Principal Enterprise Architect

Role Overview

• Define and lead BECU’s enterprise technology strategy, modernizing core banking, payments, and digital platforms through cloud‑native, API‑driven, and AI‑enabled architectures while operating within a highly regulated financial services environment.
• Establish enterprise standards and architectural guardrails that ensure security, compliance, resiliency, and data protection, enabling the safe adoption of emerging capabilities such as AI and automation.
• Guide the evolution from legacy platforms to modern, scalable platforms and services—leveraging Azure and other enterprise technologies as appropriate.
• Balance innovation with operational stability to deliver trusted experiences that enhance member value and meet regulatory expectations.
• Provide enterprise‑level architectural oversight across multiple concurrent initiatives, guiding design and integration decisions that align with long‑term business and technology strategy.
• Lead architectural direction for modernizing legacy platforms into cloud‑native, hybrid, and platform‑based architectures, leveraging technologies such as .NET, Azure, containerized services, event‑driven systems, and a mix of data platforms including Cosmos DB, Oracle DB, and other enterprise data stores that support banking, payments, and digital capabilities.
• Establish, maintain, and champion enterprise architecture standards, patterns, and constraints that reduce fragmentation and promote consistency across core banking, payments, and digital platforms.
• Proactively identify architectural, integration, platform, and data risks, and drive mitigation strategies that protect delivery timelines, security, and operational stability in a regulated environment.
• Partner closely with engineering, architecture, security, vendors, and technology leadership, influencing outcomes without direct authority while maintaining strong alignment across teams.
• Develop enterprise and solution‑level blueprints that guide delivery teams and ensure implementations support approved roadmaps and reusable enterprise patterns.
• Support delivery momentum by providing timely architectural decisions, reducing reliance on tactical or short‑term solutions, and removing architectural design debt.
• Evaluate third‑party platforms, monitor industry trends, and recommend solutions that improve long‑term business value and architectural sustainability.
• Serve as a mentor and architectural standard‑bearer for other architects and technical partners, elevating architectural maturity across the organization.
• Partner with production and support teams to resolve near‑term architectural issues while protecting long‑term enterprise integrity.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Information Security, Computer Science or related field, or equivalent work experience required
• Minimum of ten years of experience designing and implementing enterprise architectures required
• Minimum seven years of experience in a project lead role, either managing or advising large and strategic project teams required
• Knowledge of the Microsoft infrastructure and solution stacks operating in on‑premises, cloud, and hybrid hosting environments required
• Experience with modern technology service architectural hosting, security, and risk management concerns (e.g., IAM, access control, monitoring, IaaS/PaaS/SaaS, containers) required
• Advanced degree preferred
• Ability to communicate very technically challenging concepts to a broad audience with strong facilitation and presentation skills preferred
• Broad knowledge of technologies and supplier capabilities and experience implementing these into new and existing large infrastructure/systems preferred
• Experience working within large organizations, and the ability to develop strong relationships preferred
• Certification in LEAN, Agile/Scrum, or ITIL principals with experience implementing one of these practices preferred
• Excellent organizational, problem‑solving, strategic thinking and decision‑making, planning, and negotiation skills preferred
• Proficient verbal and written skills to effectively communicate and provide customer service preferred
• Occasional travel to conferences, training events, and vendor sites preferred
• Full‑time hours required, with additional hours as necessary
• Experience driving AI adoption and applying intelligent automation or AI‑enabled capabilities within enterprise architectures preferred
• Experience designing or governing intelligent APIs, including reusable, secure, and scalable API patterns preferred
• Experience supporting or modernizing core banking operations and digital platforms in a regulated financial services environment preferred

Tech Stack

• Azure
• Cloud
• Oracle
• .NET

Benefits

• 401(k) Company Match (up to 3%)
• 4% annual contribution to your 401(k) by BECU
• Medical, Dental and Vision (family contributions as well)
• PTO Program + Exchange Program
• Tuition Reimbursement Program
• BECU Cares volunteer time off + donation match