Solution Architect Lead

Location: Greater London

** Salary for this Role:
** From £71,500 with benefits, subject to skills and experience.
*
* Job Title:

** Solution Architect Lead
*
* Reports to:

** Anita Jena-Smol
** Closing Date:
** 22/Mar/ GMT
*
* Job Description:

***
* Job Title:

** Solution Architect Lead
** Details of the role:
**** Working pattern**:
This is a full-time, hybrid (3 days a week in the office) permanent position on Crick terms and conditions of employment.
** Salary:
** From £71,537 with benefits, subject to skills and experience
** Final date to receive applications:
** 22nd of March 2026 he Francis Crick Institute is Europe’s largest biomedical research institute under one roof. Our world-class scientists and staff collaborate on vital research to help prevent, diagnose and treat illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, infectious diseases and neurodegenerative conditions.

The Crick is a place for collaboration, innovation and exploration across many disciplines. A space where the brightest minds can pursue big and bold ideas and discover answers to crucial scientific questions. We support them in a dynamic environment which fosters excellence with state-of-the-art infrastructure, cutting-edge facilities, and a creative and curious culture. We’ve removed traditional boundaries of departments, divisions and disciplines and instead have an open approach that supports every researcher.

This gives us the freedom to take risks and carry out high-quality, pioneering research. Creating a space for discovery without boundaries helps us to turn our science into benefits for human health and the economy.
** About the role
** We are seeking an experienced and proactive Solution Architect Lead (known internally as Technical Design Lead) to drive the design of innovative IT services that power Crick Science and  this pivotal role, collaboration is key. You will partner across diverse teams from research data and software engineering to high‑performance computing, ensuring that technical design reflects the needs of scientists, analysts, project managers, and stakeholders at every level.

As part of one of the world’s leading biomedical research institutes, you’ll be creating solutions that push the boundaries of what’s possible. This is a full spectrum role spanning technology, process, and people, where no two projects are the same. You’ll foster engagement, alignment, and understanding that technology is only part of the answer, while enabling end‑to‑end solutions that support ground breaking science.

A background in scientific industries such as pharma or research is a plus but above all, we’re looking for a collaborative leader with vision, adaptability, and the drive to make a real impact.
** What you will be doing
** As a technical design lead, you will
* Lead the technical design process, sitting within the wider project management office which owns the delivery process from idea to implementation
* Inspire and lead a small team of dedicated architects alongside subject matter experts and solution architects embedded in other teams
* Proactively seek ways to optimise and improve the technical design function.
* Foster a community of technical subject matter experts across the IT Office, providing advice and guidance on great solution design
* Creating compliant and robust solution architectures aligned with business and legal requirements, as well as IT policy.
* Supporting the handover of technical design and platform from project to operations
* Understanding of the Crick and ITO’s strategy, ensuring the technology roadmap meets current and future objectives
** About you
*
* You will have:

* Educated to degree level or equivalent experience, ideally in Computer Science or related STEM subject.
* Experience of working as a solution architect or equivalent role, leading solution design reviews across different teams
* Experience of building strong stakeholder relationships with external business users and internal technology platform and service owners as well as subject matter experts
* Strong understanding of the full technology stack including: infrastructure, data, integration and application and reporting layers
* Experience working on IT…