Solutions Architect - Business & Financial Applications

Solutions Architect II - Business & Financial Application Systems

MKS2 Technologies, LLC, an award-winning high growth small business, creates innovative and customer-centric technology solutions in the areas of Cyber Security, Instructional Design and Training, Software Engineering and IT Support Services to improve the security and well-being of our clients. Our commitment to excellence and our “Mission First” orientation has resulted in steady growth and an expanding client base across government agencies. Headquartered in Austin, TX we have employees nationwide and for the past three consecutive years were named one of the fastest growing Veteran-owned companies in the nation. Please take a moment to browse through our website and learn more about what it means to serve with MKS2.
 

Join our Client's Information Technology Services as we architect and build the next generation IT platform. We enable our business and engineering teams to execute and deliver the amazing products and services. We’re seeking an engaged, talented, collaborative teammate to join and contribute to our small team and learn, grow, and share in our collective success. The Solutions Architect (SA) leads design and architecture activities for a portfolio of application solutions, specifically in the Business and Financial Application Systems Domain, and ensures those designs adequately represent and support the needs of the business. Intimately involved with both Enterprise Architecture and the Business Solutions teams, the SA ensures alignment of designs to business and IT visions, requirements, and architectural standards and frameworks.

The SA has a deep understanding of business goals, objective and business outcomes, business capabilities, value-streams, and business processes. The SA provides the necessary leadership, analysis and design tasks related to support the development of technology solutions to ensure that solutions meet business needs and align with architectural governance and standards. He or she creates architectural deliverables for managing the organization's portfolio of "to be" and "as is" solutions to enable and drive targeted business outcomes. 

What You’ll Do

• Collaborate with business partners, Business Relationship Managers, and Subject Matter Experts (SME’s) in translating business and technical requirements into architectural blueprints to achieve business objectives.
• Develop and communicate a roadmap for the evolution of the application portfolio from current to future state.
• Lead analysis and documentation of current state application portfolio architecture, interfaces, processes, data, and dependencies.   Lead envisioning of future state architecture based on enterprise business strategy, IT strategy, business capabilities, value-streams, business requirements and enterprise standards.
• Define overall architecture and develop documentation deliverables for solutions, including applications, databases, application and data integration components, security, processes, configuration, reporting, and more.
• Ensure that solution architecture supports realization of technology investment.  Understand and leverage existing technology investments, and when appropriate, make the business and technical case for a new investment.
• Engage with the architectural review process (e.g., Architectural Review Board (ARB)), developing required documents, leading presentations and facilitation of review discussions, including any follow-up action items and requested modifications to proposed solution architecture.
• Clearly communicate with business teams to describe solutions, and address questions regarding the technical solution.
• Challenge the implementation teams in adherence to architectural intent.
• Follow established architectural standards, frameworks, and policies to ensure conformity and impacts to architecture standards for design under review.
• Understand, manage, and communicate dependencies across a broad portfolio of projects and products.
• Analyze portfolio of applications and detect critical deficiencies, technical debt, and provide recommendations for improvement.
• Facilitate the evaluation and selection of software product standards and services, as well as the design of standard and custom software configurations.
• Support product/service owners with product decisions to maintain, refresh or retire products, services or systems.
• Work closely with product and service owners to ensure a robust architectural runway that can support future business requirements throughout the product lifecycle.
• Provide consulting support and mentorship to technical architects within delivery teams.
• Estimate initial project proposal scope, initial cost estimation and develop initial logical system architecture.
• Ensure compliance of solutions with IT standards, company and regulatory security requirements.
• Maintain architecture artifacts in an Enterprise Architecture Toolset including high level architecture, detail architecture, integration diagrams, roadmaps, and capability mapping.
• Work with the Enterprise Architects to align external and internal capability and technology roadmaps.

• Related Bachelor’s and 10 or more years of related experience; or HS Diploma and 16 or more years of related experience.
• Each higher-level degree, i.e., Associate’s, Bachelor’s Degree, Master’s Degree or Ph.D., may substitute for additional years of experience. 
• Experience with software systems supporting efficient business processes.
• 5 years of experience in a software development, applications architecture, technical consulting, solution architecture, systems engineering or similar role preferred.
• Good presentation and communication skills, with the ability to translate and clearly formulate technical issues for technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Trusted and respected thought leader who can influence and persuade business and IT leaders and IT development teams.
• Strong project coordination and multi-tasking abilities.
• Demonstrated intellectual curiosity and integrity.
• Motivated and driven by achieving long-term business outcomes.
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment including cross-functional teams and business stakeholders.
• Knowledge of various aspects of an enterprise technology architecture like business, information, technology, and security.
• Experience developing architectural deliverables including project architectures, strategies, and roadmaps.
• Broad platform and technical exposure including On-Premise, Cloud, SaaS.
• Knowledge of application integration methodologies such as: SOA, Web Services, REST, ESB and messaging, SOAP, JSON, XML, API Management/Gateway platforms, microservices.
• Knowledge of software and application architecture philosophies:  3-tier, client/server, loosely coupled applications.
• Experience designing and/or building scalable application solutions, including security concerns, high availability methods, backups, multiple platforms, hardware considerations, network design, monitoring solutions, virtualization, performance, capacity planning, and information management practices.
• Ability to be technology neutral: remain unbiased toward any specific technology or vendor and be more interested in results than personal preferences.

• Preferred qualifications:
  • Experience with software that supports business and/or financial processes preferred.
  • Knowledge of financial models and budgeting preferred.
  • Understanding and knowledge of IT service management (ITSM) and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) preferred.
  • Experience with Enterprise Architecture Toolset for capturing architecture deliverables and roadmaps (e.g. Orbus Software iServer) preferred
  • Experience in Enterprise Architecture frameworks (e.g. TOGAF preferred).
  • Experience in Business Capability Mapping (e.g. APQC preferred).

A current DoD clearance and/or SCI access with Polygraph is not required to be eligible for this position, however applicant must be willing and eligible for submission within 60-90 days after an offer is accepted and must be able to maintain the applicable clearance/access.  

By applying to this position, you are agreeing to complete a National Security Clearance Pre-Screen Questionnaire to evaluate your general ability to obtain the required security clearance or government customer access associated with this position.

Relocation for this position is available.

Diversity creates a healthier atmosphere: MKS2 Technologies is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity / Affirmative Action employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.