Principal Technical Architect

Salary: £56,000 - 96,000 per year

Requirements:

• Degree or equivalent experience in Computer Science or Information Technology.
• Hold, or be willing to work towards, relevant qualifications such as TOGAF, ITIL, Agile Project Management or PRINCE2, or have equivalent experience.
• Hold professional or expert-level certifications, such as Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional or VMware Certified Design Expert (VCDX), or equivalent experience.
• Translate business and security requirements into secure, efficient and cost-effective designs.
• Experience reviewing and assuring complex solutions and producing high-quality conceptual, logical and physical designs using the TOGAF framework.
• Proven experience defining and governing enterprise-scale architectures across VMware private cloud, Microsoft on-premises and multi-cloud technologies, including Azure and/or AWS; ability to translate strategic objectives into technical roadmaps and standards.
• Demonstrable experience leading, coaching and developing senior architects and specialists.
• Experience designing secure or air-gapped platforms in the government sector.
• Knowledge of NCSC, GDS and UK government security frameworks, including Secure by Design, Cloud Security Principles, Government Functional Standards and the Technology Code of Practice.
• Expert knowledge of VMware and Microsoft infrastructure technologies, with capability across networking, storage, recovery, monitoring and multi-cloud platforms including Azure, M365 and AWS.
• Knowledge of Agile, DevSecOps and CI/CD practices for infrastructure delivery.
• Skills in infrastructure design and automation using Terraform, CloudFormation, Azure Resource Manager, Ansible, Puppet and Chef.
• Ability to influence and advise senior civil servants with credible, evidence-based recommendations.
• Experience developing and maintaining enterprise architecture frameworks, standards and roadmaps aligned with strategic goals.
• Demonstrable experience deputising for senior technology leaders, providing strategic oversight and principal technology coverage.
• Open to UK nationals only; successful candidates must meet security requirements, including Developed Vetting, complete baseline personnel security checks and undergo a medical.
• The selection process assesses Seeing the Big Picture, Managing a Quality Service, Communicating and Influencing, experience and technical skills.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the definition and evolution of enterprise architecture in alignment with organisational goals, government standards and technology strategy.
• Oversee infrastructure, networks and cloud architecture domains, and lead the design and delivery of architectural roadmaps and transformational change across applications, operations, infrastructure and cloud.
• Contribute to technology and target operating models, and shape strategies for AI, DevSecOps and identity management.
• Establish architectural standards, policies and guardrails across the organisation.
• Coach and mentor architects and technical specialists, communicate our vision and principles, and foster continuous improvement and shared learning.
• Engage with senior stakeholders across government, technical communities and industry, represent our organisation and share insights at relevant forums.
• Work with senior leaders to align architecture with business strategy, procurement and operations.
• Identify and govern risk, ensure decisions and solutions comply with relevant requirements, and participate in incident reviews.
• Drive innovation and improve performance in response to emerging technologies, architectures and industry trends.

Technologies:

• AI
• AWS
• Ansible
• Architect
• Azure
• CI/CD
• Cloud
• DevSecOps
• Support
• ITIL
• Puppet
• Security
• TOGAF
• Terraform
• VMware
• CTO

More:

We are FCDO Services, protecting the UKs interests at home and overseas through work that includes designing and constructing secure government buildings, couriering diplomatic packages, and safeguarding government technology. Our Digital and Data technology team provides solutions for government partners, including secure software, programme and application support, and cloud services. This full-time Principal Technical Architect role is based in Milton Keynes, with a salary of £75,055–£77,259. We offer a Civil Service pension, annual leave starting at 25 days, public and privilege days, tailored learning and development, an inclusive workplace, on-site gym, nursery, café and restaurant, interest-free season-ticket and bike loans, and a free shuttle bus between central Milton Keynes and Hanslope Park. We are committed to inclusion and value colleagues with diverse skills, backgrounds, cultures and identities.

last updated 39 week of 2026