About your role:

We're looking for a Software Architect to lead the design and implementation of high-level software architectures, collaborating with cross-functional teams-including machine learning and data scientists and external product teams-to deliver innovative solutions aligned with business objectives. This role exists to ensure the development of scalable, efficient, and integrated software systems while leading the team to uphold best practices and achieve project goals. We're seeking an experienced and adaptable Software Architect with strong leadership abilities and expertise in collaborative, cloud-based software development, ideally in a corporate research environment.

The team is currently primarily in Antwerp, Belgium but we are building a Windsor, Berkshire-centred team to match. This is a hybrid working position, based in Windsor, Berkshire (2 days on-site). It will be useful to be able to travel between the locations.

Key responsibilities will include:

Solution Architecture and Design

Design and oversee high-level software architectures aligned with business objectives.

Apply data engineering principles to design efficient data pipelines and storage.

Integrate solutions seamlessly with machine learning models and data science workflows.

Technical Leadership and Collaboration

Collaborate closely with researcher engineers, data scientists, software and DevOps engineers, to ensure the quality of solutions.

Promote best practices within the team, including rigorous testing, code review, continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) techniques, and well-maintained documentation.

Introduce innovative solutions using emerging technologies.

Team Leadership and Development

Lead and mentor a team of developers, fostering excellence.

Enhance team skills in coding practices and technical competencies.

Conduct performance evaluations and support career growth.

Here's what we're looking for:

Professional experience

A bachelor's degree in computer science, Software Engineering, or a related field is required; a master's degree or relevant certifications (such as AWS Certified Solutions Architect) are highly desirable.

Professional experience in software development, including significant experience in software architecture and team leadership.

Proven ability to design high-level software architectures aligned with business goals.

Technical knowledge

Understanding of data architecture concepts and best practices to support our machine learning and data science activities.

Experience in architecting and managing scalable cloud-native solutions particularly on AWS.

Advanced knowledge of Python programming and relevant frameworks.

Bonus: Working knowledge of other languages, especially JVM-based, Go, or Rust.

Bonus: Familiarity with some of our other key applications, e.g. web or mobile front-end design, data persistency, IoT devices.

Leadership and Software Management

Experience with testing, code review practices, code deployment, and infrastructure management.

Proven ability to lead and mentor development teams effectively.

Experience conducting performance evaluations and supporting career growth.

Skilled in fostering a collaborative and high-performance team environment.

Communication and Collaboration

Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Ability to collaborate closely with cross-functional teams and stakeholders.

Skilled in conveying complex technical concepts to non-technical audiences