Software Engineering Lead Solution Architect - Public Sector Professional London, GB

A career in IBM Consulting is built on long-term client relationships and close collaboration worldwide. You’ll work with leading companies and government clients, helping them shape their hybrid cloud and AI journeys. With support from our strategic partners, robust IBM technology, and Red Hat, you’ll have the tools to drive meaningful change and accelerate client impact. At IBM Consulting, curiosity fuels success. You’ll be encouraged to challenge the norm, explore new ideas, and create innovative solutions that deliver real results. Our culture of growth and empathy focuses on your long-term career development while valuing your unique skills and experiences.

Your role and responsibilities

We are looking for an experienced architect to join the IBM Consulting Public Sector team as a Lead Architect working on one of our major programmes or opportunities. You will provide technical leadership for a client solution, leading a technical team and be a trusted advisor to your client. You will be responsible for aspects of the technical solution including cloud native services, SaaS, bespoke development and existing legacy systems. The right candidate will be comfortable working in ‘rainbow’ teams with multiple different suppliers or as part of a wholly IBM team.

• Lead the end-to-end solution design for large-scale public sector programmes, ensuring alignment with client goals and IBM best practices.
• Work with business and technical stakeholders to translate strategic requirements into robust architecture blueprints.
• Define and oversee solution governance, architecture standards, and technical assurance throughout the project lifecycle.
• Provide thought leadership on emerging technologies, cloud adoption, integration strategies, and digital transformation.
• Drive the technical approach for proposals and RFP responses, shaping winning solutions and delivery models.
• Partner with delivery teams to ensure solutions are implemented effectively, securely, and to specification.
• Develop strong client relationships, acting as a trusted advisor on architecture and technology strategy.
• Lead architecture reviews, risk assessments, and mitigation planning for complex engagements.
• Mentor and guide junior architects and technical consultants within the team.

This is an opportunity to grow your career as a senior technical leader working on some of the country’s largest and most important solutions. For the right candidate with the drive, aptitude and ability career progression up to and including IBM Distinguished Engineer is available in this role.

Required education

None

Preferred education

Bachelor's Degree

Required technical and professional expertise

• You will be an experienced technical leader with a proven track-record as solution architect on significant programmes and bids.
• You will be technically innovative and have a history of dynamic leadership over multiple successful deliveries and opportunities.
• Strong background designing solutions for public sector clients, with understanding of government standards, compliance, and procurement processes.
• Expertise in enterprise architecture frameworks and methodologies.
• Proven ability to design and integrate cloud, data, application, and infrastructure components into end-to-end solutions.
• Strong understanding of modern technologies such as hybrid cloud, automation, integration platforms, security frameworks, and digital services.
• Experience of AWS or/and Azure and their services.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at senior levels.
• Experience leading architecture teams and providing technical leadership on major programmes.
• Comfortable in a range of delivery methods and approaches including agile, SAFe and traditional waterfall.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, matrixed consulting environment.

Preferred technical and professional experience

• Strong understanding & delivery experience of cloud native architectures.
• Deep understanding of AI and its practical application.
• Expertise in one or more public sector relevant IT domains found in one of the major UK government departments.

ABOUT BUSINESS UNIT

IBM Consulting is IBM’s consulting and global professional services business, with market leading capabilities in business and technology transformation. With deep expertise in many industries, we offer strategy, experience, technology, and operations services to many of the most innovative and valuable companies in the world. Our people are focused on accelerating our clients’ businesses through the power of collaboration.

YOUR LIFE @ IBM

In a world where technology never stands still, we understand that dedication to our clients' success, innovation that matters, and trust and personal responsibility in all our relationships, lives in what we do as IBMers as we strive to be the catalyst that makes the world work better. Being an IBMer means you’ll be able to learn and develop yourself and your career, you’ll be encouraged to be courageous and experiment every day, all whilst having continuous trust and support in an environment where everyone can thrive whatever their personal or professional background.

Our IBMers are growth minded, always staying curious, open to feedback and learning new information and skills to constantly transform themselves and our company. They are trusted to provide ongoing feedback to help other IBMers grow, as well as collaborate with colleagues keeping in mind a team-focused approach to include different perspectives to drive exceptional outcomes for our customers. The courage our IBMers have to make critical decisions every day is essential to IBM becoming the catalyst for progress, always embracing challenges with resources they have to hand, a can-do attitude and always striving for an outcome-focused approach within everything that they do.

Are you ready to be an IBMer?

ABOUT IBM

IBM’s greatest invention is the IBMer. We believe that through the application of intelligence, reason and science, we can improve business, society and the human condition, bringing the power of an open hybrid cloud and AI strategy to life for our clients and partners around the world. Restlessly reinventing since 1911, we are not only one of the largest corporate organizations in the world, we’re also one of the biggest technology and consulting employers, with many of the Fortune 500 companies relying on the IBM Cloud to run their business.

At IBM, we pride ourselves on being an early adopter of artificial intelligence, quantum computing and blockchain. Now it’s time for you to join us on our journey to being a responsible technology innovator and a force for good in the world.

IBM is proud to be an equal-opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, pregnancy, disability, neurodivergence, age, or other characteristics protected by the applicable law. IBM is also committed to compliance with all fair employment practices regarding citizenship and immigration status.

OTHER RELEVANT JOB DETAILS

IBM wants you to bring your whole self to work and for you this might mean the ability to work flexibly. If you are interested in a flexible working pattern, please talk to our recruitment team to find out if this is possible in the current working environment.