At a Glance
- Tasks: Shape the future of technology in a global SaaS company and lead architectural governance.
- Company: Join a leading education tech company transforming learning experiences worldwide.
- Benefits: High visibility role, competitive salary, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Collaborate with international teams and influence long-term technology direction.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on AI adoption and platform evolution at a global scale.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in architecture roles and strong software engineering background.
The predicted salary is between 69935 - 85477 £ per year.
A Global SaaS Company at the forefront of education technology is investing heavily in its next phase of platform and product evolution. With millions of users globally and a strong international footprint, the business is moving toward a more AI-enabled, platform-centric operating model.
As part of this journey, they are hiring a Principal Architect to play a pivotal role in shaping the long-term technology direction across a complex, multi-region environment.
This is a senior, high-impact individual contributor role sitting at the centre of a global technology function. Reporting into the Global VP of Technology and Operations, you will provide architectural leadership across platforms, products and services, ensuring consistency, scalability and strategic alignment.
This is not a delivery role. Instead, you will focus on technical governance, architecture strategy and cross-functional alignment, enabling engineering teams to move faster and more effectively. You will operate across UK and US technology teams, helping bring greater cohesion, consistency and shared best practice across an already well-established global platform.
What You’ll Be Doing
- Define and evolve architecture principles, standards and governance across the organisation
- Establish and lead architecture forums and decision-making processes
- Drive consistency in tooling, design patterns and integration approaches
- Ensure strong governance across security, scalability, resilience and observability
- Provide oversight of key architectural decisions, risks and trade-offs
- Promote pragmatic governance that supports delivery rather than slowing it down
- Own and maintain the technical roadmap aligned to product and business strategy
- Identify opportunities around AI adoption, platform scaling and modernisation
- Highlight and prioritise technical debt and platform risks
- Evaluate emerging technologies and guide adoption decisions
- Balance regional requirements with global platform direction
Cross-Functional Leadership
- Bring together SMEs across Engineering, Infrastructure, Security, Data, QA and Product
- Facilitate architectural discussions and drive decisions to clear outcomes
- Provide guidance on complex or high-impact initiatives
- Encourage reuse, standardisation and platform thinking
Global Collaboration & Stakeholder Engagement
- Act as a key technical bridge between UK and US technology teams
- Ensure regional needs are represented within global platform decisions
- Build strong relationships with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Clearly communicate technical direction, risks and trade-offs
- Champion engineering quality and continuous improvement
- Contribute to evolving standards, governance and ways of working
- Support AI-driven development and innovation initiatives
- Mentor senior engineers and technical leaders across the organisation
What They’re Looking For
- Proven experience in senior architecture or technical leadership roles within modern SaaS or product-led environments
- Strong background in software engineering, distributed systems, APIs and cloud-native architectures
- Experience establishing and leading architecture governance and decision-making frameworks across multiple teams
- Ability to influence technical direction without direct line management responsibility
- Experience working within international or multi-region technology organisations
- Strong track record of defining technical roadmaps and aligning technology with business outcomes
- Confident communicator, able to translate complex technical concepts to different audiences
- Skilled facilitator, capable of driving alignment across diverse technical teams
- Solid understanding of security, scalability, resilience and operational best practice
- Exposure to or interest in AI-enabled platforms and development approaches
Key Context
- Newly created role as part of a broader technology evolution
- Individual contributor position with no direct reports
- Part of the senior technology leadership team
- Close collaboration with US-based counterparts as part of a “one team” global model
- Strong emphasis on bridging regional teams and improving alignment
Why This Role?
- Opportunity to shape architecture at a truly global scale
- High visibility role with direct access to senior leadership
- Influence long-term technology direction rather than day-to-day delivery
- Play a key role in enabling AI adoption and platform transformation
- Join a purpose-led organisation delivering impactful technology at scale
Principal Architect in London employer: Harvey Nash
Join a dynamic global banking organisation that prioritises innovation and employee development. With a collaborative work culture, comprehensive benefits, and ample opportunities for professional growth, this role as a SWIFT / Payments Project Manager offers a chance to make a significant impact in the financial sector while enjoying a supportive environment in a thriving location.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Architect in London
✨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 Harvey Nash 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 Harvey Nash.
✨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 Harvey Nash.
✨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 Harvey Nash 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 Principal Architect in London
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 Harvey Nash.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at Harvey Nash 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 Harvey Nash
✨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 Harvey Nash 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.
