At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and deliver innovative AI solutions using Microsoft technologies.
- Company: Join a leading tech firm with a vibrant, award-winning culture.
- Benefits: Enjoy a 9-day fortnight, private medical insurance, and generous holiday allowance.
- Other info: Be part of a dynamic team with excellent career growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Shape the future of AI while working on exciting projects with top-tier clients.
- Qualifications: Experience in AI solutions and strong communication skills are essential.
The predicted salary is between 70000 - 90000 £ per year.
As an AI Solutions Architect, you will be responsible for designing and leading the delivery of enterprise AI solutions built on Microsoft's AI platform. Working closely with customers, consultants, developers, project managers and Microsoft, you will define solution architectures that enable organisations to adopt AI securely, responsibly and at scale.
This is a senior customer-facing role focused on translating business challenges into scalable technical solutions using Microsoft Copilot, Copilot Studio, Azure AI, Microsoft Fabric and Power Platform technologies. You will provide architectural leadership across the full project lifecycle, from pre-sales and discovery through to solution design, governance, implementation and production deployment.
You will act as a trusted advisor to customers and provide technical leadership within CPS, helping shape our AI strategy, propositions, delivery standards and reusable solution accelerators.
Requirements- Solution Architecture & Technical Leadership
- Lead the architecture and design of AI, Copilot and Agentic AI solutions using Microsoft technologies.
- Design scalable, secure and maintainable solutions across Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, Azure AI Foundry, Microsoft Fabric and Power Platform.
- Define solution architectures, integration patterns, governance controls and security requirements.
- Design multi-agent solutions, orchestration patterns and agent operating models.
- Define approaches for knowledge management, grounding, retrieval and enterprise search capabilities.
- Establish architectural standards, reusable components and best practices for AI solution delivery.
- Provide technical assurance and architecture reviews across customer engagements.
- Customer Engagement & Advisory
- Act as a trusted advisor to customer stakeholders, architects and technical teams.
- Lead discovery workshops, architecture reviews and technical design sessions.
- Translate business requirements into scalable AI solution designs and implementation roadmaps.
- Support customers in developing AI strategies, governance frameworks and operating models.
- Provide technical leadership during proof of concepts, pilot programmes and production deployments.
- Support customer executive stakeholders in understanding AI opportunities, risks and investment decisions.
- Pre-Sales & Business Development
- Support CPS sales and pre-sales activities for AI opportunities.
- Contribute to proposals, statements of work and solution designs.
- Participate in customer demonstrations, workshops and technical presentations.
- Support effort estimation, solution sizing and technical risk assessments.
- Collaborate with Microsoft teams and technology partners on strategic opportunities.
- Practice Development & Innovation
- Stay current with emerging Microsoft AI technologies and roadmap developments.
- Build reusable architectures, accelerators, reference designs and demonstration environments.
- Support the development of new AI propositions and service offerings.
- Mentor consultants and provide technical leadership across the AI Practice.
- Contribute to CPS thought leadership through blogs, events, webinars and industry engagement.
- Support CPS in achieving Microsoft partner designations, specialisations and advanced certifications.
- Technical Skills & Experience
- Strong experience designing and delivering enterprise AI solutions using Microsoft technologies.
- Deep knowledge of Microsoft Copilot Studio, Agent Builder and Microsoft 365 Copilot.
- Strong understanding of Power Platform, including Power Automate, Power Apps and Dataverse.
- Working knowledge of Azure AI services, Azure AI Foundry and Azure OpenAI capabilities.
- Experience designing integrations across Microsoft 365, business applications and external systems.
- Strong understanding of solution architecture principles across data, security, governance and scalability.
- Experience designing secure and responsible AI solutions within enterprise environments.
- Strong understanding of Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), grounding strategies and knowledge architectures.
- Experience facilitating discovery workshops and translating business requirements into technical solution designs.
- Excellent stakeholder engagement, consulting and communication skills.
- Experience supporting pre-sales activities, solution design and technical estimation.
- Desirable
- Microsoft Fabric
- OneLake
- Data Engineering
- Data Warehousing
- Real-Time Intelligence
- Power BI
- Azure AI
- Azure AI Foundry
- Azure OpenAI
- AI Agents
- Prompt Flows
- Model orchestration
- Agentic AI Architecture
- Multi-agent systems
- Agent orchestration
- Human-in-the-loop patterns
- Agent governance and observability
- AI Engineering Concepts
- Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG)
- Semantic search
- Vector databases
- Grounding strategies
- Knowledge architectures
- Enterprise Architecture
- Identity and access management
- Security and compliance
- Environment strategy
- DevOps and deployment approaches
- Experience working within a Microsoft Partner organisation.
- Preferred Certifications (not essential)
- Microsoft AI
- AI-900: Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals
- AI-102: Azure AI Engineer Associate
- Microsoft Applied Skills: Build custom agents with Microsoft Copilot Studio
- Microsoft Applied Skills: Create copilots with generative AI
- Microsoft Applied Skills: Build agentic solutions using Azure AI Foundry
- Microsoft Power Platform
- PL-900: Microsoft Power Platform Fundamentals
- PL-200: Power Platform Functional Consultant Associate
- PL-400: Power Platform Developer Associate
- Microsoft Data & Analytics
- DP-600: Fabric Analytics Engineer Associate
- PL-300: Power BI Data Analyst Associate
- Microsoft 365
- MS-900: Microsoft 365 Fundamentals
- MS-102: Microsoft 365 Administrator
- Architecture & Consulting
- TOGAF (desirable)
- Prosci Change Practitioner (desirable)
- Experience leading enterprise architecture and digital transformation programmes.
- 9 Day Fortnight – three day weekend every other week
- Vitality – Private Medical Insurance
- YuLife – Income Protection and employee discounts benefits
- Health Assured – Employee Wellbeing Support
- Medicash – Health Cash Plan
- 25 days holiday – increasing to 26 days after 1 year, to 27 days after 2 years and to 28 days after 5 years
- Have your birthday as an additional day off from work. Can be adjusted to be taken within a week of your birthday if that is your preference
- Quarterly and annual star performer awards and rewarded with prizes – voted for by your peers and colleagues
- Annual professional training budget to support your Personal Development Plan
- Award winning culture
- Fortnightly ‘Engagement’ survey to assess staff Happiness levels
- Quarterly company meetings with associated social/team building events
- Workplace pension scheme which goes beyond the standard schemes
- No arduous annual appraisal process – your line manager will hold a 1-2-1 with you quarterly, as a minimum, to review and realign your objectives and your PDP as appropriate
- Free on-site parking, subject to availability
- Long service recognition at 5, 10, 15, 20 years and onwards
- Unlimited hot and cold refreshments throughout the day in the Marlow office
- Complimentary fruit & snacks
- Monthly Fat/Fit Fridays! (pre-pandemic)
- Free chair massages - head, arms, shoulders and back (pre-pandemic)
- Regular social activities such as a summer event
AI Solutions Architext in Reading employer: CPS
CPS is an exceptional employer that prioritises employee well-being and professional growth, offering a unique 9-day fortnight for a better work-life balance, alongside comprehensive benefits such as private medical insurance and an annual training budget. Our award-winning culture fosters collaboration and innovation, ensuring that as an AI Solutions Architect, you will thrive in a supportive environment while contributing to cutting-edge AI solutions on Microsoft's platform.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land AI Solutions Architext in Reading
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at CPS or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to CPS.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like CPS.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like CPS that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace AI Solutions Architext in Reading
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at CPS.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at CPS and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at CPS
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If CPS uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
