Solutions Architect (12 Month FTC)

Looking for a challenge in one of the world’s largest airfreight logistics organisations?

At IAG Cargo we are in the business of moving things. From antibiotics to groundbreaking tech, gold bullion to avocados and everything in between. We move cargo that positively impacts society worldwide. Whatever people need, wherever they are. At IAG Cargo we open the skies and fly the world to bring people the things they really need.  

We are the logistics and cargo brand of International Airlines Group (Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, Level and Vueling). Powered by five airlines, our reach is truly global – but it’s the impact we make that defines us. At IAG Cargo, we believe in keeping the world’s economies turning, and do everything with determined attitudes, curious minds, collaborative actions and heartfelt pride. Join us at our globally recognised logistics business, that is Trusted to Deliver.

About the role

Reporting directly to Head of Technology , the Solution architect is responsible for designing and implementing comprehensive technology solutions that address specific business needs.

Serving as a liaison between the technical and business aspects of new solutions, the solution architect analyses business needs, identifies tech solutions, and designs a comprehensive plan for implementation. They collaborate with various teams, such as developers, project managers, and analysts, to ensure effective implementation of the solution, achieving the organization's objectives.

Working closely with the Enterprise and Domain Architecture team, the Solution Architect ensures that all solutions are not only technically sound but also align seamlessly with the business requirements.

What you’ll do

• Defines solutions to complex business problems using a wide range of artefacts, methods and tools and uses expertise and knowledge within a specific business domain to drive the transformational change of applications.

• Facilitates the structuring of business problems to ensure functional and non-functional requirements are clearly understood, aligned with business objectives and are traceable in the technical solution design. During the implementation phase, ensures any deviations from the agreed solution are managed with the project to deliver a successful outcome.

• Maintains a view of business and technical capabilities and applications within a specialist business domain, ensuring technical integrity and alignment with business requirements and the ongoing support of applications in line with obsolescence and security requirements.

• Ensures that strategic transformational change is embedded within IAG Tech, influencing and leveraging relationships to gain buy-in of internal and external stakeholders.

• Management of key supplier relationships, ensuring the quality of supplier deliverables meets Group standards and fit with strategic business requirements on a continuing basis.

• Provide expertise in driving forward solutions for applications, ensuring alignment with the business and technical strategic vision and goals.

• Ensure best in class solutions that minimise customisation, through Solution design that integrates world-class applications,

• Support the business in understanding and interpreting the capabilities within a specific domain, ensuring design is consistent with the architecture and meets both functional and non-functional requirements.

• Communicate and negotiate with all relevant stakeholders (both business and IT) to ensure a balance of usability and fit with the enterprise architecture.

• Review functional specifications to ensure alignment to business and technical requirements, managing any deviations from the defined direction through the project lifecycle.

• Collaborate through a trusted business partnering approach, proactively leveraging key relationships to ensure business, information and technology domain architecture is strategically aligned. Delivers tangible recommendations that align with IAG Tech, the business and finance, for incorporation into the Business Plan.

• Ensure sufficient quality review points are built into projects and all interdependencies have been considered.

• Partner with the project team to plan system testing tasks, auditing implemented solutions to ensure planned benefits are realised.

• Build strategic supplier relationships where third-party work or packages involve significant architectural decisions. Evaluates and approves third-party deliverables on behalf of IAG Tech

• Ensure adherence to architectural principles, standards, best practice and roadmaps. Resolves or escalates potential non-compliance.

• Deliver on a number of projects, the breadth and complexity of which will vary depending on experience.

It's all about you

What you’ll bring to IAG Cargo:

• Forming strong stakeholder relationships, with a proven ability of influencing and persuading internally and externally

• Effective senior stakeholder management, balancing and finding compromises between opposing views and opinions.

• Business partnering, working as a valued partner with senior stakeholders across a diverse operation, delivering a value-added service to business customers.

• Extracting requirements from business stakeholders and documenting them in a succinct manner

• Ability to recognise priorities and guide others towards the accomplishment of strategic business goals and objectives.

• Embracing and managing both business and IT change as necessary to help shape future direction.

• Ability to work under pressure.

• Innovation - transforming industry trends into practical, cost-effective solutions.

• Identifies and contributes to the continual improvement of analysis capability across the organisation.

• Strong written and verbal communication skills with ability to explain complex IT/technology solutions in a coherent manner.

• Strong ability to work under pressure in a changing environment.

• Strong risk management skills

• Displays confidence and resilience, plus an energy to deliver results.

• Confident working under own initiative, as well as part of a team.

Skills and Experience:

Essential Experience:

• 5+ years in an architecture role

• Proficiency in operating within both Agile and Structured delivery environments.

• Hands-on experience with Azure or AWS cloud platforms.

• Previous track record serving as a Solutions Architect or Technical Architect.

Desirable Experience:

• Experience working in the Logistics, Freight, Courier industry.

• Experience of major technology and business change programs

We’ll treat you right

Wherever you work within IAG Cargo, you’ll play a part in helping us deliver what the world needs and join a diverse and inclusive business that’s making a difference.

As well as a competitive salary, bonus, we offer a range of benefits to support our colleagues, which include:

• A hybrid environment with 3 days a week in the office and two from home.

• From the day you join us, you’ll get access to brilliant staff travel benefits including unlimited basic and premium standby tickets on British Airways and group airlines. You’ll also receive up to 30 discounted ‘Hotline’ airfares per year for yourself, friends, and family.

• Flexible bank holiday policy- Individuals not on shift have the flexibility to swap the statutory public holidays, with the days you choose to take off instead.

• All our colleagues get access to LinkedIn learning and Rosetta Stone Language courses

• For health and wellbeing we offer a free onsite gym facility as well as access to the UNMIND app and a community of Mental Health First Aiders

• Access to discounts on Apple, Cinema tickets and loads of other goodies through Perks at work

Diversity and Inclusion

Our recruitment procedures positively support our diversity and inclusion agenda.

All candidates are considered strictly on their merits in relation to the criteria for the role, treated fairly and consistently, and have their individual needs responded to throughout the process.