Lead Technical Architect - Government Digital Service - G6

Location

Bristol, London, Manchester

About the job

Job summary

The Government Digital Service (GDS) is the digital centre of government. We are responsible for setting, leading and delivering the vision for a modern digital government. 

Our priorities are to drive a modern digital government, by: 

1. joining up public sector services
2. harnessing the power of AI for the public good
3. strengthening and extending our digital and data public infrastructure
4. elevating leadership and investing in talent
5. funding for outcomes and procuring for growth and innovation
6. committing to transparency and driving accountability

We are home to the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (I.AI), the world-leading GOV.UK and at the forefront of coordinating the UK’s geospatial strategy and activity. We lead the Government Digital and Data function and champion the work of digital teams across government. 

We’re part of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) and employ more than 1,000 people all over the UK, with hubs in Manchester, London and Bristol. 

The Government Digital Service is where talent translates into impact. From your first day, you’ll be working with some of the world’s most highly-skilled digital professionals, all contributing their knowledge to make change on a national scale. 

Join us for rewarding work that makes a difference across the UK. You'll solve some of the nation’s highest-priority digital challenges, helping millions of people access services they need 

Job description

The Digital Workplace team at DSIT is responsible for shaping how colleagues work, collaborate, and use technology securely and effectively. We are looking for a Digital Workplace Technical Architect to provide senior technical leadership and architectural assurance across our Digital Workplace services. This role will set direction for end user computing and collaboration platforms, ensuring solutions are secure by design, user‑centred, resilient, and sustainable at scale. 

You will operate at organisational and cross‑government level, influencing strategy, shaping standards, and assuring complex solutions across multiple teams and programmes. 

As a Lead Technical Architect, you’ll: 

• set the technical architecture direction for Digital Workplace services, aligned to departmental and cross‑government strategy 
• lead and assure the design of complex solutions covering end user computing, collaboration platforms, identity and security, and integration with legacy systems 
• define and maintain architecture principles, standards and patterns, providing clear guidance to delivery teams and suppliers 
• act as a senior technical authority, offering challenge, assurance and risk management on architectural decisions 
• build strong relationships across DSIT, wider government and industry, contributing to cross‑government communities and promoting reuse and common approaches 
• provide technical leadership, mentoring and coaching to architects and senior technologists 

Person specification

We’re interested in people who have: 

• considerable experience providing technical architecture leadership for large‑scale, user‑facing platforms or services, working to support wider organisational objectives beyond your immediate goals
• experience setting and delivering technology strategies that align with organisational objectives
• strong experience creating technical designs characterised by high risk, impact and complexity within Digital Workplace or End User Computing technologies
• experience designing and assuring architectural solutions operating at enterprise or multi‑team scale and managing risks at the appropriate level
• experience actively engaging with others, such as suppliers and commercial colleagues, including architectural input to procurement and assurance and adapting your feedback to ensure its effective and lasting
• the ability to communicate complex technical issues clearly to senior technical and non‑technical stakeholders
• advanced expertise in one or more of the following; end user computing and device management, collaboration and productivity platforms (for example Microsoft 365), identity and access management, security, compliance and information governance, and integration and interoperability