Security Architect / Design Lead – HashiCorp Vault Location: Hybrid – London, Birmingham or Sheffield. Office attendance/travel when required. Contract: 6 months initially, with potential extensions Rate: £600-675pd – (inside IR35) Essential Consulting are working with a large Financial Services client seeking an experienced Security Architect / Design Lead with expertise in HashiCorp Vault to support a specialist cybersecurity and Identity & Access Management (IAM) function. This role requires someone with deep, hands-on HashiCorp Vault expertise who has progressed from a technical engineering background into solution design or architecture. You will combine strong practical knowledge of Vault and secrets management with the ability to take ownership of technical designs, establish reusable architecture patterns and engage confidently with senior technical stakeholders.
Key Responsibilities
Lead end-to-end solution design across HashiCorp Vault, secrets management and related IAM technologies. Develop high-level designs, architecture patterns and technical design documentation aligned to enterprise standards. Provide technical expertise across Vault integrations, Secret Engines, authentication methods and secrets management solutions. Design and influence secure, scalable approaches to workload identity, secrets management and privileged access.
Identify and resolve complex technical design and integration challenges, including risks, dependencies and architectural deviations. Work closely with engineering, cybersecurity and architecture teams to translate requirements into practical, implementable solutions. Present and defend technical designs through design authorities, architecture governance and senior stakeholder forums. Contribute to the longer-term direction and strategy for secrets management within a complex enterprise environment.
Key Requirements
We are particularly interested in candidates who have developed their expertise through hands-on security or infrastructure engineering and subsequently moved into senior technical design or architecture responsibilities . Essential experience: 3 years' substantial hands-on HashiCorp Vault experience , ideally including on-premises environments. 3 years' HashiCorp Terraform experience , including designing and building complex, reusable modules.
Deep technical knowledge of Vault integrations, Secret Engines, authentication methods and secrets management architecture . Experience designing and implementing secure workload identity and authentication solutions. Strong understanding of IAM, PAM and federated identity , including technologies such as OAuth, SAML, SSO and Kerberos.
Experience producing and owning high-level solution designs, architecture patterns and technical design documentation . Ability to investigate complex technical issues and establish robust, reusable design approaches. Experience working with technical design authorities, architecture governance and senior stakeholders. Strong communication skills, with the ability to explain technical designs and decisions to different audiences.
Experience within financial services, large regulated organisations or complex enterprise technology environments would be advantageous. This is a specialist opportunity for someone who combines genuine HashiCorp Vault engineering depth with senior technical design capability , rather than a generalist cybersecurity architecture background.
Security Architect / Design Lead – HashiCorp Vault in London employer: Essential Consulting
Join a leading UK financial services organisation that champions innovation and technical excellence, offering a flexible hybrid working environment across the UK. As a Technical Development Lead, you'll thrive in a culture that values hands-on leadership, continuous learning, and collaboration, with ample opportunities for professional growth and the chance to work on cutting-edge AWS technologies. Enjoy competitive daily rates and the potential for contract extension while being part of a transformative technology programme that encourages creativity and challenges the status quo.
