Data Architect in City of London

The Department

Our Technology team continues to go from strength to strength, playing a vital role in firm-wide innovation and strategy. Far from being a support function, Technology is integral to the firm’s growth agenda, backed by strong leadership engagement and sustained investment.

The Role

As a Data Architect, you will play a strategic role in shaping and evolving the organisation’s enterprise data landscape, enabling trusted, secure, and accessible data capabilities across the business. Reporting formally to the Head of Data and functionally to the Head of Architecture, you will be responsible for defining enterprise-wide data architecture standards, principles, and target-state roadmaps that align with both the firm’s Data Strategy and broader Enterprise Architecture strategy. You will provide architectural leadership across data domains, governance, integration, analytics, and platform capabilities, ensuring consistency, scalability, security, and long-term sustainability of the firm’s data ecosystem. Working closely with Enterprise Architects, Solution Architects, Product teams, Data Governance, and senior business stakeholders, you will ensure that data architecture supports strategic transformation initiatives, regulatory obligations, operational efficiency, and enhanced decision-making across the organisation. You will contribute to the firm’s mission of putting the power of data into the hands of its people through well-governed, business-aligned, and future-ready data architecture.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Define and maintain enterprise data architecture principles, standards, reference architectures, and governance frameworks aligned to the firm’s strategic objectives.
• Develop and maintain the Data Architecture roadmap in alignment with Enterprise Architecture strategy, business transformation programmes, and the wider Data Strategy.
• Own and evolve the enterprise data model, ensuring consistency and alignment across products, platforms, and business domains.
• Define target-state architecture for enterprise data platforms, analytics, reporting, and integration capabilities.
• Establish architectural standards for data modelling, metadata, lineage, master data, and information lifecycle management.
• Define architecture patterns for Master Data Management (MDM) and enterprise-wide data consistency across key business entities.
• Provide architectural oversight for data integration approaches including APIs, messaging frameworks, event-driven architectures, and cloud-native integration patterns.
• Partner with Security and Risk teams to ensure data protection, privacy-by-design, classification, retention, and regulatory compliance standards are embedded into all architecture decisions.
• Establish and promote enterprise data governance frameworks, including ownership, stewardship, accountability, and data quality standards.
• Define strategic architecture approaches for analytics, AI, and advanced data capabilities to support future innovation initiatives.
• Lead architectural reviews and provide governance input across major programmes, ensuring alignment with enterprise standards and strategic direction.
• Act as the senior authority for enterprise data architecture decisions, providing guidance to delivery, platform, and product teams.
• Support adoption of modern architectural practices including domain-driven design, federated data ownership, and data product-oriented operating models.
• Collaborate closely with Data Governance and Enterprise Architecture functions to embed best practices for data quality, lineage, consistency, and compliance across the organisation.
• Champion data architecture best practice across the business, supporting capability uplift, mentoring, and knowledge sharing within architecture and technology teams.
• Contribute to architecture governance forums including Architecture Review Boards, Technical Design Authorities, and Change Advisory Boards.

Skills and Experience

• Proven experience operating in senior Data Architecture or Enterprise Data Architecture roles within complex enterprise environments.
• Strong experience defining enterprise data strategies, target-state architectures, and data operating models.
• Excellent understanding of enterprise data architecture principles, governance frameworks, and information management practices.
• Strong expertise in enterprise data modelling, conceptual/logical modelling, and data domain design.
• Experience designing modern cloud-based data ecosystems, preferably within Microsoft Azure environments.
• Knowledge of enterprise integration architecture patterns including APIs, messaging, event-driven architecture, and hybrid integration models.
• Experience defining architecture standards for data warehousing, analytics, reporting, and information management capabilities.
• Strong understanding of Master Data Management (MDM), metadata management, lineage, and data quality frameworks.
• Experience working within federated, domain-oriented, or product-centric data operating models.
• Good understanding of regulatory and compliance requirements including GDPR and data protection standards.
• Experience contributing to enterprise architecture governance and operating within TOGAF or similar architecture frameworks.
• Strong stakeholder management and communication skills, with the ability to engage effectively with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Experience working in regulated, professional services, legal, or similarly complex business environments is highly desirable.

Desirable Experience

• Experience with Azure-based enterprise data platforms and analytics ecosystems.
• Familiarity with enterprise architecture tooling such as LeanIX, Ardoq, or similar platforms.
• Knowledge of modern data architecture approaches including Data Mesh and data product frameworks.
• Exposure to AI/ML governance, information architecture, and emerging enterprise data capabilities.
• Experience supporting enterprise-wide digital transformation initiatives.

Qualifications

• TOGAF Certified or similar Enterprise Architecture qualification.
• DAMA CDMP (Certified Data Management Professional) or equivalent desirable.
• Azure Solutions Architect certification desirable.
• Additional certifications in Data Governance, Information Architecture, or Enterprise Architecture advantageous.