ABOUT US

At National Grid, our commitment to a cleaner, greener energy future is powered by the dedication and ingenuity of our people. Join our team as a Head of Solution Architect and be a part of something bigger—where your unique skills and passions can make a real difference. Together, we are superpowered.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Master’s Degree in a relevant discipline, or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience
• People management experience
• Experience in strategic technology leadership, IT infrastructure, analytics, and outsourcing management
• Breadth of knowledge in ensuring that relevant platforms (e.g. systems of record, analytics, integration) are brought together to support overall programme architecture
• Experience/knowledge of SAP solutions including S4, ECC, BTP, SAC, Ariba, SuccessFactors and Concur
• Experience/knowledge of integration platforms such as MS APIM, Mulesoft, BTP IS and SnapLogic
• Relevant experience of the full Systems Development Life Cycle (SDLC) processes and tooling - from EA to implementation including Agile, Iterative, Prototyping and Waterfall
• Experience leading, coaching, and developing people / teams
• Deep technical and functional knowledge in a particular area of expertise
• Proven analytical skills and experience making decisions based on hard and soft data
• Experience with resource planning and allocation within and across organizations

JOB PURPOSE

As Head of Solution Architecture, you’ll lead, influence and install world-class solution architecture capabilities that align with the Solution Architecture community of practice helping drive common practices across the company.
This portfolio consists of a diverse set of business solutions but is built on a strong SAP foundation covering Finance, HR and Procurement with other strategic vendors covering other capability areas. You’ll also have ownership of common digital platforms used across the group including integration, CI/CD & testing platforms as well as ServiceNow.
You’ll lead a strong team of Solution Architects who are responsible for delivery of solution architecture consisting of technology design while meeting the financial, security and performance goals that inevitably drive National Grid’s business outcomes.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Lead the delivery of solution architecture for projects and products that National Grid has decided to invest in
• Build solution architecture capabilities:
• Design, implement and adopt Solution Architecture best practices, and partner with the Enterprise Architecture team to continually improve Solution Architecture best practices at National Grid
• Define expected practices & guardrails
• Ensure technical output is based on National Grid’s technology standards and industry best practices
• Adapt practices to continually improve solution architecture capability maturity and achieve strategic objectives
• Ensure that solution architecture aligns with National Grid’s future state blueprint and road map
• Establish best-practice capabilities to ensure Solution Architects in your business unit will provide recommendations to delivery teams based on technology evaluations
• Work with business unit representatives to develop practices for edge-case technologies or solutions
• Collaborate with other Solution Architects and Enterprise Architects to facilitate career growth & cross-training
• Ensure personal and professional well-being of your team