At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the design and delivery of AI-driven solutions while driving enterprise architecture.
- Company: Join ST Engineering iDirect, a leader in innovative technology solutions.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, flexible work options, and opportunities for professional growth.
- Other info: Dynamic role with a player-coach mindset, fostering collaboration across teams.
- Why this job: Be at the forefront of AI transformation and make a real impact on business excellence.
- Qualifications: 8-12 years in tech, strong hands-on experience with AI/ML platforms and solution architecture.
The predicted salary is between 80000 - 100000 £ per year.
Overview
At ST Engineering i Direct, the Senior Manager, AI & Enterprise Architecture is responsible for driving the technical realization of i Direct’s AI-powered Business Excellence transformation through a combination of hands‑on execution and architectural leadership.
Reporting to the VP, Technology & Information Security, this role defines architectural direction while actively building and delivering AI‑enabled solutions, integrations, and platform capabilities that reduce manual effort, improve decision‑making, and accelerate time‑to‑value.
This is a player‑coach role requiring both deep technical execution and the ability to set standards, guide architecture, and scale solutions across the enterprise.
Role Summary
This role owns both the design and delivery of AI‑enabled solutions and enterprise architecture, ensuring business initiatives are translated into scalable, reusable, and measurable outcomes.
Key focus areas include
- Enterprise AI platform architecture and solution design
- Hands‑on development and deployment of AI/automation solutions
- Business‑driven solutioning tied to measurable outcomes
- Platform standardization and reuse
- Integration, data, and orchestration architecture
The role operates across architecture → build → scale, ensuring that what is designed is also successfully implemented and adopted.
Responsibilities
Key Responsibilities
- Hands‑On AI Solution Delivery (Core Expectation)
- Design, build, and deploy AI‑driven and automation solutions across business processes
• Develop and implement use cases such as
- Bid management automation
- Financial reporting optimization
- Salesforce and customer workflow enhancements
• Build solutions using
- AI platforms (Copilot, Dataiku, LLM‑based services)
- Workflow automation / orchestration tools
- APIs and integration layers
- Actively contribute to prototyping, development, and solution debugging
- Drive rapid delivery of high‑impact use cases (POC → production)
This role is expected to personally deliver and unblock critical solutions, not just direct teams.
- Enterprise Architecture & Solution Design
- Define and evolve the enterprise AI platform architecture, including:
- Unified data fabric
- AI orchestration layer
- API‑first integration strategies
- Translate business needs into end‑to‑end solution architectures and blueprints
- Establish and enforce architecture principles, design patterns, and best practices
• Ensure solutions are
- Scalable and reusable
- Secure and compliant
- Built on shared platforms (not siloed tools)
- Business‑Driven Solutioning
- Partner with business stakeholders to translate prioritized initiatives into implementable solutions
• Ensure all work ties directly to measurable KPIs
- Cycle time reduction
- Cost savings
- Productivity gains
- CSAT / revenue impact
- Provide technical leadership on high‑priority Business Excellence initiatives
- AI Platform Governance & Standardization
- Establish and lead Architecture Review Board (ARB)
• Enforce use of
- Approved platforms
- Reusable components
- Standardized integration patterns
- Prevent tool proliferation and fragmented AI adoption
- Drive consolidation into a centralized AI platform model
- Data, Integration & Platform Engineering
• Design and implement architecture across core enterprise systems
- Salesforce
- SAP / Finance systems
- Jira / Confluence
• Build and guide
- API integrations
- Event‑driven workflows
- Data pipelines and AI data layers
- Enable cross‑system intelligence and automation at scale
- Delivery Acceleration & Enablement
• Create reusable assets including
- Solution templates
- Architecture patterns
- AI and automation components
• Standardize solution delivery to reduce
- Time‑to‑solution
- Integration complexity
- Act as a hands‑on escalation point for complex technical challenges
- Technology Governance & Quality
• Ensure all solutions meet standards for
- Scalability
- Security
- Maintainability
- Cost efficiency
- Balance speed vs architectural integrity
- Reduce long‑term technical debt while enabling fast execution
- Cross‑Functional Leadership
- Act as the technical bridge between business, ELT, and engineering teams
• Influence prioritization using
- Value vs effort
- Architectural tradeoffs
- Drive alignment across Business Excellence, AI, Dev Ops, and IT functions
- Ensure strong adoption and real business impact of delivered solutions
Qualifications
Qualifications
Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field
- 8–12+ years in enterprise technology, solution architecture, or platform engineering
- Proven experience building and delivering production‑grade solutions (not just designing)
- Experience leading architecture direction while remaining hands‑on
- Technical Expertise
• Strong hands‑on experience with
- AI/ML platforms (LLMs, copilots, AI services)
- Automation frameworks and orchestration tools
- API and integration development
• Experience with
- Cloud platforms (Azure preferred)
- Data pipelines and analytics platforms
- Enterprise systems (Salesforce, ERP, etc.)
• Understanding of
- Security, governance, and compliance in AI systems
- Dev Ops / Dev Sec Ops practices
- Key Characteristics of Success
- Player‑coach mindset: leads by building, not just directing
- Strong ability to move from idea → architecture → working solution → scale
- Bias toward execution and measurable outcomes
- Ability to enforce standards without slowing delivery
- Strong systems thinking across process, data, and technology
- Comfortable operating in ambiguity and driving clarity
- #J-18808-Ljbffr
Senior Manager, AI & Enterprise Architecture in Cranfield employer: VT iDirect
At ST Engineering iDirect, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a culture of innovation and collaboration. Our Senior Manager, AI & Enterprise Architecture role offers not only competitive benefits but also ample opportunities for professional growth in a dynamic environment where your contributions directly impact our AI-powered transformation initiatives. Located in a vibrant tech hub, we provide a supportive atmosphere that encourages hands-on execution and architectural leadership, ensuring that every team member can thrive and make a meaningful difference.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Senior Manager, AI & Enterprise Architecture in Cranfield
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
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We think you need these skills to ace Senior Manager, AI & Enterprise Architecture in Cranfield
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 VT iDirect.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at VT iDirect 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 VT iDirect
✨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 VT iDirect 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.
