Principal Solution Architect

Principal Solution Architect

Enterprise SaaS | World-Class Engineering

Location: Manchester (Central) – Hybrid

Package: Up to £100,000 base + up to 30% bonus + car allowance

The Opportunity

This is a senior architecture role within a high-growth, enterprise-scale SaaS business building mission-critical platforms used at serious scale .

The organisation is actively modernising a complex technology estate into a cloud-native, shared SaaS platform , designed for reuse, speed, and long-term resilience. Architecture is not an afterthought here — it is a first-class discipline with real influence over how systems are designed, built, and evolved.

This role is for a Principal-level Solution Architect who wants to shape platforms , guide engineering teams, and design solutions that will still make sense in five years’ time.

What You’ll Own

You will operate as a technical authority , working closely with senior engineering, product, and technology leaders.

Your focus is end-to-end solution architecture , not diagram production.

Key responsibilities:

• Owning solution architecture across complex enterprise SaaS platforms
• Designing cloud-native, scalable, resilient systems
• Translating product and business needs into clear, executable technical designs
• Defining architectural patterns, standards, and guardrails
• Guiding engineering teams through architectural trade-offs
• Ensuring solutions meet expectations around performance, availability, security, and scalability
• Managing architectural risk and technical debt proactively
• Influencing long-term platform strategy and technology direction

This is hands-on architecture , not governance theatre.

The Environment

You’ll be working in:

• A true product-led SaaS environment
• Modern cloud platforms (AWS/Azure)
• Event-driven and distributed systems
• High-calibre engineering teams who value good architecture
• A business that invests properly in technology and engineering standards

Architecture here is respected, listened to, and acted on .

The Profile This Role Is Built For

This role is suited to someone who:

• Operates comfortably at Principal / Lead Solution Architect level
• Has a strong software engineering background
• Has designed and delivered enterprise SaaS solutions
• Is fluent in modern cloud and distributed system design
• Can influence without ego and challenge constructively
• Cares deeply about long-term platform quality

You should be comfortable:

• Working across product, engineering, and senior stakeholders
• Getting close to engineering teams
• Making and standing by architectural decisions

Technical Background (Indicative)

Experience in areas such as:

• Cloud-native architecture (AWS / Azure)
• Microservices and event-driven systems
• REST APIs and integration patterns
• Distributed systems
• SQL and NoSQL data stores
• Containerisation (Docker / Kubernetes)
• Infrastructure as Code and modern DevOps practices

You don’t need to tick every box — depth and judgement matter more than buzzwords.

Working Model & Package

• Hybrid working – Manchester (central)
• Up to £100,000 base salary
• Up to 30% bonus
• Additional car allowance
• Senior-level autonomy and trust
• Real influence over a large-scale SaaS platform