Lead Technical Architect - MoJ - G6

We’re recruiting for a Lead Technical Architect here at Justice Digital, to be part of our warm and collaborative End User Compute Services team.

This role aligns against Lead Technical Architect from the Government Digital and Data Framework

This is a role where the successful candidate will act as the overarching lead for architectural strategy, governance and decision making for our staff and prisoner facing End User Compute services respectively. The ideal candidate will possess extensive expertise in designing and implementing modern End User Compute services at scale. They will demonstrate leadership working with the wider product teams delivering secure, scalable, and efficient end user services. The candidate must also be able to work effectively with wider business stakeholders to align technical strategies with our organisational goals, while maintaining a strong focus on the unique challenges and complexities of delivering secure services into a Government Department.

These are exciting times at Justice Digital. We have a clear vision - to develop a digitally enabled justice system that works simply for its users - and we’re looking for enthusiastic, talented people to help us achieve it.

We’re making things better by building adaptable, effective services and making systems that are simple to use for staff and citizens. It can be challenging but it’s also important and rewarding.

As well as doing interesting work, we’re creating an environment that’s great to work in. We provide the opportunity to work with the latest technologies and offer brilliant training opportunities alongside support from expert colleagues. On top of that, you’ll find flexible working, an inclusive culture, and a place where your opinion is valued.

Within the End User Compute Services team, our mission is to deliver modern workplace technology solutions to all staff within the Ministry of Justice by modernising and simplifying the legacy technical debt, improving our user experience and security posture with continuous improvement and above all, delivering a quality service.

To help picture your life at MoJ Justice Digital please take a look at our blog and our Digital and Technology strategy 2025

Key Responsibilities: 

Solution Design and Architecture Oversight

• Provide architectural leadership and oversight to the End User Compute product teams ensuring that the solutions offered to our end users are aligned with the departmental strategy as well as technical and regulatory standards.

• Work closely with the Principal Technical Architect to develop architectural frameworks, patterns and standards to be used by the wider End User Compute architecture community and product teams.

• Design and deliver secure, scalable solutions built around hyperscale cloud providers such as Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services as well as support the iteration and lifecycle of on premises IT environments, ensuring they operate efficiently at enterprise scale.

• Ensure that architecture designs are robust, balancing innovation with operational stability across hybrid and cloud first ecosystems.

• Understanding of architectural requirements of services that interface with EUCS components such as network infrastructure and application platforms to support the end to end solution design

Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement

• Engage with the wider MOJ business and stakeholder teams across the department to understand their requirements and ensure the delivery of secure and compliant end user services.

• Act as a bridge between the technical teams and the business stakeholders, ensuring that complex technical designs can be understood by a non-technical audience.

• Lead cross-functional architectural workshops and forums to ensure transparency and collaboration across teams.

Leadership and Mentorship

• Act as a leader and mentor for Senior Technical Architects and other technical team members, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation and continuous learning.

• Provide guidance on architectural decision making and act as an escalation point for complex technical challenges.

• Contribute to the professional development of the EUC Technical Architecture team by sharing knowledge, identifying skills gaps, and encouraging growth opportunities.

Security and Compliance Governance

• Work closely with the various security teams across the department to ensure that solutions and services are aligned to, and meet, departmental cyber strategy and the ongoing standards such as the Cyber Assessment Framework

• Alongside the End User Compute Security team provide guidance on risk management, secure design principles and data protection strategies to maintain a robust and compliant architecture.

• Ensure security is embedded into all architectural decisions, with a focus on mitigating risks in both staff and prisoner facing systems.

Continuous Improvement and Future Strategy

• Drive continuous improvement initiatives across the relevant product teams and architects to refine processes and procedures, leveraging the latest industry trends and best practices.

• Contribute to the long term EUC technical strategy for staff or prisoner facing end user compute services with a focus on modernising and, where appropriate, adopting cloud native services in favour of traditional on premises IT systems.

• Identify opportunities to streamline operations and deliver value through a combination of pattern reuse across product teams, process automation and innovation.

Cross-Cutting Governance and Standards

• Ensure that all product teams adhere to architectural and technical governance standards maintaining consistency and coherence across End User Compute services.

• Work with internal governance bodies and external stakeholders to ensure compliance with departmental, technical and legislative requirements.

• Develop and maintain architectural documentation and artefacts to support knowledge sharing and decision making across teams. 

If this feels like an exciting challenge, something you are enthusiastic about, and want to join our team please read on and apply!

Person Specification 

Essential  

• Leadership Experience – Proven experience in leading architecture teams or acting as a senior-level technical authority in large, complex organisations. Demonstrable ability to manage competing priorities and provide clear direction to technical teams across multiple domains.

• Architecture Experience – Extensive experience in designing and delivering enterprise-scale solutions with deep technical knowledge across key End User Compute product areas (e.g. Identity, Device Management, Application Lifecycle Management, Collaboration and Cloud Services). Proven experience managing Microsoft services at scale including expertise across the Microsoft 365 technology stack. Demonstrable experience of technologies outside of EUCS is advantageous.

• Security and Compliance – Strong understanding of security and compliance challenges running IT systems classified as OFFICIAL with experience in implementing Secure by Design principles and mitigating risks. Expertise in ensuring alignment with regulatory standards such as GDPR and ISO 27001.

• Collaboration and Communication – Excellent stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to work effectively across technical and non-technical audiences. Effective communication and negotiation skills to influence decision making and build consensus across diverse teams.

• Strategic Vision and Continuous Improvement – Demonstrable ability to contribute to long-term technical strategies and product roadmaps for end user services. Commitment to driving continuous improvement and embedding best practices across architectural and technical teams.

Willingness to be assessed against  the requirements for SC clearance

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 and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.

Benefits

• 37 hours per week and flexible working options including working from home, working part-time, job sharing, or working compressed hours.

• A £1k per person learning budget is in place to support all our people, with access to best in class conferences and seminars, accreditation with professional bodies, fully funded vocational programmes and e-learning platforms 

• Staff have 10% time to dedicate to develop & grow

• Generous civil service pension based on defined benefit scheme, with employer contributions of 28.97% from April 1st 2024 (Contribution Rates)

• 25 days leave (plus bank holidays) and 1 privilege day usually taken around the King’s birthday. 5 additional days of leave once you have reached 5 years of service.

• Compassionate maternity, adoption, and shared parental leave policies, with up to 26 weeks leave at full pay, 13 weeks with partial pay, and 13 weeks further leave. And maternity support/paternity leave at full pay for 2 weeks, too!

• Wellbeing support including access to the Calm app. 

• Bike loans up to £2500 and secure bike parking (subject to availability and location)

• Season ticket loans, childcare vouchers and eye-care vouchers.

• 5 days volunteering paid leave.

• Free membership to BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT.

• Some offices may have a subsidised onsite Gym

How to Apply

Candidates must submit a CV and a Personal Statement (up to 750 words). Within your Personal Statement, please focus on demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria set out in the Person Specification above which are being assessed at the sift stage.

Failure to provide both documents will result in a rejection of your application.

In Justice Digital, we recruit using a combination of the Government Digital and Data Profession Capability and Success Profiles Frameworks. We will assess your Experience, Technical Skills and the following Behaviours during the assessment process:

• Leadership

• Communicating and Influencing

• Seeing the Big Picture

• Making Effective Decisions

• Delivering at Pace

A diverse panel will review your application against the Person Specification above. 

Successful candidates who meet the required standard will then be invited to a 1-hour panel interview held via video conference.

Should you be unsuccessful in the role that you have applied for but demonstrate the capability for a role at a lower level, we reserve the right to discuss this opportunity with you and offer you the position without needing a further application.

A reserve list may be held for up to 12 months, from which further appointments may be made.

Terms & Conditions

Please review our Terms & Conditions which set out how we recruit and provide further information related to the Justice Digital Recruitment Terms & Conditions role and salary arrangements.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact recruitment@digital.justice.gov.uk

Person specification

Please refer to attached job description.