Head of Enterprise Architecture, UK & Bermuda

This is an opportunity to join Ascot Group - one of the world’s preeminent specialty risk underwriting organizations. Designed as a modern‑era company operating through an ecosystem of interconnected global operating platforms, we’re bound by a common mission and purpose: One Ascot. Our greatest strength is a talented team who flourish in a collaborative, inclusive, and entrepreneurial culture, steeped in underwriting excellence, integrity, and a passion to find a better way, The Ascot Way.

The Ascot Way guides our people and our organization. Our underwriting platforms collaborate to find creative ways to deploy our capital in a true cross‑product and cross‑platform approach. These platforms work as one, deploying our capital creatively through our unique Fusion Model: Client Centric, Risk Centric, Technology Centric. The business maximizes client financial security while delivering bespoke products and world‑class service – both pre‑ and post‑claims. Ascot exists to solve for our clients’ brightest tomorrow, through agility, collaboration, resilience, and discipline.

Job Purpose

The Head of Enterprise Architecture, UK & Bermuda at Ascot is accountable for defining, governing and evolving Ascot’s Enterprise Architecture to ensure that technology investment, platforms and capabilities are aligned to business strategy, regulatory obligations and long‑term operational sustainability across the UK & Bermuda operations. The Head of Enterprise Architecture will manage the UK Architecture team and own Ascot’s UK and Bermuda Enterprise Architecture strategy, management and governance. This is a key technical, analytical and design role working with key business stakeholders, Product Management, IT functions, project teams and third‑party vendors.

Detailed Duties

• Enterprise Architecture Strategy & Roadmaps: Own and lead Ascot’s UK & Bermuda Enterprise Architecture strategy, including applications, data, integration and infrastructure domains, and contribute towards Group strategies. Define and maintain multi‑year target‑state architectures and roadmaps aligned to Group strategy and market growth.
• Business & Technology Alignment: Partner with Product Management, business leadership and IT functions to understand strategic objectives and ensure architectural decisions enable efficiency, scalability, resilience and innovation.
• Solution & Portfolio Oversight: Assess initiatives against architectural principles and target‑state architecture. Oversee the production of project architecture deliverables, through scoping, design and implementation, including ‘as‑is’ and ‘to‑be’ architecture models. Ensure in‑flight projects remain aligned, with architectural dependencies and risks identified and managed.
• Architecture Governance & Standards: Collaborate with the Ascot US Architecture leader to maintain Ascot Group’s architecture principles, standards, reference architectures and patterns. Ensure they are actively applied across initiatives to promote reuse, reduce complexity and manage technical debt.
• Design Authority Leadership: Co‑chair the Ascot Group Technical Design Authority, providing architectural oversight and assurance that technology initiatives align to agreed standards, principles, security requirements and target‑state direction.
• Data, AI & Information Architecture: Provide enterprise leadership for data, analytics and AI architecture, including data standards, interoperability, governance and platform coherence, ensuring information assets are trusted, reusable and regulator‑ready.
• Security, Resilience & Compliance: Ensure security, operational resilience and regulatory considerations are embedded into architectural decisions, working closely with Cyber, Risk and Compliance teams to support a secure and resilient‑by‑design landscape.
• Vendor & Third‑Party Architecture Oversight: Provide architectural oversight for SaaS platforms, strategic vendors and partners, influencing vendor selection and roadmaps while ensuring architectural accountability remains with Ascot.
• Architecture Capability & Culture: Lead, manage and develop Enterprise and Solution Architects, ensuring appropriate skills, capacity and succession. Promote architectural literacy and early engagement across IT and the wider business.
• Innovation & External Representation: Act as an agent of change by researching, assessing and prototyping emerging technologies and approaches. Represent Ascot in relevant industry and market technology forums, including LMA and Lloyd’s.