The role of the Business Architect is to significantly contribute towards efforts to improve, and create alignment between, the business and technology functions to ensure that the organisation can execute its strategy and achieve its primary goals. The Business Architect must therefore have a good understanding of both business and technology strategy and concepts; requirements and designs; their mutual dependencies and impacts on one another; and an understanding of technology transformation and project management disciplines to create practical and feasible plans that deliver on the Firm’s primary goals. The Business Architecture team works to develop an integrated view of the enterprise, defining and using coherent frameworks, and repeatable methods and techniques.

In addition to general Business Architect duties, the successful candidate will also lead the operating model design, and potentially assist with its implementation, and internal technology function. You must therefore have a detailed understanding of technology operating models, including people, process and technology components, for example, frameworks and archetypes of business capability models, organisational structures, roles and responsibilities, governance, high-level processes, skills, mindsets and behaviours, etc. If you assist with implementation, then we would expect you to also have a good understanding of technology transformation and project management disciplines to create practical and feasible plans that deliver the required change to our existing operating model.

Key Responsibilities

Core knowledge

• Possess a high level of knowledge in core areas, incl. design thinking, business capability modelling, process models, value stream mapping, customer & user profiling, journey maps etc.
• Apply expert knowledge in the design and development of operating models
• Apply knowledge of current, emerging and future technology market trends, translating these into impacts on the business and its operating model(s)

Core tasks

• Work closely with the business and tech functions to create alignment between business and IT
• Help the business to understand the potential impacts of current, emerging and future technology market trends
• Support the development of technology strategies, responding to and informing the business strategy
• Ensure that Business Architecture is a key input in the development of other enterprise architecture views
• Translate strategy into transformation portfolios, individual initiatives and business cases, incl. operating model impacts
• Advise on options, risks, costs vs. benefits, and impact on other business processes and roadmap priorities
• Apply core Business Architect methods, incl. design thinking, business capability and scenario modelling, process models, etc. to deliver tangible value to the business
• Develop good understanding of the business and technology strategies and translate these into implications for the target state operating model
• Rapidly assimilate and apply the businesses operating model frameworks and methods
• Assess the current operating model of the businesses internal technology function, and develop the aspirational target-state maturity
• Define and develop the detailed target operating model, including option analyses, balancing the 'art of the possible' with pragmatism and potential constraints

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Essential (Business Architecture)

• Significant experience in the development of operating models.
• Proven track record and experience of other Business Architecture areas, incl. business and technology strategies, process models, business and technology capability models and taxonomies
• Good understanding of design thinking, value stream mapping, customer profiles and journeys, KPIs, risk and control frameworks, and KRIs
• Good knowledge of at least one technology domain, incl. Collaboration & Experience; Automation; Data Science & AI; Data; Integration; Security; and Cloud Engineering
• A high level of general, technical knowledge incl. current, emerging and future technology market trends and their impact on business
• 10+ years of experience in Business Architecture or related roles (e.g. Business Analyst, Process Architect), with at least 6 years as a Business Architect
• Qualified in ITIL and TOGAF (The Open Group Architecture Framework)

Essential (Other)

• Experience of working with Agile and waterfall methods
• Understanding of common business analysis techniques and approaches
• Able to explain technical concepts to a non-technical audience in a way that is relevant, easy to consume and compelling
• Good understanding of project management concepts, incl. Gantt charts/plans, risks, assumptions and dependencies, etc.
• Good oral and written communication skills
• Good interpersonal and leadership skills
• Ability to leverage networks within, e.g. to tap into additional expertise if required
• Comfortable working with ambiguity at the beginning of projects, with ability to provide clarity of direction despite this

Desirable

• Experience of working with offshore teams
• Practical understanding of GDPR and ISO 27001
• Bachelor’s degree

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