Solutions Architect

Job Overview

Solutions Architect – Department of Technology & Innovation.
Job Number: 416783.
Number of Positions: 1 (additional vacancies possible pending budget approval).
Starting Salary: $119,244. This position is open to the public and all current City employees covered under the City’s collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) – Bargaining Unit 1, 3, 4 & 5. Only employees in City job titles in this bargaining unit are eligible to bid.
BID INSTRUCTIONS: Apply on the bid site:  1. Check the box on your profile titled "Currently employed by the City of Chicago." 2. Enter your employee  (located on your pay stub labeled 'payee/employee number'). 3. Select your correct bargaining unit.
FAILURE TO FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS WILL RESULT IN A REJECTED BID APPLICATION. Applications for this position will be accepted until 11:59pm CDT on 03/14/2026.

Under supervision, the class proactively and holistically leads and supports Enterprise Architecture activities that guide the development and management of an array of solutions architecture within the City's strategic objectives; and performs related duties as required. The class is assigned to the City's Architect Information Technology Job Family which consists of architects that develop technology strategy and vision, create technology roadmaps, select specific technologies, provide conceptual designs of the technology environment, and create high-level solution designs.

• Provides the necessary leadership, analysis and design tasks related to support the development of technology solutions to ensure that solutions meet business needs and align with policy, architectural governance and standards.
• Translates business and technical requirements into an architectural blueprint to achieve business objectives and documents all solution architecture design and analysis work.
• Works closely with the product owners and product managers to ensure a robust architectural runway that can support future business requirements throughout the product life cycle.
• Understands business drivers and business capabilities (future and current state) and determines corresponding enterprise solution designs and change requirements to drive the organization's targeted business outcomes.
• Monitors the current‑state solution portfolio to identify deficiencies through aging of the technologies used by the application, or misalignment with business requirements.
• Supports product managers in end‑of‑life product decisions to maintain, refresh or retire services, or systems, including applications, technologies, processes, and information.
• Understands emerging technology trends, disruptions and their practical application to enable new and evolving business and operating models.
• Facilitates the evaluation and selection of software product standards and services, as well as the design of standard and custom software configurations.
• Consults with application and infrastructure development projects to review products to ensure the architecture meets architecture standards and identify if it is necessary to modify designs to accommodate architecture standards.
• Leads evaluation, design, and analysis for the implementation of a solutions architecture across a group of specific business applications or technologies based on enterprise business strategy, business capabilities, value‑streams, business requirements and enterprise standards.
• Works closely with the program management office (PMO) to ensure the execution of plans corresponds with what is being promised throughout the project or product life cycle.
• Understands the concepts of business goals, objectives and business outcomes, business capabilities, value‑streams, and business processes and their importance in solution architecture.
• Provides consulting support to application architects within development teams to ensure the project or product is aligned with the overall enterprise architecture.
• Provides deliverables like standard definitions, reference models and architecture designs to support architectural governance to assess the impact of new and ongoing…