Senior IT Architect

Job Description

Puget Sound Energy's Information Technology team is seeking a Senior IT Architect to lead the design and implementation of cloud-based AI solutions and drive the adoption of new cloud providers. In this role, you will be responsible for developing the architecture for PSE's cloud-enabled AI solutions and migrating our applications to cloud platforms. You will also play a key role in positioning PSE to leverage best-in-class cloud-native technologies and understanding the future direction of the utility industry.

As a Senior IT Architect, you will focus on the "why" behind our technology solutions, in addition to the "how." You will design and implement complete and complex systems with an eye on enterprise architecture, collaborating effectively with senior business leaders, technology owners, project teams, and executives to ensure we are developing secure and valuable technology roadmaps. Working with technology and business leaders to ensure IT is well aligned to the business outcomes and “why” technology is enabling business outcomes will be key for this role.

Our Team
The IT Applications team is distributed across the PSE territory, with central offices in Bothell and Bellevue. This is a hybrid position requiring 50% in-office presence. You will have the opportunity to work with a diverse team of thinkers who thrive in a culture of collaboration and teamwork, and enjoy a flexible work environment that fosters creativity, commitment, and work-life balance.

Why Join PSE IT?
We are leaders in delivering technology solutions that drive innovation within the energy industry and create long-term value for our customers. As a member of our team, you will have the opportunity to contribute to important community issues, such as increasing the availability of green energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and providing equitable energy to the communities in the Pacific Northwest. Your work will be important, valuable, and worth spending your time on, as you contribute to a critical service for your local community.

Put simply, what you do every day in PSE IT is important, valuable, and worth spending your finite time on because you contribute to a critical service for your local community. If you’re looking for a well-rounded, long-term opportunity-rich career, you have come to the right place. 

Job Responsibilities

•    Employs a systems engineering approach to design complete and complex frameworks and system. Designs at a conceptual and logical level. Consults with or assists Solution Delivery Teams with physical designs as needed. 

• Assists with definition of system and infrastructure specifications, interfaces, working parameters for hardware and/or software performance, function and compatibility. 
• Conceives system interfaces and business application prototypes. Identifies, analyzes and resolves system design weaknesses. Influences the shaping of future IT solutions by contributing to the framework (architecture) used across multiple solutions or systems.

•    Develops strategies, frameworks, and approaches for enterprise-wide systems to align with and influence business needs focusing on Cloud and AI technologies.
•    Analyzes marketplace, industry, company, technology trends and best practices, vendor products and services, etc. to inform and influence business and IT direction. 
•    Acts as prime spokesperson on company’s technical designs and future directions across multiple technology domains often presenting to executives and business leadership.
•    Researches, analyzes, designs, and proposes solutions that are appropriate for the business and technology strategies, are in alignment with IT’s reference architecture, and that capitalize on the principles of technology rationalization and reuse to ensure efficient usage of PSE’s IT investment. 
•    Advises Solution Delivery Teams on development of Technology Element Roadmaps (e.g. database version roadmap, server platform roadmap, cloud migration strategy). 
•    Has intuitive, holistic understanding of the most complex system designs and performance in unstable/dynamic or crisis situations based on broad and deep applied professional experience in a primary team with broad exposure to multiple segments to ensure effective technology integration. 
•    Understands the entire IT landscape at PSE based on broad and deep applied professional experience across all IT teams. 
•    Assesses the compatibility and integration of products/services proposed as standards to ensure an integrated architecture across interdependent technologies. 
•    Monitors technological advancements to ensure that proposed solutions are aligned with industry and company standards as well as emerging business requirements. 
•    Is a significant contributor to technology evaluation and selection efforts for most significant investment (multi-tenant cloud, LLM AI enablement)
•    Responsible for delivering Technology Feasibility Assessments which describe the organizations pre-requisites prior to adopting a new technology during project planning, rationalizing technology and its alignment to IT systems design. 
•    Participates in design reviews for aligned technology projects, contributing feedback to ensure alignment with IT Architecture patterns and IT strategy.
•    Focuses at Enterprise level shaping longer-term vision, and sets vision and delegates project-specific activities to appropriate level Solutions Architects / Team Technical Leads.

•    Demonstrates commitment to conduct business honestly, ethically and consistent with our core values and Code of Conduct. Ensures duties are performed in accordance with all regulatory compliance obligations.
•    Upholds the safety compliance standards inherent in PSE’s operating and/or field procedures related to work responsibilities. Promotes and supports a culture of total safety.

Minimum Qualifications

•    Bachelor's degree in computer science, or related field.
•    15 years of IT architecture experience. 
•    10 years’ experience working in a large-scale, heterogeneous IT environment. 
•    Ability to translate short- and long-range strategic plans for architecture into design and implementation of current and future applications. 
•    Has deep technical expertise in Amazon Web Services with working knowledge of other Cloud Platforms (Google/Azure), and broad understanding of how that technology is used across multiple business functions, in multiple industries, to deliver business value. 
•    Is able to influence credibly across multiple business functions or technologies with limited analysis (based on prior experience). 
•    Excellent interpersonal, oral/presentation and written communication skills in both technical and non-technical language. 
•    Strong leadership, project and team building skills – ability to lead teams and drive projects and initiatives by working effectively with others with a demonstrated ability to work cross-departmentally. 
•    Strong collaborator – willingness to share ideas, documentation and best practices. 
•    Conceptual and analytical thinker – ability to extract, analyze and document complex business and technical requirements/strategies from customers and IT team members.
 

Desired Qualifications

•    MS or MBA degree in Computer Science or related field
•    Prior utility industry work experience especially in regulated utilities.
•    IT Architecture related certification: TOGAF, ZCEA
•    AWS Certifications: Solutions Architect Professional, DevOps Engineer, Enterprise Architect, Machine Learning
 

Additional Information