Technical Architect (Ruby On Rails, AWS) in Newcastle upon Tyne

We’re looking for a hands‑on Technical Architect to join our Sage HR organisation and play a key role in shaping the technical direction of one of Sage’s most strategic growth products. Sage HR sits at the centre of our HR and payroll ecosystem, already supporting over 4 million employees globally and continuing to scale rapidly as we invest in its future.

This role is deeply embedded with our engineering teams — working alongside product managers, engineers, and technical leaders to define architectural direction, establish patterns, and guide teams. You’ll act as a technical authority, coach, and consultant: setting direction where needed, rolling up your sleeves to solve complex problems, and helping teams navigate scale, technical debt, and an increasingly service‑ and event‑driven architecture.

Please note: This is a hybrid role requiring 3 days per week in our Newcastle office.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as the architectural authority for Sage HR, defining and evolving the technical architecture as the product continues to scale from a high‑growth platform into an enterprise‑grade solution.
• Work closely with engineering teams, product managers, and engineering leaders to translate product strategy and commercial priorities into clear architectural direction, patterns, and technical approaches.
• Provide hands‑on architectural leadership, staying close to delivery by guiding teams through complex technical decisions, problem‑solving alongside engineers, and shaping solutions as work progresses.
• Establish and embed architectural standards, patterns, and best practices (including service‑based and event‑driven architectures) to address scale, integration, and long‑term maintainability.
• Coach and mentor engineers, helping raise technical maturity and architectural capability across teams — particularly in a context with varying seniority and a high proportion of contingent labour.
• Lead architectural thinking around integrations and platform connectivity, working across HR and payroll products and supporting an increasingly API‑ and event‑driven ecosystem.
• Tackle technical debt and legacy challenges, guiding the evolution of existing systems towards more modern, scalable architectures.
• Partner closely with other architects and senior technical leaders across Sage to ensure local decisions align with wider organisational standards while remaining pragmatic and delivery‑focused.
• Champion modern engineering practices and AI‑assisted development approaches, helping teams adopt and use tools such as GitHub Copilot and similar technologies where appropriate.

Skills, Knowledge & Experience (Requirements)

Must Have:

• Significant experience working as a Technical Architect or Senior Engineering Leader within product‑led software teams, with a strong focus on architecture that supports real delivery.
• Deep hands‑on technical expertise with Ruby on Rails and strong experience designing and operating systems on AWS (experience with Azure transferable).
• Proven experience designing and evolving service‑based and/or event‑driven architectures, including APIs and integrations between complex systems.
• Strong background in scaling software products, including refactoring existing codebases, evolving monolithic systems, and supporting vertical or horizontal growth.
• Excellent problem‑solving skills, with the ability to balance architectural direction and pragmatic delivery.
• Experience working closely with engineering teams as a coach and consultant, not just a reviewer — able to guide, challenge, and, when needed, roll up sleeves and contribute directly.
• Strong communication skills, with the confidence to defend architectural decisions, influence senior stakeholders, and work collaboratively across disciplines.

Nice to Have:

• Experience working on HR, payroll, or compliance‑sensitive products (not essential).
• Exposure to AI‑assisted development tooling (e.g. GitHub Copilot, Claude Code) and interest in applying AI to improve engineering productivity and quality.
• Familiarity with multiple database technologies (PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server) and data‑centric architectural challenges.
• Experience working in distributed or hybrid teams and navigating complex organisational environments.

Benefits:

• Generous bonuses and pension scheme: Up to 8% matched pension contribution plus 2% top-up by Sage.
• 25 days of paid annual leave with the option to buy up to another 5 days.
• 8 bank holiday days.
• Paid 5 days yearly to volunteer through our Sage Foundation.
• 50% income protection.
• Holiday buy + sell.
• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage.
• Work away scheme for up to 10 weeks a year.
• Ongoing training and professional development.
• Hybrid working.
• Healthy Mind app membership.
• Access to various helpful memberships for finances, health and wellbeing.