Enterprise Architect – Financial Services Cloud Transformation

Senior Enterprise Architect

Contract | 12-Month Engagement | Hybrid Working

Locations: Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol or Leeds

Day Rate: £400–£450/day

Standard 8 is supporting a major enterprise-scale transformation programme looking to bring in several Senior Enterprise Architects to strengthen a growing architecture function operating across multiple business domains.

This is not a slideware architecture role.

The environment is complex, heavily regulated and moving through a significant technology evolution programme. They need architects who can operate strategically while still being close enough to delivery to make decisions stick.

You’ll be working across platform architecture, emerging technology strategy and enterprise-wide transformation initiatives, helping shape future-state architecture while supporting real-world implementation across large-scale programmes.

The work cuts across multiple areas including cloud platforms, AI, data protection, payments, lending, cards, pensions and markets technology. There’s also growing focus around composability, Architecture as Code and intelligent automation, so this suits someone comfortable operating beyond traditional enterprise architecture frameworks.

What you’ll be doing

• Defining enterprise and domain-level architecture direction across complex transformation programmes
• Producing future-state and target architecture roadmaps that can actually be delivered
• Driving architecture governance, standards, principles and technology guardrails
• Supporting transition states and pragmatic delivery planning
• Working closely with programme leadership, engineering teams and senior stakeholders across multiple workstreams
• Contributing to Architecture as Code initiatives and reusable architecture components
• Advising on emerging technologies including AI, agentic AI, blockchain and cloud-native services
• Helping shape tooling strategy, integration patterns and enterprise data approaches
• Acting as a senior technical voice across architecture and delivery discussions

What they’re looking for

This needs someone genuinely strong across enterprise architecture disciplines, not a specialist who’s only ever worked in one lane.

You’ll likely bring experience across several of the following

• Enterprise and platform architecture within large-scale organisations
• Financial services or heavily regulated environments
• Cloud architecture and distributed systems
• Payments, lending, cards, pensions or capital markets technology
• Data protection and security architecture
• AI, machine learning or emerging technology strategy
• Stakeholder management at senior and executive level
• Architecture governance and operating models
• Composable architecture and Architecture as Code concepts

The strongest candidates will be comfortable moving between strategic thinking and hands-on architecture definition without disappearing into theory.

Engagement details

• Initial 12-month contract
• Hybrid working model
• Multiple UK locations available: Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol and Leeds
• Two-stage interview process
• Immediate consideration for suitable profiles

Standard 8 is managing the search on behalf of the programme partner supporting this engagement.