Solutions Architect

Location: Cora Health, The Lightbox, Quorum Park, Benton Lane, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE12 8EU

Contract Type: Permanent

Connect Health and Healthshare have come together as one organisation - Cora Health - combining our decades of experience in providing healthcare services on behalf of the NHS.

Purpose of the Job Role

The Solutions Architect is responsible for shaping, assuring and governing end-to-end technology solutions across a complex healthcare systems landscape. Acting as the bridge between clinical, operational and IM&T teams, the role translates business priorities and service challenges into scalable, secure and interoperable technology solutions that support Cora Health's strategic objectives.

In addition to leading solution architecture activities, the postholder will provide professional leadership for the Business Analysis capability, ensuring business requirements are robust, traceable and aligned to successful delivery outcomes. The role plays a key position in reducing technical debt, promoting reuse and standardisation, influencing technology investment decisions, and ensuring solutions deliver measurable value for patients, colleagues and the organisation.

What you'll be doing

• Lead the design, assurance and governance of end-to-end solution architectures across a complex and evolving healthcare systems landscape.
• Translate strategic business requirements into scalable, interoperable and secure technology solutions that align with organisational priorities.
• Provide architectural leadership across multiple programmes and change initiatives, ensuring solutions align with enterprise architecture standards and long-term digital strategy.
• Design and assure integrations across clinical, operational and corporate systems, ensuring data flows, interoperability and resilience requirements are met.
• Develop and maintain architecture artefacts including system maps, integration diagrams, data flows, option appraisals and target-state architectures.
• Support organisational growth, mergers and service integration through flexible architecture approaches that enable rapid onboarding and system rationalisation.
• Work closely with innovation, clinical and operational teams to evaluate emerging technologies and develop viable, scalable solutions.
• Lead and develop the Business Analysis function, ensuring high-quality requirements gathering, process analysis and business partnering across the organisation.
• Ensure solutions appropriately address cyber security, information governance, clinical safety, accessibility and operational resilience requirements.
• Maintain a hands-on and pragmatic approach, contributing directly to programme delivery and supporting successful implementation where required.

What we're Looking For

• Proven experience operating as a Solution Architect or equivalent role within a complex technology environment.
• Strong architectural design capability, with experience creating end-to-end solutions that balance strategic direction with practical delivery.
• Excellent business analysis and stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to translate business needs into deliverable technology solutions.
• Experience leading, coaching or developing Business Analysts and embedding high-quality analysis practices.
• Strong understanding of integrations, interoperability, data flows, non-functional requirements and enterprise technology environments.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with the ability to engage senior leaders, clinicians, operational colleagues and technical teams.
• Experience evaluating supplier solutions, supporting procurement activity and providing technical assurance and governance.
• Knowledge of healthcare systems, interoperability standards, clinical safety considerations and regulated environments would be highly advantageous.
• Strategic thinker with strong systems-thinking capability, able to identify opportunities for simplification, standardisation and long-term value creation.
• Resilient, collaborative and outcome-focused, with a passion for delivering technology-enabled change that improves services and patient outcomes.
• TOGAF, BCS Solution Architecture, Business Analysis or similar professional qualifications are desirable but not essential.

Why Join Cora Health?

This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in shaping the future technology landscape of one of the UK's leading community healthcare providers. You'll work across major transformation programmes, influence strategic technology decisions, and help deliver innovative, secure and scalable solutions that improve services for colleagues and patients alike.

• Generous Holiday Entitlement: Benefit from up to 25 days of holiday (plus public holidays) to relax and recharge. You’ll also get another day off for your Birthday. If you’d like even more holiday to enjoy you can participate in our generous holiday buy and sell scheme.
• Wellness Support: Access a suite of health support tools and an employee assistance program for your well-being so you can be at your best and be your true self.
• Performance Awards: Excel in your objectives and be rewarded further for your hard work with a range of pay, gifts and incentives awarded alongside attending our annual colleague awards to be treated and feel special.
• Savings and Support: Make huge saving by making the most of Blue Light and Healthcare Services discounts as well as the very important employer pension contributions and a Christmas savings club.
• Membership Fee Reimbursement: Save your pennies, as we cover the cost of role required professional membership fees.
• Flexibility: Work in a way that supports home life, through hybrid working options and flexibility in working hours and times.