Job Introduction

A rare and exciting opportunity to join a dynamic technology team in a leading luxury retailer. The Enterprise Architect role is focused on the Customer and Experience domains, and acts across our Digital and Retail estate. The role is accountable for defining and managing the technology strategy and roadmap for these areas, working closely with the broader Architecture team, senior business stakeholders and Programme Delivery teams. The role leads a team of Solution Architects through the delivery of the roadmap and the ongoing evolution of the technology platforms.

To lead the definition and management of the technology strategy and roadmap for the given domain(s) and ensure that these are aligned to the agreed business outcomes. This involves collaborating closely with the Head of Architecture, the broader Architecture team, senior business stakeholders, and programme leads.

To ensure that all business initiatives that include a technology element are aligned to the strategic roadmap and architected, designed and engineered in accordance with the agreed standards and guidelines. Where appropriate, identify opportunities to deliver business value quickly without compromising the integrity of our overall systems estate.

To ensure that all solution designs are well defined and agreed in a timely manner, and assure the integrity of the overall solution design as it is detailed and delivered by our engineering teams and partners.

Role Responsibility

The role is responsible for ensuring that the strategic intent of the given business area is appropriately supported through the effective deployment of technology. This directly links to the achievement of the financial and operational business goals.

Key responsibilities:

Key accountabilities and responsibilities include:

Strategy

• Carrying out research and development to define the technology strategy for the given business and application areas. This includes supporting business capability, business continuity and growth
• Identifying and analysing enterprise business drivers to derive enterprise business, information, technical and solution architecture requirements
• Analysing industry, technology and market trends to determine their potential impact on the enterprise, proactively identifying future technology solutions appropriate for the organisation
• Deputising for the Head of Architecture & Business Analysis as appropriate

Enterprise Architecture

• Ensuring that alternatives to existing technologies and vendors are considered and managing the process for documenting and validating current and proposed architectures in collaboration with broader team
• Working in close collaboration with the broader Architecture & Analysis team to ensure the relevant technical/application architecture aligns with the organisation's architectural principles and to regularly assess their continued relevance and value to the organisation
• Defining capacity and performance planning & forecasting requirements

Projects

• Work with the Solution Architects and the Programme and Delivery teams to ensure the work performed is aligned with the technology strategy for the domain and that any lessons learnt are appropriately reflected in the strategy
• Ensuring project design deliverables align to the architectural principles, guidelines and standards
• Participating in architecture and design governance, approving solution designs and assuring the solution integrity throughout the delivery lifecycle
• Proactively identifying requirements and opportunities for common application framework solutions and defining the roadmap for dev ops tools for the specific technology domain
• Providing input into required governance and technical strategies for the relevant technologies, presenting recommendations to senior stakeholders and governance forums
• Identifying technical risks for proposed solutions, identifying mitigating actions and working with the broader team to ensure plans are in place to complete mitigating actions
• Providing a deep knowledge of specific architecture solutions and acting as an informed "challenger" to ensure alternatives have been considered to "just doing what we've always done"
• Working in collaboration with the Solution Architects to define, validate and agree High Level Solution Designs
• Managing all Architecture and Design artefacts so that they are accessible, accurate, well organised and easy to understand; ensure that these endure beyond the life of the project
• Ensuring that all activities are performed at a consistently high standard with minimal risk to the Selfridges & Co. and that opportunities to improve services and processes are identified and actioned

The Ideal Candidate

Person Specification:

Qualifications/ Training

• Solid experience in at least three IT disciplines (e.g. business architecture and analysis, enterprise and solution architecture, application development, integration architecture and delivery, or information architecture)
• Appropriate industry qualification, e.g. TOGAF;

Experience

• Strong Enterprise Architecture practitioner;
• Expert experience and knowledge of solution architecture and design;
• Strong experience of working in the retail, ecommerce, travel or media domains.
• Relevant experience and knowledge of the given Architecture domain (i.e Customer and Experience, Product and Supply Chain, or Modern Workplace and Corporate Systems);
• Exposure to a wide range of technologies and methods;
• Experience of working in a cross functional and engaged team;

Technical Skills

• Excellent Architecture and Design Modelling skills (including UML and Archimate);
• Strong Conceptual and Logical Information and Data Modelling skills;
• Ability to translate business needs into clear Enterprise Architecture Blueprints and Requirements;
• Excellent Problem Analysis and Resolution skills,
• Ability to rapidly absorb and understand new information at an appropriate level
• Excellent communication and presentation skills; able to explain complex topics in a clear and engaging way to a variety of audiences.

Personal Attributes/ Behavioural Skills

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with an ability to handle difficult or sensitive situations;
• Customer focused and goal orientated with keen attention to detail;
• Excellent person/people management skills, especially in developing consensus across diverse groups;
• Strong analysis and decision-making skills;
• Personal effectiveness, confidence and resilience, with an ability to influence colleagues at peer level as well as more senior levels;
• Excellent planning and organisation skills;
• Experience of operating with a high level of autonomy and the ability to manage input from others to ensure delivery to agreed timescales;
• Strong sense of ownership and ability to follow tasks through to completion;
• Ability to work as part of an effective and highly skilled team;
• Ability to deliver in a high-pressure, dynamic environment.

About the Company

We are a shop run on imagination: a place where the world’s most covetable brands combine with the most extraordinary spectacles, events and ideas for an experience like no other.

We have challenged the rules of retail from day one, whilst demonstrating our unwavering commitment to sustainability.  In 2016, we were the first to be awarded with recognition for the ‘World’s Best Sustainability Campaign by a Department Store’ at the IGDS Global Department Store Summit, in-line with its focus on buying better and inspiring change. We are also recognised as the Best Department Store in the World (2010, 2012, 2014 & 2018) underlining our place at the forefront of retail. In 2018 we were recognised as a LinkedIn Top Company to work for.

Our vision is to be the destination for the most extraordinary customer experience, and our people are central to us achieving this.  As an employer we are committed to making Selfridges an exciting, inspiring and fun place to work

Selfridges