Job Description

The Chief Architect leads the ISO/ICT Architecture team and is responsible for the strategic direction, performance, and ongoing health of Sellafield Ltd.’s ISO/ICT architecture. They support the ISO/ICT Leadership Team in defining, establishing, and maintaining Sellafield Ltd.’s enterprise architecture, technology, data, and applications strategies and roadmaps. To maintain a coherent and financially optimised suite of solutions, they deliver ICT architecture, technology and data standards, functionality, and integration. The Chief Architect is the responsible Design Authority for ICT and will work to ensure all solutions are aligned to the requirements of the Sellafield Ltd business.

The Chief Architect manages the development of the architecture capability across ISO/ICT, and the wider enterprise, by leading of the architecture career path and community of practice. In line with this, they are responsible and accountable for the successful delivery of the Enterprise Architecture, Solution Architecture and Solution Design teams.

Principal Accountabilities

Leadership and Team Management
• Lead in the development of the architecture capability, developing and maintaining the architecture career path and community of practice with an innovative and inspiring approach.

Strategic Direction
• Support the ISO/ICT Leadership Team with the development of enterprise architecture, technology, data, and applications strategies, ensuring these are in line with wider Digital Strategy.
• Responsible for definition and development of functionality/integration of Sellafield Ltd’s architecture.
• Ensure enterprise architecture, technology, data, and applications strategies are developed, maintained, updated, and improved in response to feedback and findings.
• Support setting the direction to develop and evolve ISO/ICT’s overall infrastructure and architecture towards the desired future state by identifying and building capability, promoting innovation, and horizon-scanning.
• Responsible for the development and maintenance of all technology roadmaps for ISO/ICT, working closely with the ISO/ICT Leadership Team to align on objectives and improvements.
• Engage with the Innovation Lead to assess emerging technologies and risks, providing practical advice on how they could be applied to Sellafield Ltd in terms of ICT architecture.
• Support collaboration with the Head of Cyber Security and Head of Service Delivery to ensure the design of scalable, secure, and reliable ICT architecture and technical initiatives.

Stakeholder Management
• Support engagement with the Office of the CDIO (OCDIO) to deliver internal communications that effectively articulate technical strategy, vision and roadmaps within ISO/ICT and the wider Sellafield Ltd business.
• Support the evaluation of suppliers, vendors, and technologies as part of ISO/ICT’s supply chain, working with the Head of Service Delivery and Sellafield Ltd.’s central Commercial team.
• Support the identification of opportunities for optimisation, consolidation, and modernisation as part of ISO/ICT’s supply chain.

Governance, Risk Management and Assurance
• Responsible for ensuring compliance with architecture policies, processes, principles, and standards, managing their development, maintenance, and adoption.
• Support the provision of assurance that ISO/ICT is using the appropriate technology, hardware, and software across the Sellafield Ltd business.
• Work closely with the ISO/ICT Leadership Team to ensure relevant governance is established, streamlined and effective for architecture, ensuring decision-making frameworks are in place for the escalation, review and approval of key issues, significant projects and decisions spanning all architecture domains.

Design Authority and Framework Establishment
• Collaborate with the ISO/ICT Leadership Team to develop Sellafield Ltd.’s architectural vision, principles, best practice, and direction, ensuring alignment with wider strategy.
• Lead the definition and development of appropriate principles, policies, standards, and architectural assets to create a balanced suite of business, data, architecture, technology, and security building blocks.
• Lead the development of proof of concepts, pilots and innovation labs and supervise quality assurance processes, integration and system tests as required.
• Manage the day-to-day running Sellafield Ltd.’s Design Authority, establishing and maintaining key architecture governance across the enterprise.
• Ensure Solution Designs align to standards, building blocks, principles and reference architecture.
• Promote the adoption of Secure by Design, ensuring it is embedded into ICT architecture.
• Lead the development of high-level solution design and architecture design, ensuring it is fit for purpose and compliant with enterprise standards.
• Provide Solution Assurance by conducting Solution Design reviews, including managing exceptions and approvals.

Knowledge & Experience

• Budget responsibility of £2-5m
• Line management of roles within the Architecture team
• Enterprise Architect Lead
• Solution Architect Lead
• Solution Design Lead

• Matrix management and Community of Practice support of 2 teams:
• Solution Design
• Service Design

• Direct accountability for 15-30 resources
• Indirect accountability for professional development of 30-50 resources

Essential Skills

Personal Attributes
• Experience leading complex teams, ideally including Enterprise Architecture, Solution Architecture and Solution Design.
• Prior experience and success as Head of Architecture, Chief Architect, Design Authority, or equivalent, working on large, complex, enterprise-scale projects.
• Experience interacting at the C-suite level, as well as with front-line architecture staff.
• Experience developing enterprise-wide architecture strategies and roadmaps.
• A fluency and deep interest in technology and the digital economy, keeping up to date with the latest trends and always willing to learn.
• Experience working at a strategic level within an enterprise-sized organisation.
• Experience working within a complex multi-vendor outsourced ICT environment.
• Experience and understanding of delivering end-to-end (business processes to infrastructure) support for enterprise-wide ICT solutions and large ICT projects.
• Ability to analyse and translate business requirements into technical/service solutions.
• Ability to inform others using technical knowledge.
• Good stakeholder management and communication skills to ensure effective engagement.
• Excellent prioritisation skills and resource management, accuracy, and attention to detail.
• Able to assess complex issues, applying originality in modifying approaches to solve problems.
• Ability to make and justify decisions characterised by high levels of risk, impact, and complexity.
• Ability to think and act both strategically and tactically.
• Strong commitment to continuous improvement and innovation.

Knowledge and Qualifications
• Relevant Business / Information Technology / Engineering Degree or equivalent experience.
• The Open Group TOGAF Architecture certification.
• BCS Enterprise / Solution Architecture certification.

Desirable Skills

• Prior experience of working in a highly regulated environment.
• Additional advanced architecture industry standard qualifications and certifications.

Additional Information

• Open VN
• Number of Vacancies: 1
• Contact/s: Graeme Slater

The interviews for this vacancy are expected to be confirmed.

ASW’s may have the right to apply for internal Sellafield Ltd vacancies. Please note if you are an Agency Supplied Worker you are required to attach evidence of all qualifications obtained to support your application. We require a minimum of A*-C (9-4) GCSE in English Language, Maths & Science/IT or equivalent / higher qualification.

Contracted Supply Workers (CSWs) are not eligible to apply to internal vacancies. CSWs are welcome to apply to external vacancies advertised on our external vacancies board.

If you choose to apply for this role and your application is shortlisted by the hiring manager, you will be invited to a competency based interview. In the interview, you will be assessed against the below competencies:

Behavioural:
Commitment to Nuclear Safety and Security – 3.1.1
Commitment to Standards – 3.1.5

Leadership:
Set Direction – Lead and Shape Change
Create the Future – Future-Focused and Vision-Aligned
Safely Deliver Results & Inspire Our People – Drive Accountability and Lead Others

Technical:
Using IT at work – 31.3
Driving and facilitating change – 37.6

Please see link to the competency framework for further information:
https://slportal.ssa-intra.net/pub/SC001/00027/Competency%20Framework/Forms/AllItems.aspx

If your technical competency is not in the above framework, please refer to the profession’s share point page for further information.

Sellafield Ltd are recognised as a Disability Confident Employer (Level 3). Disability Confident employers offer an interview to disabled applicants that meet the minimum criteria for a vacancy. Sellafield Ltd define the minimum criteria as the ‘essential skills’ which are listed on the vacancy notice. Whilst completing your application form, you will be able to indicate if you wish to be considered under the disability confident scheme. If you would prefer to discuss this directly with us, please contact the GBS Recruitment team on recruitment@sellafieldcloud.co.uk

Please ensure that you save a copy of this advert for future reference if you make an application for this role.

The closing date for this vacancy is 9th November 2026.