Azure Cloud Architect

Azure Cloud Architect
Permanent
Location: UK - Remote
Salary: £80,000 - £90,000 (+ benefits)

Skills: Azure Architecture, Design Authority, HLD/LLD, Cloud Governance, Azure Landing Zones

We are working with a leading technology and consultancy organisation to recruit an experienced Azure Cloud Architect into its Infrastructure & Cloud team.

This is a senior, customer-facing architecture role focused on the design, governance and assurance of complex cloud and infrastructure solutions across large-scale transformation programmes.

The role will act as a technical authority across cloud solution design, ensuring architectures are secure, scalable, resilient, supportable and commercially viable. It is less focused on hands-on engineering and more on strategic architecture, design assurance, technical leadership and customer engagement.

The role

You will be responsible for:

• Leading and chairing cloud and infrastructure Design Authority reviews
• Reviewing and approving High-Level and Low-Level Designs
• Providing architectural direction across Azure, AWS, Microsoft 365 and hybrid cloud environments
• Defining and governing cloud standards, reference architectures, design patterns and guardrails
• Challenging solution designs where there are risks around complexity, cost, security, supportability or compliance
• Supporting cloud migrations, modernisation programmes and platform transformation initiatives
• Working closely with engineering, security, delivery and operational teams throughout the solution lifecycle
• Providing technical leadership during bids, tenders, discovery engagements and customer workshops
• Reviewing solution scope, assumptions, dependencies, sizing, risk and cost
• Presenting and defending architectural decisions to customers and senior stakeholders
• Ensuring solutions meet requirements around resilience, monitoring, backup, disaster recovery and operational handover
• Acting as a senior escalation point for complex technical decisions
• Mentoring architects, technical leads and cloud engineering teams

What we’re looking for

We are looking for an experienced cloud architect with strong technical depth and the ability to operate at a strategic and customer-facing level.

You will ideally have:

• Expert knowledge of Microsoft Azure architecture
• Strong experience with Azure governance and landing zone principles
• Experience designing solutions across complex enterprise cloud environments
• Strong knowledge of networking, identity, security, connectivity, storage and compute
• Experience producing and reviewing HLDs and LLDs
• Experience operating within a Design Authority or architecture governance environment
• Understanding of Infrastructure as Code, ideally Terraform, Bicep or similar
• Knowledge of CI/CD, automation, observability, container platforms and platform engineering
• Experience designing resilient solutions including backup and disaster recovery
• Strong stakeholder management, presentation and facilitation skills
• The ability to translate complex technical issues into clear business impact and recommendations

Experience across AWS, Microsoft 365 and hybrid cloud environments would be advantageous.

Experience working within Central Government, Defence, regulated or security-conscious environments would also be highly beneficial.

Security clearance

Existing SC clearance is highly desirable for this role, particularly given the nature of the customer environments and programmes involved.

Candidates without current SC clearance may still be considered where they have the right background and are eligible to undergo the clearance process.