DDAT Lead Technical Architect - MoD - G7
Government Digital & Data -
Defence Digital ensures our Armed Forces remain among the most technologically advanced in the world. We do this by putting innovative and effective technology into the hands of over 200,000 users, from the boardroom to the front line.
We lead on cutting-edge data science, automation, and cyber security at scale. Our mission goes beyond the battlefield by leading humanitarian efforts and driving digital innovation that impacts lives across the globe.
Defence Digital forms part of Strategic Command which manages the MOD’s joint capabilities for the Army, RAF, and Royal Navy.
Passionate about using your skills to make a critical difference? Your next career move could be here!
This position is advertised at 37 hours per week.
Job description
A lead technical/solution architect for this post will play a high-level role in working with multiple projects or teams within the Missions Information Exploitation (MIX) team, specifically supporting the Imagery and Geospatial Intelligence Team, on problems that require broad architectural thinking.
They will be responsible for leading the design and delivery of systems and services, justifying and communicating design decisions as well as supporting the service owners in your capacity as a technical subject matter expert for the IMaGE service owner.
The lead technical architect, you also be responsible for ensuring the quality of services and systems, aligning technical work with the government's overall strategy. You will also explore opportunities for cross-government collaboration. Additionally, you will manage, coach, and mentor junior Technical and Solution Architects within the Mission Exploitation Applications and Integration team.
Responsibilities
- Lead a team to deliver the architecture outputs required by the programme, using optimal technical reference architecture and patterns, aligning key factors such as user need, system requirements, security, and organisational objectives, to support Defence’s Digital Backbone and Common Technology Architecture (CTA).
- Coordinate the end-to-end design and delivery of technical/solution architecture programmes and services, from mapping of user and business service solution requirements through to leading the implementation of those solutions into technology agnostic service management solutions. Responsible for ensuring that delivery timescales, dependencies and risks are effectively managed by the Service Executive within Defence Digital delivery.
- Present to senior management, wider stakeholders, the Technical Design Authority (TDA) and relevant Architecture Reference Authority architectural solution designs and recommendations which uphold architecture principles, policies, standards and promote good practices, including use of relevant Architecture tooling.
- Contribute to the development of architectural practice, collaborating with other areas of the business to deliver solutions which are coherent and consistent with strategies developed across business, leading the assurance and scrutiny of designs within MIX and ensuring design work is compliant with technical policy, rules, standards and patterns for coherence across other Service areas.
- Provide Subject Matter Expert (SME) guidance and support to the TDA, work with Solution Architects to establish and promote Defence Enterprise Architectures whilst also making sure engineering teams are supported with questions and requests.
- Collate and coordinate delivery feedback and experiences from MIX into Solution, Technical and Enterprise Architecture Leadership for the purposes of enhancing reference architectures standards and artefacts to support existing and future delivery programmes and operations.
For more information on Technical Architects please see the Government Digital and Data Framework;
Person specification
To be successful in this role you would need experience of the following;
- Deep understanding of technical and solution architectures, design principles, and methodologies.
- Extensive experience in leading the design and delivery of complex systems and services.
- Strong knowledge of government IT strategies and standards.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to present complex technical concepts to a variety of audiences.
- Proven ability to manage and mentor technical teams.
- Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
- Experience with architecture frameworks and tools (e.g., TOGAF, DoDAF).
- Familiarity with Agile development methodologies. .
Behaviours
We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Making Effective Decisions
- Communicating and Influencing
Technical skills
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Architect for the whole context
- Architecture communication.
- Community collaboration.
- Making architectural decisions.
- Strategy design.
- Technical design throughout the life cycle
Benefits
Alongside your salary of £57,670, Ministry of Defence contributes £16,706 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• 25 days annual leave rising (1 day per year) to 30 days upon completion of 5 years’ service
• Ability to roll over up to 10 days annual leave per year
• In addition to 8 public holidays per year you will also receive leave for HM The King's birthday
• Minimum of 15 Days Special Leave in a rolling 12-month period to for volunteer military or emergency service reserve commitments
• Special Paid Leave for volunteering up to 6 days a year
• Enhanced parental and adoption leave
• Employee Assistance Programme to support your wellbeing
• Most sites have good travel links with free car parking; many also have other facilities such as a Sports & Social Club and Gyms
• A highly competitive pension scheme.
Discover my benefits for more information
This post is eligible for a Digital Skills Allowance of up to £15,300 per annum. Eligibility for this allowance will be assessed at interview and reviewed annually in line with departmental policy.
Learning & Development
In Defence Digital we have a strong learning and development ethos, supporting you to fulfil your potential by providing –
• Learning and development tailored to your role
• Professional and Personal Development of skills
• Access to thousands of training courses through Civil Service Learning, some free or paid by MOD
• Ability to obtain industry recognised qualifications supported by MOD
Where business needs allow, some roles may be suitable for a combination of office and home-based working. This is a non-contractual arrangement where all office-based employees will be expected to spend a minimum of 60% of their working time in office, subject to capacity and any required workplace adjustments. Requirements to attend other locations for official business, or work in another MOD office, will also count towards this level of attendance. Applicants can request further information regarding how this may work in their team from the Vacancy Holder (see advert for contact details). Defence Business Services cannot respond to any questions about working arrangements.
Strategic Command is going through a significant transformation programme which aims to improve the way the Command conducts its business and delivers for Defence and the nation. As a consequence of this, all posts within Strategic Command Headquarters and in time the wider organisation, are/will be subject to review and potential changes as we continuously improve across the period of the transformation programme. These changes may be minor or could be more substantive and will generate new opportunities. Throughout, the Command’s transformation programme is committed to following the MOD’s framework on managing and supporting people through the change process and places an emphasis on early and open consultation and engagement with the Command’s personnel and Trade Unions.
The post does not offer relocation expenses (move of home, excess fares or temporary transfer). Non Standard move applicants will be eligible for the full package, subject to eligibility.
This post may be eligible for a Digital Skills Allowance of up to £15,300 per annum. Eligibility for this allowance will be assessed at interview against the 4 core technical skills only and reviewed annually in line with departmental policy.
Please Note: Expenses incurred for travel to interviews will not be reimbursed.
Please be advised that the Department is conducting a review of all pay related allowances which could impact on those allowances that the post currently being advertised attracts.
Any move to MOD from another employer will mean you can no longer access childcare vouchers. This includes moves between government departments. You may however be eligible for other government schemes, including Tax-Free Childcare. Determine your eligibility at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.
The Ministry of Defence is committed to providing a safe and healthy working environment for its staff which includes educating them on the benefits of not smoking, protecting them from the harmful effects of second-hand smoke and supporting those who want to give up smoking. Under the Smoke-Free Working Environment policy, Smoking and the use of all tobacco products (including combustible and chewing tobacco products) will not be permitted anywhere in the Defence working environment however some exemptions are in place, please refer to local guidance. The policy is Whole Force and includes all Defence personnel, contractors, visitors and other non-MOD personnel. All applicants seeking, considering, or accepting employment with the Ministry of Defence should be aware of this policy and that it is already in place at a number of Defence Establishments.
MOD Recruitment Satisfaction Survey – We may contact you regarding your experience to help us improve our customer satisfaction. The survey is voluntary and anonymous. You may however be given the opportunity to provide additional information to help us improve our service which includes the collection of some personal data as defined by the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). The MOD Privacy Policy Notice sets out how we will use your personal data and your rights.
Things you need to know
Selection process details
This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.
To apply, please complete the CV and personal statement template provided on the CS Jobs dashboard. It is essential that your personal statement includes evidence of the following essential criteria and is no more than 1250 words.
Each one will be scored 1-7 and make up part of your overall score to assess your suitability to be invited to interview.
Your personal statement should provide a paragraph on each of the following, detailing your experience and suitability for each:
Essential Criteria
- Demonstrate how you have been responsible for leading the design and delivery of systems, solutions, and services.
- Describe how your technical work and skills support technical strategy, policy, and standards.
- Detail your experience of assuring and governing services and system solutions.
- Describe how you have acted as the conduit between strategy and engineering teams in identifying, tracking and communicating risks and technical debt.
At sift, you will be assessed against the following Experience:
- CV
- Personal Statement (1250 words)
At interview, you will be assessed against the following Success Profiles Behaviours:
- Seeing the Big Picture
- Making Effective Decisions
- Communicating and Influencing
Technical Skills:
- Architect for the whole context
- Architecture communication
- Community collaboration
- Making architectural decisions
- Strategy design
- Technical design throughout the life cycle
Equality and Diversity
Our people are at the heart of everything we do at Defence Digital. It’s vital that our workforce reflects the diversity of both our audience and the wider society in the UK, so we’re proud to be an equal opportunities employer and we actively seek candidates from diverse backgrounds and communities. We also recognise the importance of a good work life balance, so we do everything we can to accommodate flexible working, including part-time and job shares for all our roles. Please just let us know in your application or at any stage throughout the process if this is something you want to explore.
AI Usage in Job Applications
We encourage the use of technology to streamline the job application process. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools can be helpful in generating ideas, improving writing style, and increasing efficiency. However, it is essential that any content submitted as part of a job application is truthful, accurate, and a genuine reflection of the applicant’s qualifications and experiences. Any use of AI should be supplementary to your own knowledge and abilities. Ultimately, the application should demonstrate your unique skills and suitability for the role.
Professional Framework Statement
Defence Digital operates an organisation model in which every individual belongs to a Government Profession. The successful applicant will be posted into one of the defined Government Professions on Standard Terms of Reference for the grade. Defence Digital reserves the right to move individuals between roles, within their allocated profession, to meet the needs of the business and in support of agile resourcing. Within Defence Digital each profession is led by a Professional Head of Community who will lead professional development and support the Continuous Professional Development path for their group.
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equality of opportunity. There is a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria. If you need to advise us that you need additional help or reasonable adjustments for the recruitment process, please contact: DBSCivPers-Resourcingteam3@mod.gov.uk .
As a result of the changes to the UK immigration rules which came in to effect on 1 January 2021, the Ministry of Defence will only offer sponsorship for a skilled worker visa under the points based system, where a role has been deemed to be business critical. This role does not meet that category and we will not sponsor a visa. It is therefore NOT open to applications from those who will require sponsorship under the points based system.
Should you apply for this role and be found to require sponsorship, your application will be rejected and any provisional offer of employment withdrawn.
Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.
Security
Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.
Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is developed vetting (opens in a new window).
See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).
People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.
Nationality requirements
Open to UK nationals only.
Working for the Civil Service
The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.
We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).
The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.
The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.
Diversity and Inclusion
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).
