Time (Part Time applications at 30 hours per week will also be considered)
Permanent
Closing date: 7th May 2025

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, QUALIFICATIONS, EXPERIENCE

• Experienced architect, with background in developing technology architect solutions for systems, infrastructure, security and wider enterprises.
• Experienced in using and qualified in suitable architecture frameworks and qualifications e.g. TOGAF, CISSP etc.
• Broad, enterprise-wide understanding of Applications, Infrastructure, Project Management, Service Design and Governance.
• Understanding of organisational business systems, processes and their infrastructure needs.
• The ability to recognize structural issues within an organization, functional interdependencies and cross-silo redundancies.
• The ability to apply architectural principles to business solutions.
• Understanding of the legal and purchasing requirements of delivering IT projects and the need for infrastructure input to these processes to ensure compliance.
• Ability to examine technologies and trends to identify the benefits the University can leverage from adopting those in the future in addition to the immediate usages.
• Able to clearly articulate complex technical concepts in plain language.
• The ability to assimilate and correlate disconnected documentation and drawings, and articulate their collective relevance to the organisation and to high-priority business issues.
• Experience using model-based representations that can be adjusted as required to collect, aggregate or disaggregate complex and conflicting information about the business.
• The ability to visualise and create high-level models that can be used in future analysis to extend and mature the business architecture.
• Experience planning and deploying both business and IT initiatives.
• Experience modelling business processes using a variety of tools and techniques.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to communicate appropriately at all levels of the organisation.
• Demonstrable leadership and budget management experience.
• Confident, diligent, seeks ways to maximise benefits from any technological design choices,
• A solution orientated, big picture thinker, broadly aware of multiple technologies, capable of learning.
• Able to dive into detail as needed for specific situations or to support particular people or projects.
• Strong situational analysis and decision-making abilities.
• Able to delegate, able to take a wide view.
• Team player able to work effectively at all levels of an organization with the ability to influence others to move toward consensus.
• Experience of championing Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in own work area.
• Ability to monitor and evaluate the extent to which equality and diversity legislation, policies, procedures are applied.
• Ability to identify issues with the potential to impact on protected groups and take appropriate action.

CORE COMPETENCIES/TRANSFERABLE SKILLS

Working at this level you will be able to develop and successfully demonstrate the core competencies/transferable skills outlined in each of the areas shown below. You will be expected to take ownership for getting things done, including calling on others to join you in collaborative working groups as necessary. You will need to be flexible in supporting your department and wider University.

PROBLEM SOLVING AND DECISION MAKING

• interpret and identify the implications of changes to the environment external to the University and make recommendations proactively for how to react to them;
• initiate creative and innovative solutions in area of expertise to build capability and influence the direction of the specialism;
• as appropriate, research and develop drafts of papers, taking account of the final audience, socialising ideas and seeking input and producing final drafts;
• resolve complex issues, often needing a strong element of informed judgement, not just good reasoning skills.

ROLE SUMMARY

The Head of Architecture plays a key role in structuring the supporting the university in terms of its business, data, application and technical architectures. This person aligns strategic goals and objectives with decisions regarding products and services, partners and suppliers, organisation, capabilities, and key business and IT initiatives.
The underlying drivers are based around the University Strategic Framework and the refreshed Digital Strategy, supporting business operations, data governance and technical frameworks and related processes which link these aspects of the university together. The Head of Architecture & Design will develop and maintain an integrated view of the university using a repeatable approach, cohesive framework, and available industry standard techniques.
The Head of Architecture reports to the CIO to align technical solutions with business needs. The post has supervisory responsibility of the wider architecture team, including specialist in data and process skills, and involves coaching, mentoring and management. In addition, the Head of Architecture will work with others at all levels of the organisation analysing strategic imperatives from senior leaders, and supporting managers as they develop and deliver business plans. The Head of Architecture also provides direct input into the governance cycle that supports the achievement of key goals, planning and execution of strategic initiatives or programmes, and delivery of bottom-line business value.

PRIMARY DUTIES

• Strategic Planning: Develop and maintain the enterprise architecture roadmap in alignment with the university’s strategic plan. Support this with more detailed architecture analysis and solutions in each of the separate domain areas.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Work closely with academic and administrative departments to understand their needs and ensure technology solutions support their goals.
• Key Individual Engagement: Maintain relationships with key staff in education, research, support functions and within the IT department.
• Technology Integration: Oversee the selection and integration of new technologies into the existing IT infrastructure, ensuring compatibility and efficiency.
• Efficiency: Ensure that the architecture factors in and delivers improved efficiency and effectiveness for business and IT areas.
• Coordination: Ensure that plans and roadmaps across all domains align and are compatible with the overall roadmap. Identify issues and propose solutions where needed.
• Compliance: Ensure that all IT systems and processes comply with relevant standards and policies.
• Innovation: Identify and evaluate emerging technologies that could benefit the university, and lead pilot projects to assess their feasibility.
• Documentation: Maintain comprehensive documentation of the enterprise architecture, including system diagrams, data models, and process flows.
• Solution Design: Ensure that projects and services have suitable solution designs developed and maintained.
• Delivery: Support the IT projects and portfolio delivery function as needed where expertise or insight is needed when projects are being delivered.
• Subject Expertise: Develop and enhance both personal and team architecture skills, and knowledge and understanding of the university.
• Security: Work closely with Information Security to ensure solutions are designed with security in mind.
• Management: Oversee and manage the work across the architecture function.
• Leadership: Provide guidance and mentorship to the architecture team and the wider IT staff, fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation.

ROLE CONTEXT

Roles at this level will be professional specialists with high-level technical expertise and experience, strategically leading and managing a technical/specialist/ functional service or IT business area with responsibility and accountability for all operational aspects, including managing major projects and initiatives to ensure delivery/improvements across the piece. Role holders will shape the medium to long term plan for their function, to fit with broader functional and University strategy.
Alternatively other role holders at this level will be specialists exercising a substantial degree of independent professional responsibility and discretion. Individuals will typically be senior individual contributors who are the University’s leading experts in a technical, technological or specialised field. They will also make major contributions to the strategic plan for their own area to fit with the broader functional and University strategy; they may manage a significant specialist facility/service.