Senior Solutions Architect - MOD DV Cleared

Location: Bristol - Hybrid
Contract: 12-month rolling contract
Rate: £100-£107 per hour
IR35: Inside IR35
Clearance: UK MOD DV Clearance required

We're looking for an experienced Senior Solutions Architect to join a major defence programme in Bristol. This is a high-profile opportunity to take technical ownership across large-scale, complex programmes, working with senior stakeholders and shaping secure, integrated solutions within a highly regulated environment.

You'll act as a technical authority, influencing architecture decisions, supporting strategic roadmaps and helping drive innovation across the organisation.

The Role

As a Senior Solutions Architect, you will:

• Act as the technical authority for solution design across large-scale and multi-project programmes.
• Define and evolve architectures that balance customer requirements, enterprise principles and secure-by-design standards.
• Shape divisional and line-of-business technology roadmaps, identifying opportunities for innovation and technology insertion.
• Lead technical reviews, trade-off studies and risk assessments for major architectural decisions.
• Work closely with senior technical and business stakeholders to influence strategy and delivery.
• Mentor and coach Solutions Architects and Engineers, helping raise capability across the wider architecture community.
• Represent the organisation at senior customer forums, technical boards and industry events.
• Support business-winning activity, including solution strategy, bids and proposal development.
• Champion architectural best practice, reuse and model-based design approaches.

What We're Looking For

You'll bring extensive technical expertise and a proven track record of designing secure, integrated solutions across complex environments.

We're particularly interested in candidates who can:

• Operate as a recognised technical authority within their domain.
• Influence technical strategy and make complex architectural decisions.
• Communicate confidently with senior technical, customer and business stakeholders.
• Provide mentoring, coaching and thought leadership within an architecture community.

Essential Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in Solution Architecture across multiple technical domains, including infrastructure, applications, data, networking and cloud.
• Strong knowledge of enterprise and solution architecture frameworks, such as TOGAF, MODAF and/or NAF.
• Advanced understanding of secure system design principles and cyber security standards.
• Experience designing and shaping architectures within Agile and/or SAFe delivery environments.
• Experience working within UK secure environments and classified MOD systems.
• Ability to mentor, coach and provide technical thought leadership across an architecture or engineering community.
• Current UK MOD DV clearance.

Desirable Experience

• Industry certifications such as TOGAF, ArchiMate or recognised architecture qualifications.
• Experience contributing to technology roadmaps and enterprise-level strategy.
• Knowledge of service design, operational transformation and digital modernisation.
• Exposure to cloud-native, DevSecOps and automation approaches.
• Experience presenting at technical boards, customer forums or industry conferences.

Why Consider This Opportunity?

This is an opportunity to work at a senior level on complex, security-critical defence programmes, where your architectural expertise will directly influence technical strategy and delivery.

You'll have the opportunity to work alongside experienced engineering and architecture teams, influence major design decisions and contribute to the development of future technology capabilities.

This isn't an exhaustive list. If you have strong Solutions Architecture experience and a positive, collaborative attitude, we'd still be keen to hear from you even if you don't tick every desirable box.