Solution Architect + Presales

Job Role: Solution Architect

Employer: Information Technology (IT) and digital solutions company

Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Job Type: Permanent

Working Mode: On Site

Experience: 18–20+ years of progressive experience in IT, software engineering, enterprise architecture, or solution design, with at least 5+ years in a dedicated presales, customer-facing, or strategic advisory capacity.

Applicant: Local Malaysian citizens

Job Overview

We are seeking a visionary and highly experienced Principal Solution Architect to join our growth team. With 18–20 years of industry experience, you are not defined by a single technology stack or industry vertical; rather, you are a master of systems thinking, architectural first principles, and business problem-solving.

In this client-facing presales role, you will act as a trusted advisor to C-suite executives and business leaders. You will bridge the gap between complex business challenges and transformative, technology-agnostic solutions. You will lead the architectural vision during the sales cycle, ensuring our proposals are not just technically sound, but strategically aligned, innovative, and compelling.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Presales & Strategic Advisory

• Lead Discovery & Qualification: Partner with the sales team to qualify opportunities, lead deep-dive discovery sessions, and uncover the true business pain points and desired outcomes of prospective clients.
• Trusted Advisor: Act as the "Chief Architect" for the client during the sales cycle, building executive-level trust through deep listening, industry-agnostic wisdom, and strategic questioning.
• Solution Visioning: Translate abstract business requirements into high-level, conceptual solution architectures that clearly articulate the "Art of the Possible" without prematurely locking into specific tools or platforms.
• Proposal & RFP Leadership: Own the technical and solution narrative in RFPs, RFIs, and pitch decks. Ensure the proposed architecture directly ties back to measurable business value and ROI.
• Presenting & Pitching: Deliver compelling presentations and demonstrations to C-suite stakeholders, steering conversations away from feature wars and toward strategic business outcomes.
• Objection Handling: Navigate complex technical and business objections, leveraging your two decades of experience to provide calm, authoritative, and creative alternatives.

Architecture & Design (Agnostic & First-Principles)

• First-Principles Design: Design solution architectures based on foundational principles (e.g., scalability, resilience, security, maintainability) rather than defaulting to specific vendor products.
• Vendor-Neutral Guidance: Evaluate and recommend technologies, platforms, and approaches based solely on fit-for-purpose, client context, and strategic value, avoiding dogmatic biases.
• Pattern Recognition: Leverage your broad exposure to multiple domains and technologies to identify recurring architectural patterns and apply cross-industry innovations to unique client problems.
• Non-Functional Requirements (NFR) Focus: Ensure that proposed solutions rigorously address NFRs—security, compliance, performance, and total cost of ownership— which are often the make-or-break factors in enterprise deals.

Leadership & Collaboration

Deal Shaping: Collaborate with Sales, Product, and Delivery leaders to shape deal constructs, pricing models, and phased delivery approaches that reduce client risk and increase win rates.

Knowledge Mentoring: Mentor junior architects and presales engineers, teaching them how to think about architecture holistically and how to connect technical design to business value.

Feedback Loop: Serve as the voice of the customer to internal product and delivery teams, providing insights from the field to shape service offerings and go-to-market strategies.

JOB REQUIREMENTS

• 10+ years of progressive experience in IT, software engineering, enterprise architecture, or solution design, with at least 5+ years in a dedicated presales, customer-facing, or strategic advisory capacity.
• Agnostic Mindset: Proven ability to design solutions across various paradigms (e.g., on-premise, cloud-native, hybrid, monolithic, microservices) without bias toward a specific vendor or technology stack.
• Cross-Industry Exposure: Experience working across multiple domains/industries, demonstrating the ability to ramp up on new business models and regulatory environments rapidly.
• Executive Presence: Exceptional communication and storytelling skills. Ability to articulate complex architectural concepts to non-technical business leaders and translate business needs into technical requirements seamlessly.
• Presales Acumen: Demonstrated track record of directly contributing to large enterprise deal wins ($1M+ TCV), including experience writing SOWs (Statements of Work), crafting technical BOMs (Bills of Materials), and leading oral presentations.
• Frameworks & Methodologies: Strong grasp of enterprise architecture frameworks (TOGAF, Zachman, etc.) and agile/lean methodologies, using them as conceptual tools rather than rigid dogma.

Benefits

• Opportunities for promotion
• Professional development

Experience

• Solution Architect: 5 years (Required)
• Presales: 5 years (Required)
• IT: 5 years (Required)

Work Location: In person