At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the design of a cutting-edge technology architecture across multiple domains.
- Company: Join a rapidly scaling HR tech company shaping the future of workforce solutions.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, hybrid working, generous vacation days, and premium-free pension.
- Other info: Opportunity for career growth and mentorship in a collaborative culture.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by architecting innovative solutions in a dynamic environment.
- Qualifications: Proven experience in enterprise architecture and strong communication skills.
The predicted salary is between 81000 - 99000 £ per year.
Technology is advancing rapidly—every organization is digitizing, adopting AI, and rethinking how work is done. That shift is exactly what our Product & Technology Office exists to shape. We're building the platform that will power the future of workforce solutions: world-leading STEM talent services, managed services, and a growing suite of AI-enabled products.
As an Enterprise Architect, you'll be responsible for ensuring the coherence of our technology portfolio across business, data, applications, integration, infrastructure, and security—across our proprietary products, third-party platforms, and enterprise systems. You won't manage people to achieve this; instead, you'll lead through the strength of your architectural standards, your design authority, and your ability to bring engineering, product, and technology teams together toward a shared target state.
Three things will define your first year:
- Scaling our platform for growth
- Ensuring our products work seamlessly across regions and brands
- Designing how AI is safely integrated into what we offer our clients
All of it built with security in mind from day one.
What You'll Do
- Define and maintain the target-state architecture across business, data, application, integration, infrastructure, and security domains—and then keep it up to date as the system evolves.
- Define the architectural principles, standards, and reusable patterns that engineering and product teams actually adopt.
- Maintain a single, integrated technology roadmap that sequences changes, eliminates duplication, and reduces technical debt—while aligning with the domain roadmaps driven by domain leaders.
- Architect for scalability: multi-tenancy, entity separation, shared services, and the non-functional standards that allow us to onboard new brands without having to rebuild the platform each time.
- Design how our products function across regions—data residency, localization, currency, regulation—using configurable patterns rather than forked codebases.
- Partner with the VP of Data & AI to develop reference architectures for AI and agentic capabilities in client-facing services, covering model access, orchestration, evaluation, and human oversight.
- Embed security, privacy, and resilience into every design from the very beginning, working closely with the Director of Information Security & Privacy.
- Lead a design authority focused on the decisions that matter—cross-domain decisions, major programs, exceptions—rather than routine approval.
- Mentor architects and engineers throughout the company, raising the bar for design thinking without needing a direct reporting relationship to do so.
- Serve as a trusted technical advisor to the CTPO and senior leadership, and represent our architecture to clients, partners, and auditors in situations where it is contractually relevant.
Nice to have
- Experience in HR tech, staffing, or a comparable regulated, multi-entity service business.
- Familiarity with recognised assurance and control frameworks used in supplier or client audits.
- Experience leading or contributing to a formal architecture design authority or governance board.
Why Join Us
You’ll help build the technical backbone of a truly international, rapidly scaling HR tech company—not from the sidelines, but as the person responsible for ensuring everything fits together. If you’re looking for architecture work with real commercial impact and the autonomy to drive it through expertise rather than hierarchy, this is the role for you.
Here’s what we offer you
- Salary that matches your experience
- Vacation pay and days off
- Hybrid working
- Premium-free pension
- Performance bonus
- Monthly extras
What You'll Bring
- Proven experience as an Enterprise Architect (or in an equivalent senior architecture role) across the domains of business, data, applications, integration, infrastructure, and security—not just a single area of expertise.
- A track record of leading through influence and technical expertise rather than formal management—and getting engineering and product teams genuinely aligned with a target state.
- Experience in designing multi-region, multi-brand, or multi-tenant products, including practical patterns for localisation and regulatory variations.
- A hands-on understanding of how to responsibly integrate AI and agentic capabilities into products—including data governance, evaluation, and human oversight, not just the technology itself.
- A “security-by-design” mindset, comfortable working alongside information security and privacy functions rather than treating them as a final gate.
- Strong communication skills — able to clearly explain architectural trade-offs to both engineers and executives.
Enterprise Architect employer: HeadFirst Group
Join a forward-thinking HR tech company in London, where as an Enterprise Architect, you'll play a pivotal role in shaping the future of workforce solutions. We offer a dynamic work culture that values innovation and collaboration, alongside competitive benefits such as a premium-free pension, generous vacation days, and a hybrid working model that promotes work-life balance. With ample opportunities for professional growth and a commitment to employee well-being, this is an excellent place to advance your career while making a meaningful impact.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Enterprise Architect
✨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 HeadFirst Group 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 HeadFirst Group.
✨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 HeadFirst Group.
✨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 HeadFirst Group 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 Enterprise Architect
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 HeadFirst Group.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at HeadFirst Group 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 HeadFirst Group
✨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 HeadFirst Group 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.
