Lead Systems Architect in Crawley

Thales is a global technology leader with more than 83,000 employees on five continents. With over 7,500 people in the UK, operating across defence, space, aerospace, and digital security, we help build a future we can all trust. Thales supports the security and stability of our nation by providing extraordinary technology to our customers, as well as delivering social value to the UK with our products and services.

Location: Crawley (hybrid)

Shape the Future of Training & Simulation

At Thales, we deliver technology that makes the world safer, more connected and more sustainable. Our solutions help two-thirds of the world's aircraft take off and land safely, train military and commercial pilots, and support critical defence and security operations across the globe.

We are looking for a Systems & Solution Architect to join our Training & Simulation (TTS) business.

The Opportunity

As a Systems/Solution Architect, you will play a key role in defining solutions that deliver value to our customers while ensuring long-term product viability. Acting as the technical bridge between customer needs, business objectives and engineering delivery, you will translate complex requirements into innovative, robust and sustainable solutions. You will be responsible for developing solution architectures that align with product strategy, budget, schedule and customer expectations, while identifying opportunities for innovation and future growth. Working across multidisciplinary teams, you will ensure solutions remain technically coherent and fit for purpose throughout their lifecycle.

What You'll Be Doing

• Defining end-to-end solution architectures for complex customer programmes.
• Translating customer and stakeholder requirements into innovative technical solutions.
• Leading architectural decision-making and technical trade-off analysis.
• Identifying and mitigating technical risks across systems, software, security and safety domains.
• Applying Systems Engineering and Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) approaches.
• Managing requirements flow-down, verification and validation activities.
• Producing and reviewing architectural models, design artefacts and technical documentation.
• Supporting customer engagement, bids, capture activities and technical reviews.
• Ensuring solutions are delivered to required cost, schedule and quality commitments.
• Influencing product evolution and technology roadmaps to maintain long-term solution viability.

About You

You are likely to be an experienced Systems Engineer, Technical Lead or Architect who enjoys solving complex problems and working across multiple stakeholders. You'll bring:

• Experience developing system or solution architectures within complex engineering environments.
• Strong understanding of Systems Engineering principles, requirements management and architectural frameworks.
• Experience applying MBSE and SysML methodologies.
• Knowledge of requirements management tools such as IBM DOORS, Polarion or similar.
• The ability to balance technical, commercial and customer considerations when making decisions.
• Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.
• A proven track record of delivering successful engineering solutions within cost, schedule and quality constraints.

Experience in defence, aerospace, simulation, training systems, safety-critical or highly regulated environments would be advantageous.

Why Thales?

This is an opportunity to influence the design of next-generation training and simulation solutions whilst working with cutting-edge technologies and multidisciplinary teams. You'll have the freedom to innovate, the support to develop your career and the flexibility to work in a way that fits your lifestyle.

Security Clearance

Due to the nature of our work, this role requires Security Clearance (SC). Existing clearance is advantageous; however, candidates must be willing and able to obtain and maintain SC clearance.

Join us and help architect the future of training and simulation technology.

At Thales, we ensure equal opportunities, pay and working conditions for all. The benefits we offer include private medical insurance, buying or selling annual leave, cycle to work schemes, employee discounts, paid volunteering day, stocks and shares, annual bonus and much more depending on the role. We are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued for who they are and the unique strengths they bring.